I was encouraged by a certain moderator to post this. It seems we've had some rather interesting interpretations of the English language lately. So here're some pointers:


http://www.sorcerers.net/ubb/Forum1/HTML/000471.html

Snat26: Once i meet Drizzt once and i leave the sector can i find him again if i re-enter.
Ok, kids. Let's work on capitalizing "I" when using it as the first-person pronoun. Not a difficult thing. See that key right under your "Enter" key? Use it.


http://www.sorcerers.net/ubb/Forum1/HTML/000542.html

Sir Dargorn: It is obvious that the worst npc is obviously Xzar. what a moron!
It's also not a bad idea to avoid using "obvious" and its derivitives twice in the same sentence. What a moron. :) (Shralp loves you, Poodle.)


http://www.sorcerers.net/ubb/Forum2/HTML/004166.html

Xaelifer: OH YEEEEEEEAAAAAAHHHHH YOSHIMO!!!! THAT'S THE ONE!!!!!!!!
...LOVED that ...DUMB ...DISEASE ...it is SOOOOOOO exciting to discuss such IMPORTANT details like what characters I like even though everyone hates my OPINION OF THE ACTUAL GAME!!!

I really don't have a better comment on overusing caps than what Wittynewt said:
Easy there Xaelifer, I think you nearly blew a valve...


http://www.sorcerers.net/ubb/Forum2/HTML/004254.html

Naer Dhal: gamer, I dont think the is a patch for that problem,
Leethal: ive lost my familiar before,
Have you two lost your apostrophe key too? They're pretty standard when constructing a contraction.


http://www.sorcerers.net/ubb/Forum2/HTML/004250.html

Leethal: Hey, Firkragg aint too hard, my undead hunter killed him by himself, hes lev 18 with flail of ages and dragon(skin?) shield....
Hey, I'm even good with using the word "ain't," but at least use that apostrophe. Oh, look. It's Leethal again.


www.sorcerers.net/ubb/Forum1/HTML/000503.html (http://www.sorcerers.net/ubb/Forum1/HTML/000503.html)

Garathorn: send 2 fighters up with blunt weapons with hast they fall prity quick next level is gasts next hobgoblins (elite) next kobold commandos

http://www.sorcerers.net/ubb/Forum1/HTML/000472.html

AK_Rooster: hmm the ghost who said he needs me to find some tombs in the ulcaster well were are the tombs ? is there more then one level to ulcaster i cant find a door anywere is it hidden? .... thanks u guys man it usre was hard to see hehe

Garathorn (again): there is more than one vampiric wolf in bg that gives you 2000 exp there is one on the ile of the warewolfs (TOTSC only)an the other is at the temple east of beragost on the north/east corner of the map
Yes, and in English we write in word groups called "sentences." After each one we use punctuation. These are pretty small little dots for the most part, so try to add one here or there. You are not, in fact, saving Taluntain any electricity by omitting them.


http://www.sorcerers.net/ubb/Forum2/HTML/000079.html

Mordeth: your gonna need it sooner or later


http://www.sorcerers.net/ubb/Forum2/HTML/000570.html

TelexStar: Memnoch, your so brave!!
Ok, kids, let us review. "You're" is a contraction of "you are." "Your" is a possessive pronoun. Unless there's a creature called a "So Brave" that belongs to Memnoch, TelexStar (you named yourself after a phone company?) should have written "you're".

In case you're not tired of Leethal (I'm sure he'll get better.):

http://www.sorcerers.net/ubb/Forum2/HTML/004268.html

Leethal: What basic monster (or enemy) seems to give you the most grief? I still find vampires annoying if i dont have resist level drain.....
Im intrested in what challenges u

Palpatine-: hard to say, but i think i would vote on, uhm... cant remember the monsters name, but, its a golem, big metallic...
um, maybe its not a regular enemy, i dont know... :T
Wow. No caps where there should be. No apostrophes. Used "u" instead of "you." Misspelled "interested." I think these two lads almost hit all the major errors.

http://www.sorcerers.net/ubb/Forum2/HTML/004082.html

Aurum: I decide play solo with Aerie, (me, Paladin, cavalier), why?, because I want know to where I can reach, but surprise, Aerie is most strenght, with potions, there aren´t spell that no learn her, how cleric is excelent, solo for dungeons is necesary a thief, but solo for disarm the traps.
Wow. Now, this looks more like someone who doesn't know the language very well yet. But he will, and I don't want anyone to think I'm ripping on him. His English is probably better than my Spanish. I post this because his post, in my eyes, is perfectly acceptable. He's trying to write good English. The other examples posted about are just people too lazy to put in proper punctuation, capitalization, etc.

Stop it.

[This message has been edited by Shralp (edited November 20, 2001).]

