DISQUS

jeber · 1 year ago

First let me say my second sentence was directed at Christopher G, as I had missed your use of that sentence and thought he was quoting it from another source.

I maintain that in introducing the object "road" between your mention of a model and "one", "one" refers back to the most recent object, the road. But I'm not contending it's that big of an issue unless you, like Christopher G, are attempting to correct someone else on their grammar, which you weren't. I find your posts conversational and easy to read even when I suffer a moment of "object confusion".

StevenHodson · 1 year ago

My apologies then Jack for directing my reply to you then in the manner I did. Now that you have explained your reasoning for the comment I can see why that would be the assumption. As for correcting others use of grammer or spelling I don't think I am in any position (unlike others) to even consider doing such a thing :)

Thank you for the good words as well - I do appreciate them and I'll try harder in the future to cause less "object confusion" LOL

jonsterling · 1 year ago

Steven, "verbiage" isn't even a real word! :)

StevenHodson · 1 year ago

ahyup it is :)

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/verbiage

Noun Singular
verbiage

Plural
verbiages


verbiage (plural verbiages)

Overabundance of words
The manner in which something is expressed in words;
use concise military verbiage- G.S. Patton

jonsterling · 1 year ago

OK, you got me... I had no idea that it was a word; now that I know, I still probably won't ever use it. "Wording" in this context seems a good enough word to me.

I might say though, that the interchanging of Latinate words for simpler Germanic words rather bugs me. It seems, except when used in jest as in this post, to be a way to impress one's erudition upon other people.

As we have noticed, I happen to be one of those people who joys himself in correcting other people's grammar, &c., and on occasion, I can find myself in the awkward position of hypercorrectionist.

I wholeheartedly agree with the premise of your post, though; there is nothing more annoying than having to pay attention to little details when just trying to say something quickly about something.

StevenHodson · 1 year ago

semantic games can be a lot of fun and normally I don't mind being corrected - in fact if it is done right I appreciate it. What I don't like is when someone intentionally tries to make me look like an idiot. At that point I tend to get a little cranky over the issue and you won't find any smilies in the retort. :)

jonsterling · 1 year ago

Steven, no one who respects you and your blog like I do would try to correct you with the objective of making you look like an idiot. My comment was a poke at the hypercorrectionism that some readers, including myself, can exhibit. The fact that I was completely wrong and off-base makes it in my mind even more amusing, that in attempting to make fun of the people whom you were writing about ("grammar and spelling police"), I became one of them.

Cheers.

CyndyA · 1 year ago

What Christopher G and others like him have is diarrhea of English 101. I have the opposite problem; I struggle every time I write a post to make it more colloquial. My "normal" writing voice sounds nothing like my speaking voice, which is why my comments usually read nothing like my posts. Words I have used in posts that I shouldn't have include jingoistic, and my writing often violates every single rule of COMM/J 101: write for the audience.

Does Christopher G read a newspaper? I fear his sensibilities may be even more offended there. In the tech world, there are a lot of very smart people. But when people claim that many of us have mild-to-moderate Asperger's, they may be right, because many of them, like Christopher G, have no social skills either. I neither want nor expect a blog post to read like a treatise of Jacques Derrida, and for those who expect them to, I can point them to some very thick books that should keep them occupied and off the troll beat for a bit.

StevenHodson · 1 year ago

I wonder how Finnegans Wake would fit into Christopher's narrow mind of proper English? :)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnegans_Wake

CyndyA · 1 year ago

I shudder to even think about it. I can slog through the most frightening of the critical theory stuff, but met my own personal Waterloo with Joyce.

StevenHodson · 1 year ago

I did make it all the way through and then went on to read the Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire :) but then I also like ee cummings ....

computerjoe · 1 year ago

Hehe, I have mild Asperger's... but I do hope my social skills are a bit better than his!

CyndyA · 1 year ago

Joe, I would agree that MOST people with Asperger's have more social skills than those like Christopher G. If you go by the stereotype of those on the spectrum, though, I think the rudeness and single-minded obsession is dead on the mark. ;)

Rick Mahn · 1 year ago

Steven, people like Christopher G have an unhealthy fixation on perfection. Your style of saying what you mean, and meaning what you say is part of the backbone of why we keep coming back. Honest opinions & perspectives, freely given is what really drives good writing.

Cheers,
Rick

StevenHodson · 1 year ago

thanks Rick

Greg Duncan · 1 year ago

LOL. Nice!

Man, the Grammar Police can get under my skin. Sometimes, if presented pleasantly, helpfully and constructively, it's nice, but for those that go overboard just to satisfy their own feelings of superiority... As you said so well, KMA!

StevenHodson · 1 year ago

provides them with a sense of superiority I guess

jeber · 1 year ago

"...this is a dangerous road to travel down and one that could come back to bite you on the ass."
This is a mixed metaphor. I don't see how a road can bite anyone in the ass.

If you're calling someone to task for improper English usage, your own post ought to be free of errors.

