Writing.

[OinkBoink]

Stephen Fry would hate a person like me perhaps, but I like my arguments to be as clear, coherent and logical as they can be. There's also an aesthetic value associated with a well written post/article/publication. Hence, I edit my posts quite a lot. I joined these forums in my early 10s and looking back, some of the stuff that I wrote back in the early (or mid) 2000s is kinda embarrassing (both in grammar and content). :ninja:

Every time I make a mistake, I'm like, "Goddamn it, I couldn't have written that! Edit, edit, edit!". It's also a little embarrassing when people call you out on your mistakes (though it shouldn't be if one is looking to improve himself/herself). It seems as though it casts your intellect in poor light. D:

Then again, grammatical accuracy doesn't necessarily holistically measure someone's intelligence, does it? (*rhetorical*) I know people who can't write a grammatically correct sentence to save their lives but are extraordinarily good at say, mathematics or surgery.

 

[lxskllr]

I like things to be pretty close, but I don't go for perfection. I'll occasionally edit my posts to clean especially painful mistakes, but I let the little stuff go.

 

[TwiceOver]

Perfection, no. Basics, yes.

See sig.

 

[SlitheryDee]

I like to misuse semicolons;

 

[nageov3t]

it annoys me, but I'm not so much of a pedant that I'd point it out unless the person is being really insufferable about something.

"text speak" abbreviations like u, ur, tx, etc... all annoy me a lot more, especially if the person is sitting behind a keyboard.

there's this 50 year-old guy at work who abbreviates everything in his emails/IM's and I want to punch him in the face.

 

[IronWing]

Only in the writing of others.

 

[randomrogue]

I expect people to be proficient in their native tongue. Secondary, tertiary, etc languages I don't care about.

If you can't communicate properly in your first language it's a sign of either being unintelligent or uneducated and both are not good traits to have.

You might think you're being cool by using leet or im speak but if anything it makes you look like a giant douche.

 

[rcpratt]

You missed your Oxford comma in the first sentence.

 

[dainthomas]

"Kind of" not "kinda".

 

[mistercrabby]

Only for business writing, and then I'll say something like, "let me suggest another way to say that...".

I think it's mean and rude to correct another's grammer in general. There are too many cultural, regional and educational variations to get nit picky. The point is communication, and being a good listener or reader requires you make the effort to pick up where the speaker or author may fall down in their technical articulation. The best way to get a young child to become self-conscious about their speaking ability is to correct their grammer when they're trying to tell you about the cool butterfly they just saw or how neat dinosaurs are.

 

[nickbits]

Grammer is not my strong suit, so I am not too picky. However, obvious things like its versus it's annoy me.

 

[OinkBoink]

You missed your Oxford comma in the first sentence.

"Kind of" not "kinda".

D:

On a more serious note, perfection is an ideality that can't always be achieved. I'm happy with a low error margin.

 

[Train]

I can let most simple mistakes slide. If it's a typo, like thier/their the/teh, not really bothering me.

Loose/lose has really started to bug me though.

 

[OinkBoink]

I expect people to be proficient in their native tongue. Secondary, tertiary, etc languages I don't care about.

If you can't communicate properly in your first language it's a sign of either being unintelligent or uneducated and both are not good traits to have.

You might think you're being cool by using leet or im speak but if anything it makes you look like a giant douche.

This brought to my mind the idea that many people have about what a "native" language is. Scientifically speaking, it isn't the majority language of your country/region. It's the language that you pick up during the critical period of your brain. You can have more than one native language.

 

[Zeze]

I don't really haven't thought about it.

 

[lxskllr]

Loose/lose has really started to bug me though.

One of my pet peeves is the misuse of fairly common words. "I'm weary of driving my car when the tire tread gets thin"

 

[ShadowOfMyself]

I hate periods so I avoid them completely, unless used in an ellipsis
I also dont use ' because its annoying as hell when typing, and people know what you mean anyway based on the context of the sentence

Its very easy to see who knows their stuff and who doesnt however...
The one thing that blows my mind lately is how more and more people use "of" in place of "have", or confuse their/theyre/there
Im scared it might actually become an official synonym

Its to the point where I just stop taking that person seriously, because no intelligent person would confuse the two

 

[IGemini]

I'm usually pretty good about my own grammar. It's really depressing/pathetic when a Facebook string has a rare instance of meaningful conversation that's riddled with spelling and grammar errors...people keep trying to use expressions or colloquialisms they can't spell.

 

[rcpratt]

Only for business writing, and then I'll say something like, "let me suggest another way to say that...".

I think it's mean and rude to correct another's grammer in general. There are too many cultural, regional and educational variations to get nit picky. The point is communication, and being a good listener or reader requires you make the effort to pick up where the speaker or author may fall down in their technical articulation. The best way to get a young child to become self-conscious about their speaking ability is to correct their grammer when they're trying to tell you about the cool butterfly they just saw or how neat dinosaurs are.