Very well said, Shralp. [In other words it means thanks for not putting any of my post comments] ;)

yOUrE iDeA wAS a gOOD 1 sHRALP* iM lUcKY NONE O MY POStS aRE ON that* sOME Of THAT IS kinda sORTA FUNNy aint it* iTs reminden ME oF What a liTTle Kids wRighT Likes*

:lol: Sorry, I just had to do that.


[This message has been edited by Archer14 (edited November 20, 2001).]

"I before E except after C."

I have to repeat that one to myself a few times. That one always seems to get me.

You won't get me for under punctuating. Maybe over punctuating though. ;) I am the comma king. I put them everywhere.

I am the comma king. I put them everywhere.
Except, of course, in that entire previous post. :grin:


Seriously, though, thanks for saying something I have felt (for quite some time) needed to be said. While I understand that many regulars here are from different corners of the globe and English is often not their first language, a majority of the errors seem more due to apathy than anything else. Punctuation rules are pretty standard among the three languages I speak and thus I would expect to see question marks at the end of questions, periods at the end of sentences and so on. To and too; there, their and they're, were and where... Don't get me started. Maybe I am simply being picky (as I have been known to do) but I am far more inclined to help someone whose question or comment I can understand without having to read it three times over.


[This message has been edited by JohnnyRTFM (edited November 20, 2001).]

Well I've been known for my interesting spelling in the past, so I won't dare pick on anyone for such mistakes. Hey, we all don't recheck every post for gramatical accuaracy. But I think alot of the mistakes Sharlp pointed out so well are from the wonderful breed of online kids we have today. No matter what part of the globe they seem to be from, for whatever reason, they feel they should leave all their basic grammar skills at the door the minute they log on. Is it so hard to reach for the shift key before you type "I"? Are three letter just too much to type for you to type you? It doesn't look *cool*, it looks piss poor and lazy. Nothing personal, but I take pride in the quality of posts here. Even if you make the greatest points in the world in your posts, if you choose to make them run on for half a page and fill them with o's and u's and i's, they won't be taken half as seriously as they might have. I don't see any point in trying to descipher such mess. I've tediously gone through posts where I could hardly make out what the author meant on the net just because of his little l33t spelling. What's the point. You're likely smarter than that. Surely you don't just capitalize letters at random when you fill out a job application do you? Would you ever start an essay with the lower case letter "i"? Then why insist on doing it when you're online. It just makes it that more challenging for the rest of use that use the English language properly to decipher what in the world you are trying to say. Next time just punctuate and capitalize. It'll save me a rant.

(Phew...that rant just kept going and going and going....;))

[This message has been edited by Crawl (edited November 20, 2001).]

On the subject of going and going, I might mention that it also makes for easier reading if you break long posts into paragraphs separated by a blank line. Also, for those of you who do have trouble with spelling, Tal has kindly linked us to a spell checker along with all those other handy links at the top right of the Boards page.

I hope those of you whom Shralp has chosen for examples don't take his chiding too harshly. He's not picking on you out of meanness, I promise. He just cares about our poor misused English language. It should be a little embarrassing when our overseas friends have better grammar than we do; let's set a good example.

What?! I am not quoted! How can that be possible? I make more typos then my grandma when she is drunk and lost her glasses. :lol:

Thanks for making this post... I am one of those who hate bad grammar, when it's done because the writer doesn't care what he writes! The only time I use bad grammar is to make a point, you know what I mean. "Aerie. Pathetic. Need I say more?" goes for an example.

I just can't get it... people, who have English as their FIRST language write worse than a teenager whose first language is something as obscure as Finnish...

I agree on the point of that one post being well done, for as it hadn't been done intentionally...

Ara
(Uses really bad grammar in these little afterthoughts... too bad.)

I do mistakes too. Many of them.
But Shralp, I really don't care.

The only thing I care for is "understandability".
You have number of posts gramatically paerfect, and I still can't say what was the point of a poster. Is it a comment, is it a question or something else.

You don't know what am I talking about now? Browse through PoR forum.

To finalize this I'll just say that bad grammar may be problem to you Shralp, but my problem is bad posting style.

I agree with Extremist. We can't demand perfect grammar from everyone here. As long as I understand what the poster is saying and the post is not ugly it's fine with me.

I am a lot more patient with poor grammar than I am with unkindness. Can we please leave criticism up to the moderators? I take my "editor" hat off when I come here, and it's not that painful. If you can't say something nice...

Extremist and Mollusken, in the last example posted above I specifically pointed out that it's not bad grammar that I have a problem with; a lot of people don't know the rules, and frankly a lot of the rules of grammar are silly. Who really cares if an infinitive is split?

My point was that people don't pay any attention to things like hitting the shift key to capitalize "I" or putting in end punctuation or writing out "you" instead of "u." That was obvious from my post, if you read it all. But that cute little Extremist just likes to argue with me.

