Spelling standards on ATS need improvement

If a member is too rushed to check their post, then what indication is there that they even bothered to double check their facts in the post?

It doesn't take many mistakes before my mental picture of the poster becomes this:

I am probably one of the biggest offenders of their/there/they're. I try to keep my spelling reasonably accurate in the hopes I come across relatively intelligent. Thanks for bringing that to my attention. Their, I said it. LOL

I think most of it, probably has to do with people being lazy. Also not reading what they wrote before pressing the post button.

Thats probably most of the mis spellings and such.

reply to post by RiotComing


Dadgummit, I been a fan of yer ritting fur a long time, but then you had to git all uppity on me. That there comment 'bout Arkansas dang near made me drop my home brew. Hit stung so bad I couldn't even finish reading this here thread afore I answered you.

Air you asayin' that us hillbillys ain't able to be unerstood? I've been to three hog callin's, two county fairs and a hangin', and I ain't never heared the like of that there insult. Bein' as I reside in the great state of Arkansas, I hafter speak up fur usin's.

This here ideal language you seem so set on jest don't exist. Words, and how folks use 'em and spell 'em, is like a livin' critter. I kin read Mathew, Mark, Luke, and John jest fine, but that don't mean I go 'round spoutin' "thee" and "thou" ever day. Folks down at the Dew Drop Inn'ld figure I was offen my rocker was I to do that.

The fact is, as our ol' world grows smaller with this here whiz bang cyber whatchmacallit, whar everbody kin talk to everbody, hit ain't polite to worry as much how things get spelt, as hit is the idears behind the words. And jest as shore as the sun comes up in the east, a hunnert years from now, folks in yore neck of the woods will be speakin' English a sight diffrent than you do now.

Now I kin unnerstand you most of the time, 'ceptin' when you use some of that Aussie slang. And I do 'preciate yore tryin' to raise standards here. I myself have a fifth grade edjermacation, and I woulda went on through schoolin', cept I thought hit weren't right to pass my Daddy by in grades. And I will go on upholding the great state of Arkansas, where we all unnerstand that the world is about what we know, and not jest how we say it.

OK, sew , my question , two hue , is whye did, ewe, misuse , those homonyms/homophones , if , in reality, you new , the different's?

Wood hugh, say , it's lazinessity, or stupidityosity , or carelessnessiality?

Just curious.

well i know my spelling is bad but i think i make more typos than i do flat use a word wrong.

granny was an old school school teacher (one room school house in the country no less) and the one she drilled into me was the seen/saw usage.

i tell ya, its like nails on a chalkboard when i hear people say "yeah i seen that the other day"

but if my typing things like teh and adn make my credibility go away then id say whoever is reading them is wound just a little too tight.

but thats just me, i could be wrong, its happened before.

Gotta love this..

f yuo can raed tihs, you hvae a sgtrane mnid, too.
Can you raed tihs? Olny 55 plepoe out of 100 can.

i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt! if you can raed tihs forwrad it.



If you can read this, your brain is 50% faster than those who can't

Semper

reply to post by Badge01


Badge, I ain't shore ifen yor talkin' to me or not, bein' as yor post aere jest under mine. And we never learnt too many of them air long words in that lttle bitty one room school house, so I ain't shore jest what yor gittin' at.

I wrote my post exactly how a lot of my neighbors talk. And to make a point that while language, and it's usage may mature and change over a period of time, there is a continuity to it nevertheless. No lanuage remains static. In his day, W. Shakespear took some liberties with English, and now he is an icon of the well read.

I also wrote it to to point out that even fairly complex ideas can be expressed without overly worrying about being too correct.That it is the ideas being brought forth that are of greater value than how those ideas are expressed.

And I also wrote it in honor (honour) of one of my favorite authors, Mark Twain.

reply to post by NGC2736


Well, bean that you're the cutest li'l ole nebular evah, you can do no wrong in my eyes.

Nah, I was just lampooning (harpooning?) what I think are some of the funniest malaprop hosers and gramma' wretches I've seen around, from 'excessive comma and apostrophes' to the 'can't find my shift key'.

But we have to remember, they're doing really, really well for third graders, so we have to give credit where it's due.

To tell the truth, there are rare instances where the intelligence shines through.

[edit on 24-9-2007 by Badge01]

reply to post by Badge01


Third grade spelling and grammer I can take in stride. It's so many of these third grade ideas that make me despondent.

And thank you for the compliment to my avatar. You keep saying such nice things and I may go all super nova.

