Why do people put spaces before punctuation and capitalize random words in sentences?

I've been noticing that more and more people are putting spaces before punctuation and capitalizing random words and improper nouns in their writing, and I was wondering if anyone could provide an explanation for this. At first, I thought it was just another manifestation of the apparently growing illiteracy in the English speaking world, but so many people seem to make these kinds of mistakes nowadays, it seems strange that it would be the result of mere incompetence.

Is this how English is taught in certain foreign countries, or are these artifacts of moving from certain languages to English? I know that in German, all nouns are capitalized, but I've seen people from all over use strange capitalization (plus, I would assume that Germany's English language instruction is probably superior to systems in place in some other countries where English is the primary language, at least the United States).

I've gotten used to seeing atrocious spelling errors, careless mistakes with certain common homophones, and just terrible grammar in general, but these punctuation and capitalization errors are bizarre; there must be some common origin. Can anyone shed light on this? Are spaces before punctuation standard or acceptable in English speaking countries other than the US?

Just so you know what I mean, I'm talking about sentences like this:

This is a Sentence with odd punctuation , and I'm not sure why Sentence is capitalized .

I hope I don't sound like I'm nitpicking or trying to be a jerk, but I'm really curious about this. Now back to procrastinating and watching Star Trek...

I've gotten used to seeing

Is this "proper" English..

The answer to your question is smart phones.. that is why you are seeing these errors..

reply to post by misscurious


Well said!

It is also because people use the language as they wish to. People make mistakes. People are just human!

P

You've really thought a lot about this.

The truth is, which You have Overlooked.. People are just doing Impressions of William Shatner.



^ Starts at 1:00

Hope this, Helps your journey for the Truth.

Because they are either lazy or they didn't pay attention in school.
It makes me insane.

I believe this will be the downfall of western civilization.

reply to post by Nanocyte



I dont know why people do this, i think it is just an affect of people using smartphones and such.
But, there is something called Covert hypnosis where you can use techniques, like capitalizing words to send messages to the unconscious mind.
For instance, if i where to capitalize these words: SCRATCH YOUR NOSE, and put them in a sentence, chances are that your gonna scratch your nose while reading it.

Covert hypnosis refers to an attempt to communicate with another person's unconscious mind without that person noticing. As it often takes place in the course of a seemingly regular conversation, it is also known as conversational hypnosis or sleight of mouth.[1] The objective is to change the person’s behavior subconsciously so that the target believes that they changed their mind of their own volition. When performed successfully, the target is unaware that they have been hypnotized or that anything unusual has occurred.

Covert hypnosis

reply to post by Nanocyte



.Now that i know It annoys you. I'll BE doign it All the TIME


But yeah, the pretty girl above hit the nail on the head..Smart phones.

reply to post by Nanocyte
[color=777777]The following is simply my opinion, with nothing to back it up:


I think that many common errors often become learned behavior mostly due to mimicking.
People are always in a hurry, and just don't have enough time to think for themselves.
The more frequently they see others doing it, the more they're going to believe that it is correct.

Originally posted by misscurious

I've gotten used to seeing

Is this "proper" English..

The answer to your question is smart phones.. that is why you are seeing these errors..

"I have got" is British English and "I have gotten" is American English.

Or, to put another way, "I got" is correct English grammar and "I have gotten" is American English.

Not sure why you used two periods to end your sentence and start a new one without a capital?

Originally posted by misscurious

I've gotten used to seeing

Is this "proper" English..

The answer to your question is smart phones.. that is why you are seeing these errors..

It's proper in American English. Is it not the same in the UK? And I'm not sure if smart phones are a sufficient explanation. I'm sure that a lot of the shorthand, spelling, and grammatical errors that have crept into English are largely a result of smart phone usage, but these particular errors seem like they have another origin.

I know that language changes and evolves away from what is considered proper when people make stylistic choices (for example, using a conjunction at the beginning of a sentence would have been considered improper in the past, but now it's so common that it's pretty much become standard). This seems like it's something different, though.

Edit - Just found this page describing some differences between American and British usage of got and gotten:

Gotten vs. Got

Originally posted by MrNobody777

For instance, if i where to capitalize these words: SCRATCH YOUR NOSE, and put them in a sentence, [color=D1C792]chances are that *your* gonna scratch your nose while reading it.