Extremist, I believe the word you were looking for was, "legibility." ;)

I thought I'd add in one of my own personal favorites to the hall, a classic, from the Role Play Corner forum, Campaign of Kilren:

"And I will start useing a spell cheaker cuz I know that I cant spell."

Hmmm. Evidently he has not started using a spell "cheaker" soon enough.

I, Sniper of the Sorcerers Veteren Popularity tribe (SVP), hereby announce that I am now known henceforth as an owner of the grammically correct contract of good and understandable English. I feel proud! I wish thee all, the best of luck.

As I told you in the chat yesterday, Shralp. This thread would take a lot of work to do. If you want to do it then at least do it with style. Find all the pearls of abusing the english language. Instead you take the first couple of lazy people you find in a forum and try and make it a big deal. I don't care about perfect punctuation and perfect distribution of commas and apostrophes. This a forum for roleplaying games not your personal highschool. You have way too much time on your hands. Or way to little to make a proper post about "Grammar Hall of shame". Hardly a hall of shame when you pick the first couple of examples you find. :rolleyes:

[This message has been edited by ArchAngel (edited November 20, 2001).]

Did I hit a bit close to home, Nobleman?

I'll be happy to give you a real English grammar lesson if you like.

I took my examples from recent posts. Kind of makes sense when criticizing what's currently happening on the boards, don't you think? If you want to sift through years of SP posts just looking for English errors, then feel free. But there's no need to be a jackass.

Hehehe. Be nice people.

Shralp - I could have told you this would happen. Darien made a post on a similar subject a while ago, and as I remember she took a bit of heat for it.

It seems most people don't like to have their grammar critiqued on a message board unless they ask...

It's simply a stupid thread, Shralp. We all see bad grammar here, but we seldom care. No need to make a kind of summary of it.

It didn't feel nice to be called lazy now did it, Shralp? Irony is sweet isn't it? If you do notice when it drops by. No hard feelings.

i dunn0 wh3at u r tamvlking ab0ut
Ahem, sorry about that.

Irony is when the perceived meaning of something differs from the actual meaning. I have not seen anything ironic here, but I always allow for the possibility that I am merely dense.

I don't believe the thread is meant to be mean or hurtful to those who do make grammatical errors in their posts. It was originally intended simply to have fun. Some people on the boards that use English as their primary language still don't even bother to use even the simplest of grammatical rules. Laziness being the main reason. Some are well aware of their terrible spelling and grammar and STILL don't care to use a spell checker. If they're going to post under the knowledge that they aren't spelling or punctuating correctly... they should understand when others point it out.

The Grim Ripper: Archer14 already covered that joke ^^



[This message has been edited by Xenecor (edited November 20, 2001).]

Not that I agree with Archangel, but the irony lies in the fact that you wouldn't expect a lazy person to be expounding on the perils of grammatical laziness...

heh. Not to be long winding. But the actual meaning of my post was to complain that you title "Hall of shame" implied that the context of your thread would be more subtle and inventive than mocking recent events of "forgetting" punctuations, aposthrophes etc.

The "perceived" was that it is not polite to call someone lazy and point it out to a crowd. E-mail them if you have a problem with it. So I took the liberty to point out that you were lazy in not making a proper thread. You felt sad or offended didn't you? I wonder how Leethal feels. The "perceived" was teaching etiquette.

PS. Fair should be fair. You are right. it wasn't or isn't irony. My bad :). I just tried to defend those poor newbies. You could easily have picked on me, I make throngs of mistakes. I should have settled with what Mollusken said. Instead of a personal persuit for people, this time you, to act polite.

EDITED Because I made another mistake. I put the words actual and perceived the wrong places. Look you could make a thread about my bads. :p

[This message has been edited by ArchAngel (edited November 20, 2001).]

Im sorry but that original post was singling out people and picking on people, for example:

Leethal:
quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ive lost my familiar before,
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Have you two lost your apostrophe key too? They're pretty standard when constructing a contraction.

Leethal:

quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hey, Firkragg aint too hard, my undead hunter killed him by himself, hes lev 18 with flail of ages and dragon(skin?) shield....
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Hey, I'm even good with using the word "ain't," but at least use that apostrophe. Oh, look. It's Leethal again."


"Oh look its Leethal again?" Im sorry (oh god no apostophe! Shoot me where I stand!) but in my books THAT is picking on somone, and it is wrong.

[This message has been edited by Gash (edited November 20, 2001).]

Gash:
Why is singling out people the same as picking on them? Do you disapprove of the IOTW 'award' too? As in the way the IOTW plaque encourages people to change their behaviour, so should this thread encourage the persons mentioned to change their grammatical habits. Or have I completely missed the point of this thread?

