Wot not How.

[PurpleLass]

I think that's right in this instance. If someone was chatting to you in the pub you wouldn't correct their grammar would you? So in this sort of situation I don't think it's relevant to correct anyone either.

[Doug]

Originally Posted by bobthedj

I am bad at spelling and do not post as much as i would like, it is hard for me to write what i want to say because i can not spell some words so i just do not bother. I have been on the Accy Web for about six months now and i have read most post. I hate it when someone has made a post then on the next post it is critisized about spelling mistakes. When i was at junior school it seemed like i had to learn everything twice, writing was i think called I.T.A. that changed, pounds shilling and pence changed and so did feet and inches all in a short time. So when someone brings up bad spelling i myself do not post for about a week, i was told that Accy Web was a friendly site and i should become a member, and that i did.

Same here. Don’t let anyone put you off Bob. I allowed that to happen for far too long. You can almost always guarantee that the most accomplished people are crap at something.

[Doug]

Originally Posted by lindsay ormerod

I think bobthedj's comment hit the whole thing on the head;it would be awful to think that someone had not posted because they are unsure of their spelling.Let's just accept everyone for what they are on here and not be too critical about the spelling and grammar;it's definitely the "wot" not the "how" that matters!

It’s taken six pages for someone to stand up and make this statement. Thank you Lindsay, I for one absolutely support your every word. If it would let me give some I would. You’re back on my hit list...

[Margaret Pilkington]

I would echo that sentiment Bob.......don't let anyone put you off posting.

[Sparkologist]

One common misuse of the English language, which usually appears in 'Yank-speak', (Americanised English) is the dropping of the hyphen in words like co-ordinate and co-operation. Whenever I read the word 'cooperation', I see a mental picture of someone being ordained into the art of barrel making. To drop the hyphen in a published work is pure laziness on the part of the publisher.

[WillowTheWhisp]

I agree that the content of a post is far more important than the spelling. That's as far as AccyWeb and message boards in general are concerned.

I do find it difficult sometimes when the grammar is very bad because it can lead to the meaning coming across totally different to what was intended and that in turn can lead to arguments between people who don't actually realise that in fact the have the same point of view but simply can't understand what the other is saying. This tends not to happen in face to face conversation because we can interrupt each other and ask for clarification.

One classic example of a grammatical error leading to an incorrect meaning is an ad on TV at present for Homebase hanging baskets. It states "Only two for £15.99 while stocks last" They are actually saying that you ONLY get two of them for your £15.99 while the present stocks last. (When they get new stock do they mean you may get more than two for that price?) What they are actually trying to say is that they only cost £15.99 for two while stocks last and that if/when they get new stock they will cost more than £15.99 for two. The latter is encouragement to purchase a bargain whereas he ad in fact is discouraging because it implies a rip-off.

In such cases grammar does matter. And I totally agree with Sparky about the ubiquitous apostrophe.

[Acrylic-bob]

So the general consensus appears to be that it doesn't really matter if you don't spell correctly . Which seems to me to point out the failings in the education system more eloquently than anything else.

If you acccept the proposal that intention is more important than than the means of expression and pursue it to its logical conclusion...you actually end up with a fairly accurate representation of the state of, not only the borough but, of the country too. The rules that our forbears accepted and applied to their daily lives, which enabled them to build a succesful town, no longer have any currency. How far off are we then from the point at which one and one only make two when the reckoner can be bothered or it is considered politically correct to make it so?( I acknowlege that this state has already been reached by some members of HBC. )

In saying this I recognise that some people do have genuine difficulty with words and they have my entire sympathy. We generally make allowances for that. But I think that if we extend such allowance to general laziness and sloppiness in speech then we are ultimately colluding in the degradation of our cultural heritage.

Surely the purpose of speech and written language is to communicate your meaning as precisely as possible, not give a vague approximation of what you intend to say.

