Grammar, grammar, grammar

(Jane Reed) #41

Sophie, your post reminds me of something my aunt said years ago. She was raised in the midwest, in humble circumstances. She was laughing at herself when she said she was a teenager before she learned that “yous” was not the plural of “you”.

(Doug) #42

Jane, similar to “yinz” or the longer form “youins” meaning “you ones.” Known as Pittsburghese.

I didn’t know yinz were coming.

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #43

The New York version is “youse,” as in “Youse guys should all come over to my house to watch the game.”

Not to be confused with “youts,” as in “These two youts are innocent, Your Honor.”

(Doug) #44
(Jane Reed) #45

I know this is going to seem petty. I can’t help myself. Carl, please pronounce Megan Ramos’ surname correctly. The “a” in Ramos is short, as in “all”. She herself pronounces it in the correct Spanish manner and it’s like nails on a chalkboard to hear it otherwise. I think it was Jimmy Moore who introduced the keto audience to Megan and it was his mis-pronunciation that started it all.

(Norma Laming) #46

Yous, youz is the norm in many parts of the UK.

(Rob) #47

As has been pointed out, the double space after a full stop/period is obsolete and merely an affectation of old technology (mono spaced typewriters and such) that was incapable of intelligently spacing fonts, either tracking (spaces between letters and words) or kerning (spaces between specific pairs of letters). What an individual Luddite likes or not is not an indication of something being right or wrong, just their personal preference.
Style Guides and technology in the late 20th and certainly the 21st centuries have appropriately moved on and are unlikely to change back until the Zombie Apocalypse knocks us back to lead type. It’s no longer even a question except to the Luddites. :smile:

(Cathrine Helle) #48

This :smiley: Double spacing is a thing of the past. I’ve been working with typography and graphic design for more or less 22 years, and I can’t remember the last time this was used (at least not here in Norway).

(bulkbiker) #49

Really? Not in the deep south…!

(Jane Reed) #50

Amusing, that non-Luddites think the double space is outdated because technology has moved on.

When I read posts on forums like this, it is not unusual to find myself having to reread them because it appears the poster has written phrases and sentences that make no sense. Then I realize I have missed the fact that a new sentence has been started. When two spaces are used, it is abundantly clear that a new sentence had begun.

“Old fashioned” punctuation may have it’s roots in archaic rules but it also serves to make meaning clear. The use of commas, to offset dependent clauses, is extremely helpful in this regard and I notice they are dropping away.

(Rob) #51

So your problem with noticing the end of sentences should be everyone’s problem? It makes sense now. :wink:

The entire world has moved on… every commercial publication and publisher in the world and every style guide has grasped that we are capable of better with new technology. I bet King Canute on the beach thought it was ‘amusing’ that everyone else couldn’t demand that the tide change on their command.

But I do agree with you on commas.

(Norma Laming) #52

I thoroughly agree. But I fear that we are just showing our age.

#53

The double space thing was usufel with typewriters. Nowadays, word processors (Microsoft Word, latex) are supposed to take the text and put the right amount of space where it belongs. In HTML one or two spaces will display as just one space; for other lengths of space you need to use special characters.   (I tested it here just before the & and after the .) is supposed to be “punctuation space”.

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #54

All you are saying here is that the fashion has changed. Just because some fashion arbiter has issued a decree doesn’t necessarily make the change a good one, however. After all, Ancel Keys was quite successful in promoting the change he wanted to see, and we are all now resisting his new-fashioned way of eating as hard as we can, aren’t we?

(Rob) #55

It Is most definitely not fashion… it is dominant and irreversible professional practice. It will never change back just like we will never go back to CRTs, typewriters, rotary telephones, etc. if anything, double space was merely a temporary ‘fashion’ meant to mitigate the failings of immature technologies. Once those failing were addressed, the mitigation was no longer required.

BW admitted the problem, she couldn’t see sentence breaks properly. The vast majority of the global population (obviously) don’t have this problem so the bodge that is double space is unnecessary. End of.

(Doug) #56

“Get off my lawn!” :grimacing:

#57

Sorry for reviving an old thread (it’s @carolT ‘s fault for linking to it :joy:), but this is one of my favorite movies!

#58

Totally my bad! :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

(squirrel-kissing paper tamer) #59

Well, since we’re going there…

I don’t understand why a period followed by a space and then a capital letter isn’t enough information to tell someone that one sentence has ended and another has begun. I’m not sure my eyes ever relied on the spaces between a period and capital letter. If you can see well enough to notice the difference between one or two spaces, surely you can see a period and the capitalized word denoting the new sentence.

As for colloquialism and slang, these have been a part of our spoken languages for ages. When letters, newspapers and books were the most prevalent places we saw writing it made sense not to use them. Now that people are using text to communicate in lieu of speaking they have a place.

Also, shame on anyone for making me or anyone else feel self-conscious for attempting to communicate. How we type tells a reader a little more about our character and personality. I personally find it interesting.

(hottie turned hag) #60

THIS DRIVES ME :crazy_face:
“veggies” (why just why? I say “veg” if I don’t want to say the 4 syllable vegetable, it’s short and doesn’t sound like a 3 y/o is saying it)

“brekkie” (Gawd, please)

“nanners” (sounds NOTHING LIKE “bananas” and sounds SO STUPID)

“vacay” (again why just why)

#Ihateeverybody