Singling out is only bad when it is a judgement instead of an observation.
That aside, I find that most of the posts here are pretty understandable. I hate to agree with Extremist ;). The mods do a pretty good job making sure people don't post stuff like:

u kNoW mInSc RuLz

It seems unfair to expect people to be proficient in English grammar when English is not their first language. English is the only language that I know and I don't have the grammar down. I would want some slack if I was posting on a German or Russian board and was not fluent.

!orderfor non-native-speakers jar full of slack

hmm.. well i just type really fast, and stopping to press shift every time i wish to write the letter 'I' slows me down.. am surprised there was no links to my bad grammar

I knew I should have been the one to make this topic. Just for the record, I'm backing Shralp on this 100%. I'd do it in the same style he did. Most likely people wouldn't talk back so much if I did...

Even if we put all other basic grammatical mistakes aside (and we probably should, at least for the non-English people), spelling I as i, can't as cant, not starting sentences with a capitalized word, not bothering to capitalize names of persons, places etc. pisses me off immensely. (These are the rules everyone, no matter how unfamiliar with the language, must and does know.) It makes me mad not because I couldn't understand the meaning of such posts, but because anyone making such a "product" indirectly lets me know that he/she for some reason feels that Boards O' Magick are a place where these rules do not apply. I'm sorry to break it to you people, but these rules exist everywhere where people write things down. They are a bit more relaxed in the chatrooms where real-time writing occurs, but as far as I'm concerned, not using them on a message board where everyone can take the time to write things down neatly, and most importantly of all, EDIT their original post when they spot mistakes after making a post is unforgivable.

So please don't try to tell me that basics of good grammar don't apply here. That's just a lame excuse for ignorance and laziness. The worst thing is, it's not physical laziness, it's the laziness of the mind. That what scares me the most.

So to spice this topic up, and to promote use of good grammar even more, I present you with a follow-up to the Idiot of the Week award. This one is called Grammatical Moron of the Week, and will be given to people most qualified to bear its shameful tag.

Before you start jumping around and waving pitchforks at me, let me just explain that it will be given ONLY for the most severe cases of butchering of the English language & grammar and only to people whose native tongue actually is English. (And to people living in English-speaking countries.) It wouldn't be fair otherwise.

[This message has been edited by Taluntain (edited November 20, 2001).]

Tal, I can only applaud!

Yes, it is a shame to see those mistakes from ones who's native language is English. And it is damn too shame to see obvious "couldn't be bothered" style when it comes to Edit icon.

Tal: Since you have these awards for how not to post, maybe awards for those following the rules, both grammatical and otherwise, would be a good idea? A poster of the week or month?

And how about annual Boards of Magick awards, where the IOTY and GMOTY are chosen?

Ok, the last part was a joke. ;)

I'd do it in the same style he did. Most likely people wouldn't talk back so much if I did...
Implying what? That deep down we all know
you rule by fear? OR we aren't honest with you?

Anyway. Pointing out persons' bad sides to a crowd, before letting them know of it, is just plain rude. If you incourage that. Fine. You must do what you feel is right.

What about more awards?

yours:
Gramatical moron of the week
Shows signs of mental laziness. Annoying. Not good

My suggestions:
Immature moron of the week
Annoying people. Not good.
Complaining moron of the week
Makes someone sad. Not good
Long winding moron of the week
never gets to the point. Even more annoying than Bad grammar. Not good.

So many great rules we can implement, eh?

[This message has been edited by ArchAngel (edited November 20, 2001).]

I think that grammatical moron is a little harsh, how about grammatical retard?

Yes ArchAngel, actually fewer people usually object when something gets said "officially", so to speak. As for most of your post, it's an idea, but since it took me more than a year to come up with these two "awards", I think any more will have to wait. Suggestions noted and appreciated though! ;)

P.S.
You'd need to be either blind or a moron not to notice that everyone but you (like in gollum's case in the PoR forum for example) spells the same words properly, if nothing else. And since I doubt he's blind, he must qualify as the other type.

I think it's plainly obvious to him what his bad side is. Reading any posts by anyone else here should make him realize that. The whole point of the IOTW and GMOTW plaques is that the errors the recipient makes are so blatantly obvious to everyone else but them that they need a dose of enlightenment.

[This message has been edited by Taluntain (edited November 20, 2001).]

Hmmm ... the reaction is thus most probably because Shralp holds no 'actual' power while you do Taluntain ... correct me if i repeated what anyone says ... i didn't read much of it ...

