Do you see yourself as having AS or as being autistic

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I consider myself an aspie. I usually explain that it is under the bigger umbrella of autism.

I just say I'm autistic. I assume there is enough confusion for people to figure that one out, as they are always getting different info, etc.

Basically that's how I approach it. More people have heard of autism than Asperger's, regardless of how "right" or "wrong" their info. may be. Many of others' preconceptions about autism or Asperger's seem stereotypical & I don't like having assumptions made about me based on that, since I'm a specific individual (with both differences & similarities to other dx'd people).
As to how I think of myself: person who has AS (like having a condition superimposed upon my otherwise intact personality) or being an AS person (that it's an inseparable integral influence running through my entire brain & body) ? Well, both, or back & forth between "being autistic" vs. "having autism". Don't have a stable preference-guess it depends on how I feel at that moment. Sometimes I don't believe in the dx generally, sometimes I do but don't believe it fits me, and a lot of the time I figure it makes more sense applied to me than any other label/explanatory framework. And that goes off into subjects covered by other threads...

I see myself as autistic. I know there is some debate over the differences between HFA and AS, but I am of the opinion that they are pretty much the same. You can't adequately distinguish between them because of the criteria (delay in speech in HFA) and it can depend on the person who diagnoses you. For example, someone who is diagnosed as HFA by one doctor, might be diagnosed AS by another doctor. It's also really hard to guage how well you 'function' compared to other people, but I know of people who are officially diagnosed HFA that seem to function just as well as, or better than, I do. It seems like it's a difficult line to draw so I tend to personally disregard it for the most part. I see the spectrum as a spectrum without definite division.

So, I see myself as autistic. Because, to me, AS is still autism.

When it comes to telling other people, in official situations it's obviously Asperger's because that's the official diagnosis. But in private I'll often switch between Asperger's and autism. I prefer to use the term autism, because I think that it's more helpful for people to be introduced to the fact that it's a spectrum and not all people with autism are like Rain Man. It's also easier for people to understand, in a way. More people are familiar with the term 'autism' than 'Asperger's'. Then depending on how much we might discuss the matter, I'll explain that it's a form known as Asperger's Syndrome.

My family only ever use the term Asperger's Syndrome, perhaps seeing it as having less stigma than autism (which is partly why I prefer that term, because it's educational for people to see that autism isn't purely some very scary 'disease' that some people are 'afflicted' with). But my online friends (who are NT) all seem to also see Asperger's and autism as interchangeable terms, because that is how I use them. And they see autism as something that is integral to my character and so they embrace it and find it very interesting.

I use Autistic. I don't really see any difference. So I started speaking, and reading early. Other than that I fit the HFA criteria. Who knows I'm seeing another shrink on the 27th. This one may say HFA rather than AS, or he may say the same thing as the other ones. It's all Autism.

The best discription I know is "A little bit autie"

Ocationaley they reply with "You are Aspergers?"

but I realy would not mention it outside of people who really know me.