spelling.....

[DeepFreeze]

Originally Posted by tumor

I understand the effective use of time...my god I need all that I can get but do you feel that this type of " time management " is now pervasive in society as well. I feel sometimes that we are getting away from respect, manners, and general civility. Is life going so fast that we feel that we dont need those things? Just a question... Im feeling a little philisophical today...

First, it is philosophical not philisophical....laugh out loud.
Personally I don't mind the abbreviations. My personal pet peave is seeing how the average person spells today. I wonder at times if we even have English or spelling classes in school. I would almost wager the average high school graduate doesn't fully understand when to use there or their; even worse would be the use of to, too, or two.

[GreatZen]

Originally Posted by tumor

I know that I am a rotten at spelling. I was just wondering if it has become common practice to not spell words correctly on purpose? I know that the internet has changed alot of things but is this one? I also know that we have become so engrossed with time( or the lack of it) that we take alot of short cuts. I was reading several old letters that were written back in the 1700- mid 1800's It seems as though we have lost much of our eloquence. Most of what I see today pales next to what was written as late as 40 years ago. Just a thought. If you find any errors in here please let me know as I am trying to improve my proof reading skills....laugh out loud ( lol )

A few critiques:
"not spell words correctly" - It is generally frowned upon to create phrases for which a single word already exists. In this case, the word is "misspell." It should also be noted that the usage of the phrase "misspell words" is considered a redundancy.

"alot" - a lot

"( or the lack of it)" - The paren and the thesis should not be separated from the phrase it encloses. If for some totally insane (and incorrect) reason you feel the need add a space between the paren and the "or," adding a space between the "it" and the thesis would make the error less incorrect. Incidently, the "(" is called a paren and the ")" is called a thesis. Together they form what is better known as a parenthesis. The plural of parenthesis is the more commonly used parentheses (which can also be used to refer to the phrase that appears within in the parenthesis). Another note: the phrase "less incorrect" is generally considered to be a grammatical error (double negative), but I find that it is more easily understood than "more correct."

"short cuts" - is one word unless you are referring to cuts (as in wounds or cuts on a sheet of paper) which are of small length.

"the 1700s- mid 1800s" - There should either be a space before and after the dash or no space before nor after the dash. It is incorrect to place no space before the dash and then impose a space after the dash.

"proof reading skills - In this particular case, "proof reading" is one adjective which is modifying the word "skills." Therefore, it should be hyphenated and "proof-reading" becomes the correct usage. In the case of two adjectives, the two should be separated by a comma (ex. "the short, fat woman"). For 3 or more adjectives, a series should be used (ex. "the ugly, short, and fat woman).

"...." - This little grammatical wonder is called an ellipsis and can only be used with three periods. It is also acceptable to use two long dashes or three astericks.


Now then, I suppose it's time to actually comment on the topic. I have to say, as a grammar and spelling nazi, that I find people's abhorent grasp of the english language appalling. I am continually disappointed in the general person's total inability to spell, construct sentences, or use words above the third grade level.

If I had to pick one thing to improve, I think I would choose to improve average vocabulary. While spelling and grammar errors often lead to confusion, annoyance, and a myriad of other problems, mot of the time we can clearly understand what was intended. However, a general lack of vocabulary leads to an inability to clearly express one's thoughts. If you've ever tried to talk to a 2 year old about a remotely complicated subject, you know exactly what I mean. The problem is that virtually everyone is, while not a 2 year old, merely a 12 year old.

That being said, I find that poor spelling aggravates me the most. dictionary.com is just a few keystrokes away, there is no excuse for littering a post with 5 misspelled words. In fact, during the very post I find that I had to consult on the spelling of "appalling" which I incidently was going to write incorrectly as "apalling." I can understand when people have difficulty grasping the vagaries of grammatical nuance. Few people are taught properly, and grammar is not particularly easy to study on one's own, but misspelling "grammar" as "grammer" just isn't acceptable (you know who you are).

