OK, I'LL OWN UP!

Submitted: Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 19:29
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Hi all, just to clarify a few things on Mainey's post re Spell Check. I contacted Damian at ExplorOz a couple of weeks ago. Maybe I had been having a bad day, but at that time there had been a number of nearly incomprehensible forum posts, and it was driving me mad. If those that had submitted the posts had used the spell check feature, they would have at least been somewhat legible. All I requested was that they (the ExplorOz team),consider making the spell check feature automatic when a new thread, reply or follow up was submitted. Damian replied with something to the effect of 'it would inconvenience members submitting', not his exact words, but near enough.
A couple of days after his response, I was trying to understand a particularly poorly put together post (both spelling and grammar). I gave up, replied to Damians email and said 'please read thread *****, then I rest my case'. He did as I asked and replied, saying he would put my thoughts to the web developers. Now we have the Poll, which is causing some discontent.
Just to clear up a couple of concerns of other forum users, I did not suggest that spell check would activate as you were typing a draft, but launch spell check when the 'submit' button was activated. I know it won't correct everything, nor will it change words such as 'duel batteries', (incorrect word), but it sure as hell would improve a lot of posts.
I believe that the better the information, the better the likelihood of good responses and results.
Let's be honest, some of us are (were?) good at English, some were good at maths, some were good at both (count me out!), so any assistance we can utilise to improve the appearance and legibility of a post can't be all that bad.
For those that don't normally search the places where the post is, you don't have to search for it. At the top of the page when you click 'Forum', there is a box with a number of options, one of which is 'Poll'. There has been a different Poll about every week or so for a while now, the info on this was in a newsletter. Below is a screen dump showing where it is, so everyone can have their say. The last time I looked it was about 85% in favour of auto spell check launch.
I certainly did not intend to upset other forum users, I just made a suggestion, and it appears there are others who agree with me. Some don't, that's what democracy and voting is all about.
Cheers, DaveImage Could Not Be Found
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Reply By: Maîneÿ . . .- Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 19:35

Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 19:35
Dave,
good to see you 'fess up

Maîneÿ . . .
AnswerID: 374840

Reply By: Member - Richard C (ACT) - Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 19:35

Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 19:35
Bush,
being one of those bad/lazy typists and VERY bad spellers I reckon it is a good thing.

I can't see why people would object to it. I am not good at spelling but I type worse so any help is appreciated.

Good idea,

Richard
AnswerID: 374841

Reply By: Gone Bush (WA) - Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 19:38

Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 19:38
Now all we have to do is convince people not to submit Posts in "Text Speak".

U no, when texing on ur phone?

I find that very hard to read, and I usually give up and click on another Post.

Maybe it's my age??

I'm glad I ain't too scared to be lazy
- Augustus McCrae (Lonesome Dove)

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Follow Up By: briann532 - Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 20:00

Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 20:00
Gone Bush,

Wot up, n fn gotz y u pv me. nup saiz me, doin nufn, b2 hlp u.

See nuthin rong wif text talk.............
spell check........ isn't that the hottie on Harry Pottee and the temple of looneys???

It sure has me beat why the next generation insists on changing the english language. Its been a great source of communication for centuries.
I guess the government tried to have "meetings" to generate mass confusion, and while it succeeded to a degree, I do think changing the language will serve a much better case in point!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I constantly get told by my apprentices that I'm too old and just don't get it.
Yeah I guess at 34 yrs, I'm past it.
Off for my horlicks and a lie down now.
Cheers all
Brian
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Follow Up By: Member Brian (Gold Coast) - Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 20:05

Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 20:05
Gone Bush (WA) replied:
....>snip<.... Maybe it's my age??


Why???? How old are you??

;-))


briann532 posted:
Gone Bush,

Wot up, n fn gotz y u pv me. nup saiz me, doin nufn, b2 hlp u.


Brian,
What on earth does that translate to?? I have looked at it and looked at it but can't make head nor tail of it.... LOL.....
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Reply By: Best Off Road - Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 20:51

Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 20:51
Paragraphs help immensely with readability.

Jim.

AnswerID: 374854

Follow Up By: jdwynn (Adelaide) - Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 21:23

Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 21:23
Uh oh, here comes a grammar check request.........LOL

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Follow Up By: Best Off Road - Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 21:46

Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 21:46
Funny bugger Kym,

No, it's just that line after line of typing is hard to read. Paragraphs make reading easier.

The original post in this thread was a visual disaster; it had my eyes doing laps around my nose.

Cheers,

Jim.

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Follow Up By: Member - The Bushwhackers -NSW - Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 22:52

Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 22:52
Hi Jim, there is a new paragraph in my post at approximately every 3 to 5 lines.

There is no indent feature available.

Perhaps I should have put extra spaces between paragraphs.

Good point, though.

Cheers, Dave

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Follow Up By: Member - Pedro the One (QLD) - Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 23:12

Thursday, Jul 16, 2009 at 23:12
And for me, too!