The big problem with this medium is that inference by means of voice is lost amid the lines of plain text. Shralp; I dont know if you meant it to seem so, but your initial post seemed laced with the worst sort of pretention and pig-headed arrogance imaginable. It is one thing to respectfully request that people refrain from leaving illegible messages on the site and quite another to lambaste every missed capital caused by a pinky (if you'll forgive the colloquialism) slipping off the shift key. Indeed, from the evidence presented in said post I suspect you are the sort of small-minded, officious pedanticist who is always on hand with an unwanted dictionary definition, whose level of nit-picking bureaucracy is matched only by the number of hours his head was held down the school lavatory by two burly compulsory spelling club patrons.

Now for Will's disclaimer: I have no real evidence of the above; as I said, this type of forum is not the most versatile of communication mediums and thus misinterpretaion is frequent. I would like to have faith in that nifty little legend of "Built for Lovin'" by the dour dustman avatar. Please Shralp; maintain our confidence in your lothariodom (pardon the neologism).

[This message has been edited by Will (edited November 21, 2001).]

Will, you showoff. How many people on the boards understood YOUR post? Probably several, fortunately, as we do have some erudite members here (Just wanted you to know I have a university-level vocabulary, too).

I'd like to point out that Shralp was hardly complaining over every missed capital; the posts mentioned contain several errors, enough to irritate anyone who cares about proper writing. I admit he was harsh, and perhaps he should have been less personal in his correction. Still, his point is valid. Even if you do make mistakes, there is absolutely nothing that prevents you from editing your post when you check it -- and check it you should.

I have never used this tool more intense than now. Us foreigners would be lost without it, guys :D

Cool dictionary (http://www.yourdictionary.com/)

Anway. You said it Capstone. I complained about Shralp's style. His etiquette or lack thereof. His points are of course super duper valid. Encourage people to edit their obvious typos is the least we could do. But the style Shralp used was so :aww:

I had to react. Hey I am just trying to teach people to be a little nicer. My style could need some brushing up too. It's soon x-mas you know. A gift for you Shralp: :1eye:


EDITED HERE: Will? There is no such word as " a pedanticist". The only noun used in english is the short "a pendant". I guess it would be the same as calling "a dentist" "a dentisticist" Ahh. well. I am sure you have some clever way to elude the Merriam-Webster's dictionary :p :p :p

[Fixed the bad link.] -Tal

[This message has been edited by Taluntain (edited November 21, 2001).]

Yeah, I know there's probably no such word as pedanticist. It was a neologism. At no point in my post did I claim to speak or write perfect English (certainly not to degree level, Capstone; Im still in my gap year). I too objected largely to Shralp's style of criticism rather than the criticism itself (although in one of his many quotations he did criticise the lack of a capital letter); what he clearly considered to be wit came across, in my opinion, as unnecessarily haughty pretention in the face of many trivial errors (and, admittedly, a few severe ones which were genuinely sub-standard). Perhaps I was biased by my distaste for an entire post dedicated to what I consider to be a relatively petty matter, or by my empathy for those whose integrity of prose and astuteness of editing suffer with fatigue as the wee small hours of the morning pass by.

I admit that perhaps I was a little harsh towards Shralp. While callous, his post is largely valid. I could go through this and my previous posts, cross referencing for the slightest hypocrisy, but quite frankly its not worth the time and effort. I've said my piece and this is all you'll hear from me on this topic.

ArchAngel:
I don't think you're taking this the way it was intended to be taken

Kailynne is not a woman. (Remember the spelling Joacqin. And Joacqin while we are at it remember to capitalize and use apostrophes. Instead of "isnt" it goes isn't and instead of "im" it goes I am. And.. uhmm hmmm just checking something. No you are not english so you can't get Tal's new genious plaque anyway. Don't worry)

Ps. Does it work Tal? To implement better grammar? Or is it a charade?

Noone ever said it was necessary to correct every single mistake from every single post. The Grammatical Moron of the week award was meant to encourage those who DO KNOW better to use the correct spelling and grammar. I'm quite sure Taluntain is aware of his purpose behind the award and doesn't need to be given "points" to make him see what you do. There is no need to get petty about it.

Weee.

I don't believe the post I made was meant to be mean or hurtful to those who do make grammatical errors in their posts. It was originally intended simply to have fun.

ohhh. That sounds like something I have read before. :hmm:

I am just teasing Tal, on how to make this work in practice. You do know how to giggle don't you? please do. We can agree that my post was far less obnoxious that Shralp's. Ok? And you understood his intentions and not mine. The human mind is a work of art. :1eye:

[This message has been edited by ArchAngel (edited November 21, 2001).]

My original post was not meant to be mean or hurtful either. It was meant to be effective. Maybe if people know that, when they do these things, others find them obnoxious they wouldn't do them -- or at least might give it a second thought.

Next time I'll put five miles of disclaimers at the beginning of my post so as not to hurt the feelings of people who are generally saying exactly what I did in the last paragraph of my post. [Complete lack of smiley.]