'Chances are' is a meaningless phrase, because I don't know what they are.
How about telling me exactly what those chances actually are?

I already know the end result, as to whether or not I scratched, and I know that my result is the one that I would expect to be in the majority, but I am still curious as to what you honestly feel the chances are.





p.s. *you're*

reply to post by Nanocyte


have you ever just typed as fast as your brain allows and let errors go because in the end it doesn't really matter as long as your message gets out. i do use spell check though i find myself typing the way i think words sound and not how there speld, i do try and look back through and clean up incomplete sentences.

it seems to me, people that are grammar Nazis are so, because it allows them to feel like there in complete control of there thoughts(OCD), truth is, we are not.

Originally posted by BrokenCircles

Originally posted by MrNobody777

For instance, if i where to capitalize these words: SCRATCH YOUR NOSE, and put them in a sentence, chances are that your gonna scratch you´re nose while reading it.

'Chances are' is a meaningless phrase, because I don't know what they are.
How about telling me exactly what those chances actually are?

I already know the end result, as to whether or not I scratched, and I know that my result is the one that I would expect to be in the majority, but I am still curious as to what you honestly feel the chances are.

English is not my native language, but what i meant was that there is a big chance of you doing it, if it is done properly. I dont know what the chances are, and i didnt use it in a sentences, to get you to scratch you nose.

It should be done, something like this:
Bla bla bla bla SCRATCH bla bla bla bla YOUR bla bla bla bla NOSE bla bla bla bla
It can even be done like this:
Bla bla bla bla Scratch bla bla bla bla Your bla bla bla bla Nose bla bla bla bla

There is many different techniques, and i just wanted to share my 2cents

Because language is fluid and changes constantly, the same reason not
many people say rad, or tubular, or any number of different words
and grammatical changes that will and have shaped our languages, this
entire obsession with keeping language static is hilarious to me.

evolution my friend, evolution of language and grammar.

reply to post by ThinkingCap


I like this explanation. Thanks for the link!

Greetings Nanocyte,

Partial answer to your question.

I was told, several years ago, that the mixing of punctuation with software titles (particularly the practice of placing an exclamation point at the end of a software title) is considered California-English, or California writing style. I was told, by a professor, that this [mixing punctuation with software titles] was dictated by, or approved by, California English professors.

Sorry, there is no website link to what I was told. So, I leave it to the scholars of ATS to decide if this answers your question.

reply to post by Nanocyte


I have found myself doing just that. With me, it's all about aesthetics. ( Spacing that is )

( Oh, by the way, you should not use a comma before the word 'and'. )

Sorry.

reply to post by Nanocyte


It is due to smartphones, specifically because of the fact that when you hit the space bar twice in a row it ends your sentence for you, adding a period and a space and naturally starting the next sentence with a capital letter. At least android does this to me... So if you're not paying attention and hit send, you will have some random sentences stopping and starting in the middle.

By the way, your phrase "Chances are..." was used completely correctly, pay no attention to the member that told you otherwise!

Peace,

I.C.

Critiquing commentary of the sort found in places such as this is a valid position to take in general. Although somewhat hyperbolic it is still valid none the less.When you consider the content being discussed we are not dealing with basic everyday events where common errors are overlooked because of the lack of educational value required. We are, in a sense, dealing with a form of education and information distribution. In some cases we are dealing with the distribution of information not covered by mainstream outlets whether that be educational institutions, media institutions, or even religious institutions to name a few. Anybody who takes any bit of pride out of picking up the slack of information distribution not covered my main stream institutions should always make every effort to add credibility to an already credibility lacking paradigm.Would you readily accept such errors from collegiate professors? Would you accept such errors in scientific analysis? What about the media? This isn't to say that critiquing doesn't go too far at times, as it surely does. Point is, information distributed in a haphazard manner more than likely will not be taken as seriously as information distributed in a clear concise manner.Something to think about the next time you want to distribute information you think the world needs to know.S&F Good job!

If I ever capitalize a random word, it is because I am applying Emphasis.

Of course we do have a Bold and Underline function available which serve the same purpose.