StevenHodson · 1 year ago

nice try Jack .. but how about you take the whole paragraph into context first
(http://mashable.com/2008/06/13/freemium/)

------------------------------------------------------
As utopian as these very smart people like to make out that such a model is there are equally as smart people who warn that this is a dangerous road to travel down and one that could come back to bite you on the ass.
------------------------------------------------------

Would you like me to "bold" it for you or can you see that the thing doing the biting is the model not the road. The combination of "utopian" and model made it more than plain about what would be doing the biting.

This is as far as I am concern was just a facetious effort on your part to again embarass a writer.

Mark Dykeman · 1 year ago

I can take good old spelling or grammatical errors over L33T speak or other mutations any day.

computerjoe · 1 year ago

Hmm, perhaps it isn't too professional to bitch about your readers!

You do, however, raise a valid point. As lovely as lovely grammar is and what-not, perhaps it is more important not to restrict creative thought processes. Providing a post makes fairly good sense and the writer isn't being lazy ('n I wen 2 teh suprmrkt), I fail to see a problem.

StevenHodson · 1 year ago

I'm not sure if I would call it bitching about my readers. The readers who obviously took the time to read the post provided excellent feedback - whether I was right or wrong. People like Christopher who seem to derive some pleasure out of denegrating a person's writing style I don't see as a "reader". It would have been different if he had offered up a valid opinion either way and then with humor or even a modicum of respect pointed out some of the problems he had with my writing style. I might have even taken the time to go over the post to see if I could improve my writing style - without hurting it in the same space - based on what he had to say.

I am more than willing to learn something if I am - or think I am doing something wrong that is making it harder for my readers to get what I am saying because in the end that will hurt any chance of a learning discussion from taking place.

Rahsheen · 1 year ago

Wow, you can't be serious. If Steven wrote in any other manner than the way he does now, I probably wouldn't read his posts. Who gives a rat's ass about grammar and spelling online. Write like you talk. This isn't 9th grade English.

Hey, WTF, let's go ahead and get rid of all acronyms while we're at it. No more LOL, LMAO, or AFK. IMHO, grammar is for text books and IRL. TLA's, FTW!...Kthx, Bye

StevenHodson · 1 year ago

ROFL .. good point Rahsheen and I am glad you enjoy my style. I do agree though that if I am making mistakes that it making it harder for my readers to understand and then become involved then I lose out - then I need to fix the problem. As it stands right now I think I'm doing pretty good - even though my father (who was a script writer and actor) might have a few things to say about it :)

Ginger Makela · 1 year ago

Agh. Keep going, Steve. I don't listen to or trust critics who don't put their full name and real picture to their opinions. As Bob Dylan says: "executioner's face is always well hidden" :-)

mrbusinessgolf · 1 year ago

I think the most important piece of technology I found that takes care of the Spelling Police is the DELETE Key on the keyboard. It is a wonderful tool I think more people should use. It wipes Spelling Police off the blogsphere. The other piece internet magic I like is when the Spell Police write a 10,000 word article (blog) and place at least ten links to my blog highlighting the spelling errors...I love them for that traffic and attention.
So there you have two tools that make the Spell Police completely worthless.

SuburbanOblivion · 1 year ago

Whoever said to write like you speak, you absolutely hit the nail on the head. As a writer its important to find your voice, that style that makes your content uniquely 'you'. If that 'you' is an English teacher, great! :) If not, all the better, because the majority of blog readers are NOT English teachers, and are drawn to blogs written in personal voice.

Paul OFlaherty · 1 year ago

Right with you on this one Steven. One has to wonder what is so lacking in Christophers world that he feels the need to belittle other people like that?

Maybe it's a cray for help? Maybe he just needs a hug? LOL

christopherg · 1 year ago

Oh, fer christsakes. I didn't criticize your spelling or your grammar, child. I was calling out horrible writing. Period.

Bad writing I can take. But yours I couldn't. It was truly transcendent in its awfulness.

Were any of the points invalid? If not, maybe just take your lumps and get better at your job. (How dare I suggest this? KMA?)

And I don't apologize for not being buddy buddy -- because clearly your other buddies haven't done you any favors.

Thank you for remaining agitated and promoting this important topic to the level it deserves.

(Which, btw, was ReadBurner level - that's the only way I would have seen this. Congrats. It's like standing on a soapbox in Times Square with your pants down, and screaming into a bullhorn, "This guy called me a jackass!")

PS, CyndyA: My social skills would unwind even your crusty panties.

StevenHodson · 1 year ago

so then do me a favour sonce you prefer to denegrate rather than be constructive just ignore any further posts from WinExtra - you'll be doing both of us a favor.

Matt Shaulis · 1 year ago

For someone so condescendingly confident it baffles me that christopherg cowers behind a facade of quasi-anonymity. Does there exist no link to their own blog? No reference as to where us mongoloids can go and "learn" the ways of the brilliant (or at least double check the consistency of their subtle claims to genius)? "This is definitely" broadcasting a lack of social skills online.

Newsflash [Matt's Note: previous word doesn't exist]: the way christopherg resorts to ad hominem attacks speaks volumes for his/her lack of social skills in real life.

"So the question remains" ... where the hell are the 'social skills' which this individual eludes to having in abundance?