It is all about style isn't it. Style is everything.

To understand is to forgive
Quote someone I am too lazy to look up now :)

I think it's more about reading aptitude.

I have a good reason for making typo's. It is not easy to post here and at the same time helping stupid people on the internet at work. I do two things at the same time, wich makes it harder for me to type without making errors.

[Crap, I have to erase then this all too, it looks not understandable now, and I don't like such things]

[This message has been edited by Extremist (edited November 21, 2001).]

[Everything deleted -- I was rude to my favorite Croatian. I misunderstood him because I've been taking so much flack here and in the chat room over my supposed meanness. My sincere apologies.]

[This message has been edited by Shralp (edited November 21, 2001).]

Okey doe. Should we leave this christmas nagging and preachering behind and find out how to solve the problem of lazyness?

The FAQ is obviously not enough.
This thread probably won't be enough to make lazy newcomers and regulars change their mentality.

So what then? A newsletter in each forum reminding people to be less lazy in their posts, written by Tal? Perhaps a new one each week or month. The key words, I guess, are "coming out to all forums". Making the involved people actually read and understand.

Moderators reminding people to be less lazy. Editing it in the exsisting post?

Assign someone new, willing to take care of the problem as a sort of "Garbage Moderator" whose only job is to keep the boards clean.

Any other ideas? This is apparently something that is really annoying, so either we deal with it properly or we let it rest.

How come common sense is not enough? Are those of us who likes the texts we read to be aesthetically (sp?) pleasing a vast minority? Maybe it's a whole lot easier for the person posting to skip capsing and apostrophes, but it's much worse to read for those reading it.

And the posts are meant for others to read, are they not? As it makes little sense for a person to post something in a thread if he doesn't intend for others to read it, I think the answer is yes.

Now, since I have concluded that the person posting obviously wants others to read his input to a thread, why does he then not type in a way that makes his post easily readable, when common sense surely dictates that such an approach would be the best one? Now, the answer to this question is beyond me.

Azardu, I completely agree.

ArchAngel, the moderators are already reminding people not to use stupid abbreviations, hacker garbage, and numbers instead of words. They are constantly editing people's topics. They are "garbage moderators" as you put it.

If they let it rest (is that really your suggestion?) the board will degenerate into the chaotic mess that the rest of the boards out there currently are.

If everything is fine ArtE why this thread then? Apparently more should be done, else Shralp wouldn't complain. That is just my thought.

Azardu they just don't go beyond the point of necessity. What they believe is enough to be understood. I don't think that is beyond you. ;)

Yes, I understand it. But I repeat my question: "Are those of us who likes the texts we read to be aesthetically (sp?) pleasing a vast minority?"

Properly formatted posts have a good deal greater chance of getting read and taken seriously, at least by me. And I find it hard to believe that I am the only one.

There's a huge difference between an understandable post and an attractive one.

I answered the other question you had but not this one. It is more of a poll. Me? no I don't mind reading post that lack aesthetically beauty. If I want that, I read a books or poetry. I am a lenient person. Some aren't. That is just life.

PS. You spell that right :)

RIGHT THEN SHRALPY DARLING LETS JUST SEE HOW WELL YOU SPELL SHALL WE!

The word is honour not honor.

Colour not color,
Valour not valor,
favour not favor,
labour not labor,
metre not meter,
centre not center.

Maybe you could chew on that you stupid capatalist *******! Before you critisise everone else try getting your entire bloody nation of the USA (spit) to spell CORRECTLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

just a few more too!