I find it extremely difficult to read the original post ..... and generally I'll skip them!

Reading that style of post is similar to listening to a speaker talking non-stop.

Indents themselves have apparently fallen out-of-favour with the last couple of generations, but it really is no great hardship to punch the ENTER key twice in order to break up an otherwise relevant post into 'digestible' bites/bytes ??

And that does make them more attractive to the eye (readable!), which is presumably what Dave wants ............. ??

DAVE .... I also agree with your comments ...... personally I see most of the offenders ?? as a bit grammatically lazy .... rather than ignorant of the grammatical niceties ........

me, I also like bunging in rows of DOTS !!!
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Follow Up By: Stu & "Bob" - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 09:05

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 09:05
Dots are good.... sort of like a pregnant pause..... also helps with connecting disjointed strings of words.... which would otherwise not make sense at all.
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Follow Up By: tim_c - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 11:43

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 11:43
Ah, you shouldn't be using dots for that - you use a dash. Dots imply ... that you've edited ... some unnecessary words out to state your point more concisely, or it that only when the dots appear in a quotation?

Indents went out with the typewriter for some reason - perhaps it's more difficult to press the "TAB" button on a computer than on a typewriter?! Or it's just that people now like everything neatly lined up down the LH margin.
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Follow Up By: Maîneÿ . . .- Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 11:51

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 11:51
Tim,
do you believe indent works with the "tab" key on a computer ?

Maîneÿ . . .
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Follow Up By: Rob! - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:08

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:08
It's funny how people invent their own grammar and expect others to know what it means. For example in Stu & Bob's post, the dots would have been a perfect place to put a fullstop. Why try change something that works and is understood.

It doesn't need to be perfect. Most people are happy with minor typos and the odd missing comma, but some posts are simply unreadable. Maybe it's form people who want to be heard, but have nothing to say.

I don't think the spell check will fix these issues. The problem is usually when people write five or six lines of text with no full stops, no capital letters and very poor sentance structure.
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FollowupID: 642219

Follow Up By: tim_c - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:52

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:52
Maîneÿ, TAB makes an indent on a word processor, but in internet browsers it will just move your cursor to the next button, link or text entry field.
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Follow Up By: Maîneÿ . . .- Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 13:01

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 13:01
Tim,
Yes, but the point here is in the EO forum it (tab key) does nothing towards typing out a post, as everything will 'left align' automatically and can't be 'tabbed' to start in the centre of post page.

You can't 'indent' a word or sentence, using the "tab" key - or am I wrong?
(still or again)

Maîneÿ . . .
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Follow Up By: tim_c - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 13:27

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 13:27
Sorry Maîneÿ, that's what I meant about internet browsers - includes the EO Forum, or any other site you would access using your internet browser (ie. FireFox, Internet Explorer, etc.).
No, you're not wrong, using TAB (other than in word processor) will just advance your cursor to the next 'thing' - the only way to get indents here is to stick half a dozen spaces at the beginning of the line!
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Follow Up By: tim_c - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 13:28

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 13:28
Well, what do you know - even sticking half a dozen spaces in doesn't make an indent?!
. Maybe a dot, then a half dozen spaces?!
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Follow Up By: tim_c - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 13:30

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 13:30
I give up. Looks like you're right Maîneÿ - there is no way of getting an indent here on EO - it always gets filtered out by the Bleep-a-filter! :)
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Follow Up By: Member - Ed. C. (QLD) - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 13:31

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 13:31
I like dots.................................................................................

Here's some more.....................................................................

;-))

Confucius say.....
"He who lie underneath automobile with tool in hand,
....Not necessarily mechanic!!"

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Reply By: Member - barry F (NSW) - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 10:26

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 10:26
I think the auto spell check is an excellent idea & I voted "yes" for it. Perhaps we could take it a step further and request that each post be auto moderated? That way way we could totally remove & sanitise the character of the forum.
AnswerID: 374908

Reply By: Cruiser .- Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 11:09

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 11:09
The Bushwackers,

I agree that spelling on this site is bad, but then again spelling seems to be bad across the board these days. I think we just have to accept the bad spelling and look at the content of the post/reply.

What really gets up my nose is people that SHOUT in their posts by using upper case for everything.

Are they ignorant of the fact that its classed as shouting on the internet or are they just very cranky. I don't really know, but I wish they wouldn't do it.

Maybe we need a spell checker/grammar checker/shout checker/auto moderator (see tongue firmly planted in cheek there) or maybe we just all need to relax and enjoy the site for the knowledge and experiences of others as well as the friendships we can make here.

