Spelling/Grammar on Forum Sites

IanCurtis

Hi folks

Brought this to feedback, but got the usual recycled pictures etc.

Curious to ask those in the know, do you think the standard of communciation in public forum such as this is too low/basic (text speak etc.) and do you think it will improve or not as supply of these kind of sites increases?

I would hate to think our kids would use spell-checks etc. rather than learn the basics of whatever their native language is.

On bebo, I can understand it as all teens have their own slang etc, but on adult sites it is less bearable.

Any thoughts on this?

Thanks!

mneylon

I think a lot of people are simply lazy when they go online. At least I hope that's the explanation, because the alternative is worrying!

turgon

IanCurtis wrote: »

I would hate to think our kids would use spell-checks etc. rather than learn the basics of whatever their native language is.

I use spell check because Im a careless typer when I type fast. I keep hitting other keys, so like if I go to type "a" sometimes I get "as" etc.

I doubt many use spell check because they actually cant spell at all, except for hard words. And "ridiculous".

Honey-ec

Over-reliance on spellcheck is a very bad habit to get into anyway, as it won't pick up on things like "they're" instead of "their" and so on.

But I agree, the standard of spelling, grammar and punctuation on most internet fora is appalling. As for the "teenspeak" on Bebo - I actually genuinely can't understand what they're saying most of the time - they seem to have done away with vowels altogether!

mneylon

Honey-ec wrote: »

As for the "teenspeak" on Bebo - I actually genuinely can't understand what they're saying most of the time - they seem to have done away with vowels altogether!

I have that problem on quite a few sites.

In some cases it's the weird spelling and odd syntax, but in others it's a total lack of clarity of expression.

EKRIUQ

Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

Problem solved

Shiny

I don't mind the odd spelling mistake at all.
Firefox's built in spell checker catches a good few mistakes
but as others have pointed out, will not catch all problems.

On the other hand I hate "txt spk" with a vengeance:mad:. I wont
reply to a text message with that crap in it. :cool:

stevire

I think its just laziness, so are kids just getting lazier?? Imo yes.. Or are they trying to be cool by writing short and urban!?!? :rolleyes:

I honestly can't see it improving, unless some forums bring in an automated word corrector upon posting which I can't see being too popular either...

In regards to txt lingo, I dont mind it, as I know a lot of people just want to cut down on the size of the text message!

Bob the Builder

my excuse for not writing in capital letters is because i broke the shift key on my laptop that i used to use all the time.

on the other hand, people always ask me why i use "full words" in texts, so it's hypocritical really.

vowels are only used nowadays in the 'words' - 'lol' and 'lawl'

Malice

IanCurtis wrote: »

Hi folks

Brought this to feedback, but got the usual recycled pictures etc.

Curious to ask those in the know, do you think the standard of communciation in public forum such as this is too low/basic (text speak etc.) and do you think it will improve or not as supply of these kind of sites increases?

It varies by forum e.g. After Hours or The Leaving Cert is worse than this one for example.

The standard might be a bit low overall but it could be much worse. It's only going to get worse I'd say. Monkey-see, monkey-do and all that.

Things like mixing up "they're", "their" and "there" are irritating or using "I would of..." instead of "I would have" or "I would've".

IanCurtis wrote:

On bebo, I can understand it as all teens have their own slang etc, but on adult sites it is less bearable.

Tell me more about these adult sites?

Bebo might be regarded as a teen site but quite a few twenty and thirty-somethings that I know have profiles on there.

mneylon

malice_ wrote: »

Things like mixing up "they're", "their" and "there" are irritating or using "I would of..." instead of "I would have" or "I would've".

Incredibly annoying

Eoin

"txtspk" is very annoying, but a lot of the mods do clamp down on it - even in After Hours. Having a pedantic moderator there helps.

I think that a lot of people forget that not everyone works in an environment where written communication skills are used regularly, or at all.

While it is annoying to see the likes of "there, their and they're" used incorrectly, I think it can look smug, condescending and supercilious to complain about it.

Malice

eoin_s wrote: »

While it is annoying to see the likes of "there, their and they're" used incorrectly, I think it can look smug, condescending and supercilious to complain about it.

Why? Assuming people are at least in their teens when browsing forums and using their primary language to write in, is it that much to expect that they can communicate legibly using the written word? A few spelling errors or grammatical mistakes are to be expected. I almost always the the Preview Post button for example to make sure things read right.

If people don't work in an environment where they have to write then fair enough but what do they do with themselves for the rest of their day? Do they never have to write out shopping lists, leave notes for spouses, kids etc?

Maybe they do and their shopping lists look something like:

2 pts mlk.
1 lf brd.
1 blk chz.
1 tb btr.
1 pk crnflks.

r3nu4l

blacknight wrote: »

I think a lot of people are simply lazy when they go online. At least I hope that's the explanation, because the alternative is worrying!

stevire wrote: »

I think its just laziness, so are kids just getting lazier??

I agree that laziness is a problem. I regularly get emails, facebook and bebo wall posts from a friend of mine who did her PhD in the same lab as me and works for a major pharma company, preparing reports and writing up scientific data results every day. Her posts read as follows:

"Hi, saw u wr in Barcie, wuz it gud?"

"Wen u bk in Dub, lets mt 4 drnks."

This woman is intelligent, manages groups of people in work and is a very smart communicator in person but reading her posts, she sounds like a 12 year old schoolkid. Laziness is definitely the answer in my opinion.

/paranoid about saying 'imo' ^^^

Honey-ec

I use full spelling, grammar and punctuation in all my texts - costs me a bloody fortune but I just cannot bring myself to do the textspeak!

Lynne Truss would be ever so proud...

Seth Brundle

Given that this is the web development forum, I'm going to look at it from that perspective.
Spelling or gramatical mistakes within code are sloppy and will more than likely cause the page/site to render incorrectly (from what the designer/developer is looking expecting).
Spelling or gramatical errors within the text on a site reflect poorly on the site owner and assumig its a business then could possibly affect business.

However, spelling errors are becomming more and more frequent within the print media, especially within adverts. I have lost count of the amount of times I have seen adverts on the front cover of the Irish Times with careless spelling mistakes. Does nobody proof read anything anymore?

Honey-ec

kbannon wrote: »

However, spelling errors are becomming more and more frequent within the print media, especially within adverts. I have lost count of the amount of times I have seen adverts on the front cover of the Irish Times with careless spelling mistakes. Does nobody proof read anything anymore?

I really don't think they do - it's like all those sign's you see everywhere with superfluous apostrophe's in them. How many people did that go through from design to manufacture to installation, and not one person copped it???