AMERICAN BRITISH

acknowledgment acknowledgement
afterward afterwards
airplane aeroplane
alright all right
aluminum aluminium
amphitheater amphitheatre
analog analogue
analyze analyse
anemia anaemia
anemic anaemic
anesthetic anaesthetic
antiaircraft anti-aircraft
apologize apologise
apothegm apophthegm
apprise apprise
arbor arbour
archeolog archaeology
ardor ardour
armor armour
armorer armourer
armory armoury
atchoo atishoo
ax axe
B.S. B.Sc.
backward backwards
battle-ax battleaxe
behavior behaviour
behavioral behavioural
behoove behove
beside besides
bisulfate bisulphate
bookkeeper book-keeper
caliper calliper
calisthenics callisthenics
canceling cancelling
candor candour
carburetor carburettor
catalog catalogue
catalyze catalyse
center centre
centerboard centreboard
centerfold centrefold
cesium caesium
check cheque
checker chequer
chili chilli
citrus citrous
civilization civilisation
clamor clamour
clangor clangour
color colour
conjuror conjurer
connection connexion
counselor counsellor
cozy cosy
curb kerb
daydream day-dream
defense defence
deflexion deflection
demeanor demeanour
dialog dialogue
dialyze dialyse
diarrhea diarrhoea
disk disc
disulfide disulphide
dolor dolour
donut doughnut
doodad doodah
draft draught
drypoint dry-point
edema oedema
elite élite
emphasize emphasise
enamor enamour
endeavor endeavour
enrollment enrolment
equaled equalled
fantasize fantasise
favor favour
favorite favourite
favoritism favouritism
fervor fervour
fiber fibre
flavor flavour
flower girl flower-girl
flower pot flower-pot
forward forwards
fulfill fulfil
fulfillment fulfilment
furor furore
goiter goitre
gonorrhea gonorrhoea
gram gramme
gray grey
gynecology gynaecology
harbor harbour
harmonize harmonise
hemoglobin haemoglobin
hemophilia haemophilia
hemorrhage haemorrhage
hemorrhoid haemorrhoid
homeopath homoeopath
homeostasis homoeostasis
honor honour
humor humour
immortalize immortalise
impanel empanel
inflection inflexion
inquiry enquiry
jail gaol
jewelry jewellery
jewlry jewellery
judgment judgement
kilometer kilometre
labor labour
lemongrass lemon grass
leukemia leukaemia
leveled levelled
liter litre
luster lustre
M.S. M.Sc.
maneuver manoeuvre
meager meagre
menorrhea menorrhoea
meter metre
misdemeanor misdemeanour
misjudgment misjudgement
modeled modelled
modeler modeller
mold mould
molt moult
mom mum
mustache moustache
neighbor neighbour
neighborhood neighbourhood
neighborly neighbourly
neoclassical neo-classical
niter nitre
note paper note-paper
odor odour
offense offence
organize organise
organized organised
pajamas pyjamas
paleobotany palaeobotany
Paleocene Palaeocene
paleoclimatology palaeoclimatology
paleogeography palaeogeography
paleography palaeography
paleolithic palaeolithic
paleomagnetism palaeomagnetism
paleontology palaeontology
Paleozoic Palaeozoic
panelist panellist
paralyze paralyse
parlor parlour
pedagogy paedagogy
pediatric paediatric
pediatrician paediatrician
pediatrics paediatrics
pedophile paedophile
pedophilia paedophilia
pjamas pyjamas
plow plough
practice practise
preignition pre-ignition
pretense pretence
program programme
pseudointellectual pseudo-intellectual
pseudoscience pseudo-science
quarreled quarrelled
rancor rancour
raveled ravelled
realize realise
recognize recognise
retroflection retroflexion
rigor rigour
rumor rumour
saltpeter saltpetre
savor savour
scepter sceptre
shoveled shovelled
skeptic sceptic
skillful skilful
smolder smoulder
sniveled snivelled
snowplow snowplough
specialize specialise
specialty speciality
splendor splendour
standardize standardise
story storey
succor succour
sulfate sulphate
sulfide sulphide
sulfureted sulphuretted
theater theatre
tire tyre
toward towards
traveled travelled
traveler traveller
traveling travelling
trisulfate trisulphate
tumor tumour
tunneling tunnelling
ultrahigh ultra-high
ultramodern ultra-modern
valor valour
vapor vapour
vigor vigour
vise vice
yodeling yodelling

Does Shralp really love Poodle, does he? does he?

P.S ust for the record so i don't get banned, the little america spit bit was a joke!

[This message has been edited by Sir Dargorn (edited November 22, 2001).]

OH... MY... GOD... You actually posted all that? Man, that's gotta suck. I use some british words and some american words.

Yodeling? YODELING!?

Ok Dargorn, Poodle-Lad, whatever you call yourself, Yodeling is wear I draw the line!

Next time I see you - DEAD! You can kiss your yodelling fancy-lad-ass goodbye!

ArchAngel, the thing being done was this thread, and the "grammatical moron of the week" award.

Why shouldn't someone be told that they're bringing the quality of the boards down? Have it your way and watch the whole thing just get turned into a mess.

ok ok gotta add, that level levelling one really gets me! I have to use it alot at work, and Word wont tell me the right spelling. I've looked it up in the dictionary it tells me that it can be spelled either way!! So which is it. :hmm: Canadian version would be helpful.

What in the desolate plains of the Dune Sea are you talking about ArtE? I am trying my best to come with suggestions that can make this place less Lazy/messy, and all you keep saying is my way is thrashland extraordinairé. Hand me a coke cause I am going dizzy. :spin:

Alrighty. :D One more time round the rolercoaster. Here goes. The ultra condensated version; In my opinion Shralp was rude so I wanted him to behave nicer. I have NOTHING against a cleaner board. Ok? This is me from now on. Mr. Short and right to the bone. Obviously I am abhorrently feeble to get my messages through, if I try and write long english posts. Weee. Happy X-mas

*On screen, number one. We lost all forms of communication.* :borg: :mommy:

POODLE! Behave. :toofar: (Short and precise, Aye? :D)

EDIT number 10; Sure, the Plaque(pun intended) "Gramatical moron" might be enough. I can easily settle with that.