[D.B. Daddy]

Originally Posted by GreatZen

A few critiques:
"not spell words correctly" - It is generally frowned upon to create phrases for which a single word already exists. In this case, the word is "misspell." It should also be noted that the usage of the phrase "misspell words" is considered a redundancy.

"alot" - a lot

"( or the lack of it)" - The paren and the thesis should not be separated from the phrase it encloses. If for some totally insane (and incorrect) reason you feel the need add a space between the paren and the "or," adding a space between the "it" and the thesis would make the error less incorrect. Incidently, the "(" is called a paren and the ")" is called a thesis. Together they form what is better known as a parenthesis. The plural of parenthesis is the more commonly used parentheses (which can also be used to refer to the phrase that appears within in the parenthesis). Another note: the phrase "less incorrect" is generally considered to be a grammatical error (double negative), but I find that it is more easily understood than "more correct."

"short cuts" - is one word unless you are referring to cuts (as in wounds or cuts on a sheet of paper) which are of small length.

"the 1700s- mid 1800s" - There should either be a space before and after the dash or no space before nor after the dash. It is incorrect to place no space before the dash and then impose a space after the dash.

"proof reading skills - In this particular case, "proof reading" is one adjective which is modifying the word "skills." Therefore, it should be hyphenated and "proof-reading" becomes the correct usage. In the case of two adjectives, the two should be separated by a comma (ex. "the short, fat woman"). For 3 or more adjectives, a series should be used (ex. "the ugly, short, and fat woman).

"...." - This little grammatical wonder is called an ellipsis and can only be used with three periods. It is also acceptable to use two long dashes or three astericks.


Now then, I suppose it's time to actually comment on the topic. I have to say, as a grammar and spelling nazi, that I find people's abhorent grasp of the english language appalling. I am continually disappointed in the general person's total inability to spell, construct sentences, or use words above the third grade level.

If I had to pick one thing to improve, I think I would choose to improve average vocabulary. While spelling and grammar errors often lead to confusion, annoyance, and a myriad of other problems, mot of the time we can clearly understand what was intended. However, a general lack of vocabulary leads to an inability to clearly express one's thoughts. If you've ever tried to talk to a 2 year old about a remotely complicated subject, you know exactly what I mean. The problem is that virtually everyone is, while not a 2 year old, merely a 12 year old.

That being said, I find that poor spelling aggravates me the most. dictionary.com is just a few keystrokes away, there is no excuse for littering a post with 5 misspelled words. In fact, during the very post I find that I had to consult on the spelling of "appalling" which I incidently was going to write incorrectly as "apalling." I can understand when people have difficulty grasping the vagaries of grammatical nuance. Few people are taught properly, and grammar is not particularly easy to study on one's own, but misspelling "grammar" as "grammer" just isn't acceptable (you know who you are).

Yep

[tumor]

thanks for the lesson.... As I am not prefect but I strive to improve. This post was designed to bring a modicum of thought to the general idea of mispelled words and the lack of caring .......lol As to sentence structure I took a lot of liberty in the use of ( ) and.... (by the way was just signifying a longer than usual pause) But thanks for making my point as I never professed to being perfect. I just was wondering if anyone else has seen any trend . Oh and your spell check missed "mot" but I understood that it was meant to be most. Does anyone else have any insight?

[Bobio]

Aint no reasons to use bad speling or gramer too irregardless of yor education.

LOL (I can see the Great Zen's veins popping out right now!)

[MrWizard]

Spelling? Spelling? There's no spelling in paintball!

[GTHEWORM]

Tumor. It's Vivaldi. I'm hired?

[tumor]

damn...you beat me to it welcome aboard

[CarnageCAB]

Originally Posted by warpedx

hookt on foniks rily wurkt fur me!

I try to keep my posts readable. It doesn't really bother me to see other people spelling errors, but more often than not I have the uncontrollable impulse to go back and corect my own.

yeah i like to fix minor errors. i however still use internet slang such as lol or omg