How would it be, for example, if you employed a builder to build you a new home and he decided that he couldn't be bothered to put in the precise number of windows of the shape and size specified in the plans, and instead decided to include only one. Would you conclude that he was exercising his right to self-expression and since his intention was clear you shouldn't criticise him and meekly accept what was offered?

Or if you were on the market and asked for half a dozen apples and were sold a picture of them instead. The intention was clear, but the means falls far short of your your expectation, do you criticise or do you walk into Wilkinson's to buy a frame for the picture?

Or yet again, if the wages clerk decided that accurately calculating wages was boring and decided instead to employ an entirely random system of calculation, and on some occaisions couldn't be arsed to do it at all! Would you meekly accept what was, or was not, offered?

[yerself]

The Importance of Correct Punctuation

-unknown



Dear John:
I want a man who knows what love is all about. You are generous, kind, thoughtful. People who are not like you admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me for other men. I yearn for you. I have no feelings whatsoever when we're apart. I can be forever happy--will you let me be yours?
Gloria




Dear John:
I want a man who knows what love is. All about you are generous, kind, thoughtful people, who are not like you. Admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For other men, I yearn. For you, I have no feelings whatsoever. When we're apart, I can be forever happy. Will you let me be?
Yours,
Gloria

[Acrylic-bob]

That illustrates point very well.

On a slightly different tack, does bad spelling affect the importance of what a person has to say? No, I don't think it does. But it does reduce considerably its effectiveness.

Consider Graham's post #43 in the Fairground thread. A great deal of what he has to say is very important, but is lost because his post is so difficult to read. This is compounded when you realise that Graham is a Councillor. (This is not a personal dig Graham, I only use the example to make a point.)

Accuracy in speech and writing is as vital as accuracy in mathematics and science and medicine and politics and shipbuilding and going to the moon and bringing up children and anything else you care to mention.

[PurpleLass]

I want so much to agree with you Acrylic-bob because I value good spelling and punctuation. I teach my kids to spell correctly and I'll be horrified if they use sloppy spelling and grammar as they grow older. But, in the context of a forum like this I don't think we should discourage anyone from posting simply because they can't spell or put their commas in the right place. We wouldn't tell someone to shut up in a conversation because they'd used 'was' and 'were' in the wrong context, would we?

Perhaps we should do something constructive and encourage all the bad spellers and users of incorrect grammar to learn how to do it correctly. What about setting up a mentoring system where someone who admits they have a problem teams up with someone who professes to be an expert and then via PM they work together to put it right?

[WillowTheWhisp]

I must be a very difficult mother because when my children use incorrect grammar when speaking to me I do correct them!

[Neil]

I do not usually point out other peoples errors because I make plenty myself. This thread is about mistakes so I thought I would make an exception to my rule.

Originally Posted by Acrylic-bob

If you acccept the proposal that intention is more important than than the means of expression

We all make mistakes. I don't think we should persecute people for them ( unless they are very funny )

One quick point that some of us might not know, google.co.uk is good for spelling words. Just type the wrongly spelt word and click search. If it thinks it is wrong it will suggest the correct spelling. You can also get a definition of a word. Just type 'define' and then the word and click search. Try it, I have to use it all the time.

[PurpleLass]

Originally Posted by WillowTheWhisp

I must be a very difficult mother because when my children use incorrect grammar when speaking to me I do correct them!

I correct my children, of course. What I meant was that I wouldn't correct anyone in a social situation whilst we were having a conversation.

[bobthedj]

One of my past jobs was an assistant co-ordinator for a homeless shelter in Accrington that lasted for many years. Would it have been better to have a perfect speller with no experiance or would it be better to have someone that already has hands on experiance that can not spell the odd word?
I am now a singer and do karaoke, when someone gets up to give us a song it does not matter to me if they can sing or not, at least they have had a go, i do not discourage anyone by saying that they are a bad singer. To me that i am not a good speller does not mean it is the end of world, i have always worked hard and my four kids whant for nothing

[cashman]

if we make allowances for people with genuine difficulty with words,a-b how do we determine on the net who has and who hasn't?(puzzeled)