Interspersed... Wait, that would also be markup... Let me be nerd.
On 2/23/2011 9:31 PM, Bob W wrote:
Writing was invented in approximately 4000 BC. Since then people have been able to write to each other quite successfully without needing emoticons, smilies, 'mark-up' and other non-standard orthography. I really don't know why people have suddenly decided to resort to privately-defined systems of non-communication.
Before that people were able to communicate without writing. In particular, tradition has it that Torah was passed as a word from person to person before it was written down many hundreds of years later.
The secret of making your meaning clear is to write clearly and simply.
That's fundamentally correct statement. It is just as fundamentally void of any practical meaning. If A and B want to communicate, they have to be willing to establish a mutually clear means to do so. If A and B have different mother tongues or belong to different cultures, common language may not be enough.
If you're not writing in your first language then you have to take a bit of extra care and stick to the standard variety& register of the language, avoiding archaic, precious or excessively formal or informal language.
Indeed.
If you are using your first language then you have to remember that many of your readers are not, so take a bit of extra care and stick to the standard variety& register of the language, avoiding archaic, precious or excessively formal or informal language.
I sincerely hope to be able to meet you in person once again, Bob. When I do, I will take special care to make sure that when you talk your voice is leveled, your head does not move, in fact that none of your body parts move except your mouth, and surely that your facial expression stays constant throughout the whole time you speak.
You seem to have missed the point entirely here. Yes, written language, such as that of literature has certain standards. Internet (oh my, nerds are coming) email exchange is not literature. It is very much akin to the number of people sitting in the same physical room talking to each other. Since physically it is hard to put Ann, you and me in the same room, we use nerdy invention called Internet. Now, no matter how much each of us tries to stick to standard variety and (using ampersand to denote "and" is nerdy) register of the language, as you put it, it won't help because we are not robots who exchange information on protocol. And I do maintain that great deal of communication goes on non-verbal level that is impossible to put into words unless you resort to nerdy markup.
But I hear your point. And that of several others. I do remember albeit somewhat vaguely similar discussion on the matter when it was concluded that ":-)" was less favorable alternative whereas *smile* was preferred. Obviously I cannot possibly remember what whose position was on the subject. I do remember that I made a resolution to try to write without any markup, nerdy or otherwise, and that I failed miserably a number of times to the point that I was so upset and frustrated that I thought of leaving, which by the way I effectively did assigning more of my internet time to other communities.
I should also point out that after I went to Chicago and met there with a number of PDMLers, my interaction with them on the list became much easier. I can easily imagine Larry or Stan or Ann talking to me when I read their messages.
With respect. Boris -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