Originally posted by RiotComing
reply to post by FredT

 

I realise that, as I said in this post here:

Surprisingly, those whom speak English as a second language put more effort in than some of us relying on our native tongue.

I'm going to be blunt here, but I feel the members making the blunders in question tend to be overwhelmingly American!!!!

Ok, I've said it... (shrugs shoulders and slinks away slowly...)

You know, I wouldn't doubt that for a moment. Perhaps I can 'splain that a bit, or at least offer my thoughts on the matter.

When we split from dear ole England, perhaps some of our forefathers made a conscious effort to 'murder' the King's English... ( made even easier when English was not the dominant colloquial language, or there was a previous resentment toward England, as it was for Irish, German, French... ).......

This is a type of rebellion that has continued to be an expression of the common man's civil disobedience against the snobbery of 'high falutin' society.......(the use of Ebonics could be considered this way, for instance.)

From my own experience, even though I have a college degree and rarely use "ain't" in regular conversation, I do find that my use of that 'redneck' contraction increases proportionally with the level of snoot I receive from a listener.......


.

Originally posted by NGC2736
reply to post by Badge01

 

And thank you for the compliment to my avatar. You keep saying such nice things and I may go all super nova.

You mean pencil got wood?

(hope that's not too graphite for the forum).

reply to post by frayed1


Me Too!!

I've also found that the "Aw shucks, I'm a harmless good ol' boy" attitude works well in business deals. If you sound like a hick, the general run of people thinks that has to mean stupid.Then they try to take advantage of you.

That's when the game really starts to become interesting.

reply to post by Badge01


But sadly, like any old nebulous being, at my age I'm a pine and not mahogany.

But I am smiling.

reply to post by semperfortis


Hah! That is the best! I guess that also explains how mistranslations happen

Originally posted by semperfortis

f yuo can raed tihs, you hvae a sgtrane mnid, too.
Can you raed tihs? Olny 55 plepoe out of 100 can.

i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt! if you can raed tihs forwrad it.

Thats actually a good one.

I remember seeing something like that before, and its very true. I was able to read through the above paragraph rather quickly with no problems.

Its also true, that labeling info as unreliable from a source, just because of their spelling and grammar, is not necessarily the wisest choice...but it is just that - 'a choice'.

Which is more important, the information, or how it is presented?
True, how it is presented does help...but with small things such as grammar and spelling, not sure its that much of a show stopper. Personally, I write what I think, and leave it at that...I have not the time, energy, or desire to go nit pick through everything and correct it. Someone reads it and enjoys, fine - if not, that is fine to.

But again, it all boils down to preference and personality.

This is one of those threads that can be 'debated until the cows come home'.

Peace

dAlen

[edit on 24-9-2007 by dAlen]

There are many reasons why people should not get so uptight about spelling and grammatical errors.

Firstly, the whole point of language is that it enables ideas to be conveyed to one another. Using 'their' instead of 'they're' does not usually impede the message. As we read, we are not simply looking at the words, but also looking at the context. As long as the message is being conveyed, I don't see a problem.

Fair enough, another argument is that certain norms must be established and conformed to in order to create a sense of stability, but to me that doesn't wash. It's way too prescriptive.

Think about how English developed as a language. We used to spell things in all different kinds of ways, but then along came the dictionary, followed by mass education, coupled with it, intellectual snobbery and the language becomes stale.

To me, language is a constantly evolving beast. Let it evolve. English is too damn complicated anyway with stupid rules and daft irregularities.

Chill out and just get the drift...

Finally, what about those with Special Educational Needs? I don't think I need expand upon that point.

What the Government tell me I have to teach, in my day job as an inglish teecher, with regards to language and what I truly feel, deep inside, are totally different things.

In closing, if you get the point across...job dun.

wndrfl, th rl prblm is th vwls.

ar vwls rlly ncssry?

Lts try dng wtht thm, shll w?

[edit on 24-9-2007 by Stormdancer777]

[edit on 24-9-2007 by Stormdancer777]

Originally posted by Stormdancer777

Lts try dng wtht thm, shll w?

Why? Are they too expensive to buy?

Perhaps this thread make many laugh and have a good time at the spelling problems that some members have.

But I feel very offended, like many other members in this board should feel offended also.

No everybody including me are English born or have English as our first language.

Perhaps the next thing is to make fun of people with mental challenge or other disabilities.

I see my lack perfection and mastering of the English language a disadvantage and a disability when it comes to express myself.

I am very offended.

[edit on 24-9-2007 by marg6043]