Audiocluelessness in the Forums?

[westcott]

I once took an internet edicate class many years ago and it was said that using just lower case and spelling mistakes were acceptable. It was meant to be an informal medium for the masses.

Not sure who is qualified to be an expert on internet edicate. I know it is not me.

I do know that the best advice the seminar gave was to never write anything you would not say to that persons face. Now THAT is good advice and wish more people adhered to it.

 

[avaserfi]

I am currently in a intro to computer type class in college, stupid required things they wont let me test out of, and westcott basically repeated what we learned about internet edicate.

The internet is designed to be a medium for everyone not just the elite or well educated and minor spelling and grammar errors are to be expected in such an accessible medium.

 

[MDS]

So these classes actually teach that it is acceptable internet 'etiquette' to write poorly because lots of people do?

Can you imagine a real school that would allow you to opt out of English classes because many people write or speak poorly and thus there is no reason to learn to better yourself?

 

[avaserfi]

Its not necessarily to write poorly but the need to write perfectly also need not be present. You are making the assumption that the internet is here for only the educated or that only the educated should be allowed to post something on the internet. The majority of people (U.S. included) still don't graduate high school much less college.

 

[westcott]

So these classes actually teach that it is acceptable internet 'etiquette' to write poorly because lots of people do?

Can you imagine a real school that would allow you to opt out of English classes because many people write or speak poorly and thus there is no reason to learn to better yourself?

Not sure if you liked my sense of humor or not.

Here is a test for you. Type in edicate in "Word" and see if spell check catches it. Mine does not.

 

[no. 5]

The internet is designed to be a medium for everyone not just the elite or well educated and minor spelling and grammar errors are to be expected in such an accessible medium.

I do agree, but people should at least try to use proper spelling and grammar.

So these classes actually teach that it is acceptable internet 'etiquette' to write poorly because lots of people do?

Can you imagine a real school that would allow you to opt out of English classes because many people write or speak poorly and thus there is no reason to learn to better yourself?

You have touched on something interesting there; I don’t know of one real school that would allow that, and yet, bad English is common.
Kids are being given the information, and are learning little or nothing.

The majority of people (U.S. included) still don't graduate high school much less college.

And some of us was hom skoold.

Here is a test for you. Type in edicate in "Word" and see if spell check catches it. Mine does not.

Mine did.

 

[Seth=L]

It must be time well spent because I find that your posts are helpful and informative.

I really appreciate your kind words.

 

[avaserfi]

I do agree, but people should at least try to use proper spelling and grammar.

I never said people shouldn't try I just said some people might not be capable.

 

[MDS]

Its not necessarily to write poorly but the need to write perfectly also need not be present. You are making the assumption that the internet is here for only the educated or that only the educated should be allowed to post something on the internet. The majority of people (U.S. included) still don't graduate high school much less college.

I'm making no such assumption. The internet is free for everyone but you can be judged - rightly or wrongly - by the way you speak or write. It's no different than the way some people judge others by the way they dress or the kind of car they drive (it's not right and as the saying goes 'don't judge a book by it's cover' - but it happens).

If you were a corporate recruiter and you got two cover letters from prospective job candidates and one wrote a nice letter with proper spelling and decent grammar and the other wrote the kind of gibberish you see on IRC or instant messaging, which one would you choose for the job?

 

[avaserfi]

I'm making no such assumption. The internet is free for everyone but you can be judged - rightly or wrongly - by the way you speak or write. It's no different than the way some people judge others by the way they dress or the kind of car they drive (it's not right and as the saying goes 'don't judge a book by it's cover' - but it happens).

If you were a corporate recruiter and you got two cover letters from prospective job candidates and one wrote a nice letter with proper spelling and decent grammar and the other wrote the kind of gibberish you see on IRC or instant messaging, which one would you choose for the job?

Cant argue with you their everyone has the right to judge, I know I do. I also know I get annoyed with some peoples posting online, mainly overuse of caps and when a statement is extremely hard to understand I guess I was just defending their right to be annoying and portray their unpolished nature.

 

[Davemcc]

"It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak up and remove all doubt." I can't attribute this properly, sorry.

The internet allows anybody to speak up. How you interpret what or how it is said is up to you.

 

[Jack Hammer]

Most people seem to remember the expectation of perfect grammar in English class but few seem to recall getting their papers back, prior to the final version, with all kinds of corrections for grammar, punctuation, spelling, proper use of words or caps, missing words, incoherents sentences, improper sentence and paragraph structure, etc. And many times that occured after running a spell check.

People need to lighten up on online posts use of perfect grammar and language. It's an online post, not a graduate paper.

Jack

 

[no. 5]

"It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak up and remove all doubt." I can't attribute this properly, sorry.

As far as I know, that quote is usually attributed to Abraham Lincoln (though it sound more like Mark Twain to me)... but in saying that, I could be... uh, "speaking up".

 

[majorloser]

As far as I know, that quote is usually attributed to Abraham Lincoln (though it sound more like Mark Twain to me)... but in saying that, I could be... uh, "speaking up".

"Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt."-- Abraham Lincoln

 

[Davemcc]

"Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt."-- Abraham Lincoln

I've always remembered this from a toilet seat cover in my grandparents basement bathroom, some tacky little souvenir from the '60's. I thought it sounded like something Oscar Wilde would get credit for.

 

[masak_aer]

It's funny that when I go through reading this thread, the subject matter somehow has shifted before anyone notices it (or may be notice it but just didn't say it). Five pages long and I get carried along as well. I tried to go back and see where it started to shift. This is very amusing for me. I have seen quite a few threads that were hijacked but this one is the most recent one I like. May be there should be a class/study on how to smoothly hijack a thread.

 

[highfihoney]

People need to lighten up on online posts use of perfect grammar and language. It's an online post, not a graduate paper.

Jack

AMEN BROTHER!

People who worry & fret over internet spelling always make me think that they believe they are above other people who cant spell or who dont use spell check.

Grammar is no reflection of a persons real world intelligence or capabilities.

 

[highfihoney]

If you were a corporate recruiter and you got two cover letters from prospective job candidates and one wrote a nice letter with proper spelling and decent grammar and the other wrote the kind of gibberish you see on IRC or instant messaging, which one would you choose for the job?

Im not a corporate recruiter but i do hire & fire a lot of people each year & i would never hire anybody using how they typed a resume as a basis for hiring them infact proper spelling is the last thing i want to see them do.

 

[Seth=L]

in fact proper spelling is the last thing i want to see them do.

Yeah, you would rather see them go psycho on a stack of Insignia CD players first wouldn't you?

 

[MDS]

Im not a corporate recruiter but i do hire & fire a lot of people each year & i would never hire anybody using how they typed a resume as a basis for hiring them infact proper spelling is the last thing i want to see them do.

I guess your standards are fundamentally different than mine. There is a huge difference between talking cordially to someone without looking down on them and recruiting for a high paying job that requires a high level of education and skill. A reasonable person will not look down on others but I can assure you that if one doesn't exhibit good writing and speaking skills in an interview he/she will be passed over for the job.