Cheers,

Cruiser
AnswerID: 374913

Follow Up By: tim_c - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 11:47

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 11:47
Or they just haven't worked out how to turn the CAPS LOCK off :)

Not only is it like shouting, it's also very difficult to read because all the words are the same shape so you have to read each letter individually instead of just recognising the shape of the words.
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Reply By: Member - Lotzi (QLD) - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 11:22

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 11:22
G'day All

Just checked the poll results ..

Yes .. 83%
No ... 17%

Could it be a case of vocal minority V silent majority ..

Now putting hard hat on and ear plugs in .. ))

Cheers
AnswerID: 374915

Follow Up By: tim_c - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 11:44

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 11:44
Or the worst offenders don't really know what they're voting for/about?! :)
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Follow Up By: Member - Ed. C. (QLD) - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:10

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:10
A 'feel-good' thing which will do absolutely nothing to rectify the out-of-context use of words such as, .. there, their, & they're.., too, two, & to..., fined, & find.., not to mention 'duel' batteries.. the list goes on........

complete waste of time, IMO......



Confucius say.....
"He who lie underneath automobile with tool in hand,
....Not necessarily mechanic!!"

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Follow Up By: That Troopy Bloke (SA) - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:53

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:53
"not to mention 'duel' batteries.."

I saw a classic on another forum the other day...."deul batterys"
A misspelling of a misspelling:-)
I don't think it was a typo either, as it was repeated twice.

The one that grates with me the most is lose/loose.
9 times out of 10 I see lose spelt l-o-o-s-e.
I actually checked a dictionary, as I thought perhaps I was wrong....but no, I was right, and the rest of the world is wrong:-(

Cheers
Glenn
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Follow Up By: Gone Bush (WA) - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 13:34

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 13:34
What about licence and license?

If it's a noun it has two "c"s, if it's a verb it has one "c" and an "s".

Let's not forget "its" and "it's".

I'm glad I ain't too scared to be lazy
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Reply By: wozzie (WA) - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 19:18

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 19:18
Idontthinktheuseofaspellcheckerwillmakethatmuchdifferencetosomeofthepoststhatyousometimesseeintheforums.

Now perhaps I'll write something that is a little easier to read.

It would be alright, providing that the spell checker was the English - English that we speak here in Orstralia and NOT the US - English variety.
Dreamin' agin

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Reply By: Dunedigger - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 19:46

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 19:46
I suggest you get over it. If the spelling errors get to you, then perhaps you should stick to reading magazines !

I do get amused at the spelling errors but I know what they are saying.

I use Firefox and it has a spell checker in it anyway.

Dunedigger
AnswerID: 374968

Follow Up By: Maîneÿ . . .- Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 21:22

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 21:22
Dunedigger,
Is that simply a bad choice of word placement ?
do you mean "should read stick magazines" ??

Maîneÿ . . .
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Follow Up By: Dunedigger - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 21:43

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 21:43
Opps- - - - I did put my foot ( and mouth ) into it ! LOL

I meant . . " stick to reading magazines " LOL and I don't think that any spell checker would pick that up.

I am told the best proof reading is done reading the text upside down.

As someone said, most postings are done in haste and errors will always appear, and sometimes even in the magazines.

Dunedigger . . . who is now proof reading everything . . hit preview . . and edit.

BTW Bushwhaker ( Dave ) . . I think you bushwhacked me ROFL



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Follow Up By: Member - The Bushwhackers -NSW - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 22:27

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 22:27
Nah, Digger, I wouldn't bushwhack you! I proof read everything I type, but I feel that if you are reading your own writing you are likely to miss typos. I have never heard of the upside down theory.

My spelling is reasonable, (not bloody perfect), but my typing errors are woeful, so I spell check before posting.

After Jim pointed out that my original post was a 'visual disaster', I have taken the advice, and will now double space where a paragraph ends.

Not sure about stick magazines, SWMBO might object.

Cheers, Dave.
P.S. I don't see where you said 'stick magazines', Mainey did,lol
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Reply By: Member - Au-2 - Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 21:08

Friday, Jul 17, 2009 at 21:08
Fellas, at least twenty-five years ago, my youngest son was half way through grade one and was made a tutor (by the teacher) to another child who could barely write his name. The teacher told me that children learn better from each other than by 'textbook teaching.' She also told me that as long as a child could read his own writing it didn't matter whether anybody else could.

It seems that this style of teaching is now resulting in text language, which in turn will probably stop people from reading for pleasure or education. As a prolific reader from age four, I find that proof-reading seems to be a dying art and I often find myself studying a passage in a book trying to make sense of it, because no-one edited it properly. It really does take the joy out of reading a very good story.

Anyway, for the last word on this subject if you have any doubts, try using this site that covers most writing situations:-

http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/

I often refer to it because I get confused by other peoples usage of Grammar/puntuation and think I may be wrong about a particular point. Even now, many years after she died, I can hear my Irish grandmothers voice reprimanding me severely, when I try to use the 'new' styles.

Sheila.
AnswerID: 374986

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