[This message has been edited by ArchAngel (edited November 22, 2001).]

Ooohhhhh Sir D included my favorite word to pick on Kitiara about: cheque;) That post was a bit much don't you think. And it obviously lets your anti-American sentiment shine through, which I personally find disturbing. How would you like it if I were making fun of your "Europeanized" version of the proper "American" English language. I'm sorry, but I felt that had little to do with the point Sharlp and several others of us were trying to make here. I don't think any person in their right mind would point out differences in spelling like that while trying to chastise someone for bad grammar. I wouldn't. If Sharlp did, well, he was wrong on that count. The point of this post was to get people to recognize their laziness for what it is. I don't care about spelling typos. Who does? That isn't what this is all about. A mistake here and there isn't what this is all about. What it IS about is the toned down version of l33t grammer we sometimes see on these boards. I don't see what the argument here is over. Tal clearly made his point, and I agree with it 100%. Noone is trying to put down posters whose first language isn't English. I think the majority of the arguments here have missed the entire point Sharlp was trying to make. I'm defending him (for a change). His methods may leave something to be desired, but his point needed to be made.

But we still can see the bad grammar for ourselves, and we don't need an entire thread and a stupid argument to know it is there.

Kitiara- the general editorial rule is that so long as the author sticks to either English or American spellings he/she is fine. However in Canada that changed with the recent release of a Canadian dictionary (:rolleyes: a country with a population smaller than London, England needs its own spelling?). Now, in Canada, most organisations have a policy requiring "Canadian" spelling: that is to say, use "organize" and "deputize" instead of "organise" and "deputise" etc, and use "colour" instead of "color" etc. So, half British, half American.

The problem is that now you not only have to know both sets of spellings, you have to know which one to use in each circumstance. And by the way, Microsoft's "Canadian" spellcheck setting is almost 100% American so it won't work for this purpose.

I consistently use British spellings, and periodically my co-workers notify me (their editor!) that their American spellchecking programmes have caught me in spelling errors... then they send me back documents I've written, with what seems like all my Ss changed to Zs... Must remain calm... :flaming:

By the way, to anyone who wants to actively improve his/her English and would like assistance: I have taught English as a second language and am employed as a technical writer/editor, so I'm qualified to help. And I'm willing, especially if anyone is working on a resume or publishable work in English and would like assistance- let me know and with enough lead time I should be able to help you.

Well my vote is if they don't recognize their bad grammar, then someone should take the time to point it out to them. It will save them alot of hardships later on in life. And if they just don't care, maybe they should start. Taking an extra second to make sure your post isn't one huge run on sentence isn't a hardship. Nor is bothering to us a little bit of proper capitalization and punctuation. Any nine year old knows to do it. I don't see why someone who posts here can't be bothered.

And BTW Mollusken, what do you care anyway. Noone was refering to you. I'm amazed the people who are actually flaming Sharlp are the ones who *can* put together a coherent post:toofar:.

Ok i have to add. Sure it is nice of you to point out when someones grammer needs work, but there is no need to degrade them and ridicule them by changing their avatar.

I could see if they were a repeat offender and all, but for not capitalizing their i's?

Dont you think a friendly reminder post before insulting them could be a little less demeaning?

[This message has been edited by Kitiara (edited November 23, 2001).]

Maybe I should add another avatar for people who reply before reading the most important posts in an ongoing discussion?

"Before you start jumping around and waving pitchforks at me, let me just explain that it will be given ONLY for the most severe cases of butchering of the English language & grammar and only to people whose native tongue actually is English. (And to people living in English-speaking countries.) It wouldn't be fair otherwise."

I think this debate will end really quick if nothing constructive gets posted here any more.

Maybe I should add another avatar for people who reply before reading the most important posts in an ongoing discussion?


Tal; How about "Mr/Miss Magoo" award? Cute, harmless and yet potent. :1eye:

[This message has been edited by ArchAngel (edited November 23, 2001).]

http://www.winternet.com/~mikelr/flame80.html

Posted by Sir Dargorn:
apprise apprise


Huh?!

Ok, so what prize do I get for spotting that one? :p

http://www.winternet.com/~mikelr/flame31.html

Azardu: bugger/ bougger

Hey not fair Poodle boy. British butcher our words too. Such as the Airplane Aeroplane. WE invented the airplane therefore WE get to give it the name airplane. Oh and what about lifts the proper name as invented is ELEVATOR not lift get it straight. Just a little American versus British hostility here for ya.

Be amused, be very amused.