I'm sorry, but that's a load of crap. There are very, very few cultural, regional, or educational variances in formal English writing and grammar. The point is communication, yes, and the point of grammar is effective communication. If I can't understand what you're saying, then your grammar impeded the effectiveness of your writing. Sure, most minor grammar mistakes don't cause a lack of effectiveness in isolation; however, multiple grammar mistakes can both cloud understanding and reduce one's faith that the writer has any clue what they are doing.

I'm not saying any of this in the context of children. Obviously, teaching methods are a different topic.

 

[Poulsonator]

Loose/lose has really started to bug me though.

That's the worst one for me.

I'm not fanatical about it, but I can't help but think it's a sign of ignorance. Sure, a typo happens, but when it's consistent...

 

[OinkBoink]

I'm sorry, but that's a load of crap. There are very, very few cultural, regional, or educational variances in formal English writing and grammar. The point is communication, yes, and the point of grammar is effective communication. If I can't understand what you're saying, then your grammar impeded the effectiveness of your writing. Sure, most minor grammar mistakes don't cause a lack of effectiveness in isolation; however, multiple grammar mistakes can both cloud understanding and reduce one's faith that the writer has any clue what they are doing.

I'm not saying any of this in the context of children. Obviously, teaching methods are a different topic.

Well, to put it into perspective, my father's a surgeon, but he studied in a non-English language school till he started his undergraduate medical course (which was in English). He also grew up in a non-English environment. He understands concepts and ideas pretty well but when it comes to writing grammatically correct English, he's not very good. He can do a kidney transplant perfectly well though.

 

[colonelciller]

It's also a little embarrassing when people call you out on your mistakes (though it shouldn't be if one is looking to improve himself/herself).

no, it is not the least bit embarrassing, it is silly and annoying. If you're embarrassed by this then I think it reflects a personal insecurity. Hitting the wrong key when typing on a keyboard (or tablet as I often do here) is not a reflection of anything. I'd say that if you can understand the content in an internet forum, then the point of the forum & post was served...

It seems as though it casts your intellect in poor light. D:

Hardly. I find this comment to be absurd. Tell me, would you say that someone who uses english as a 5th language and makes a grammatical mistake has a "poor intellect". Try reading a book by Richard Feynman... he's one of the most brilliant physicists who ever lived and he could give a rats @$$ about grammar... and rightly so, because it means absolutely nothing. I suppose it would have been better to link a different book with Feynman's writings since it's more on the topic of feeling embarrassed when people point out grammatical mistakes:

Then again, grammatical accuracy doesn't necessarily holistically measure someone's intelligence, does it?

of course not, the question is absurd. a side topic is the absurdity of measuring "intelligence"... here's a good book debunking the IQ fallacy.

 

[AstroManLuca]

It's part of my job. I don't care quite as much online, though. I still correct minor errors as I type. Also, I find it quicker and easier to type everything properly than using those stupid txt spk abbreviations.

 

[Udgnim]

I don't bother to capitalize letters in front of sentences when posting unless the sentence starts with an "I" or a name.

I will reread and my edit my posts at times if I catch something or feel there is a better way of expressing what I post, but I'm not a grammar nazi because I fucking hated writing / English classes and know my grammar is not that great.

 

[OinkBoink]

no, it is not the least bit embarrassing, it is silly and annoying. If you're embarrassed by this then I think it reflects a personal insecurity. Hitting the wrong key when typing on a keyboard (or tablet as I often do here) is not a reflection of anything. I'd say that if you can understand the content in an internet forum, then the point of the forum & post was served...

Hardly. I find this comment to be absurd. Tell me, would you say that someone who uses english as a 5th language and makes a grammatical mistake has a "poor intellect". Try reading a book by Richard Feynman... he's one of the most brilliant physicists who ever lived and he could give a rats @$$ about grammar... and rightly so, because it means absolutely nothing. I suppose it would have been better to link a different book with Feynman's writings since it's more on the topic of feeling embarrassed when people point out grammatical mistakes:

of course not, the question is absurd. a side topic is the absurdity of measuring "intelligence"... here's a good book debunking the IQ fallacy.

Kind sir, I agree with everything you've written and will go so far as to admit that like everyone else, I do have insecurities and there's nothing wrong with that either. It's just the animal in me trying to survive.

I didn't imply that people who have poor grammar are necessarily less intelligent (I also used the word "seemingly" with reference to how other people may perceive your intellect if you made too many errors and that I wouldn't want to take that chance). That would be simplistic without considering other factors like something as simple as keyboard errors or something more complex like the environment in which you grew up. I even gave the example of my father.

Perhaps there are specific types of intelligence too. Perhaps you could be average at writing and great at mathematics. There are autistic children who can't tie a shoelace properly but come up with wonderful art.

I'm sorry, but I find your post a little too forceful without properly seeing where I'm coming from. You could have worded it in a more neutral manner. Just my subjective opinion. Also, you've quoted individual lines out of context. Not that I care too much about a random internet post anyway.