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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2017 15:36:06 GMT
Oh dear, Phantom, and I was just about to tell you that we've finally got the last of the Grammar Squad's heads from out the pilot's arse. He's a bit sore but he now knows that he should have kept his wits about him. He would have been fine with this lot, but he turned to sort out the flame, and that's when it all went arse-upwards. Still, it could have been a lot worse... Apart from this, an uneventful day on Theatre Board forum.
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Post by infofreako on Mar 7, 2017 15:51:48 GMT
49thand8th because I don't want to get moaned at for quoting a long post on top of everything else. I mentioned laziness earlier briefly but I didn't mean it in the way you suggest. I post from 2 devices. One has a cracked very small screen which is very difficult to read now. If I'm using that to post the last thing on my mind is crafting something that looks like I've taken time and paid attention to it. My other device isn't always to hand so it's easier to use the old one. I always thought this was a nice relaxed place to come and chat about theatre and not be judged and reprimanded for the slightest thing.
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Post by 49thand8th on Mar 7, 2017 15:54:24 GMT
I always thought this was a nice relaxed place to come and chat about theatre and not be judged and reprimanded for the slightest thing. Are you, though? Or are you being hyperbolic? Or is this thread just revelatory, for better or for worse?
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Post by kathryn on Mar 7, 2017 16:02:25 GMT
I agree with you. What I'm coming from is: I'm a copy editor. I make my living pointing out where other people falter in this realm of their lives. So, online discussion is a mixed bag for me: It's a relief not to care, but it's also frustrating. That said, I can't and won't judge people's online communications the same way I do at work. I'd never get through the day if that happened. I think anyone who has done it professionally learns a couple of things: 1) life is too short to be correcting people all the time, and 2) people really don't appreciate having their mistakes pointed out in everyday life.
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Post by 49thand8th on Mar 7, 2017 16:05:55 GMT
The other thing that's cropped up the past few years is paranoia among my friends and family who've known me since I had a very different career path. Many of them joke, "Oh nooooo, I didn't want to make a typo in my text to you!" Like, WTF, man, I don't care. I know what you meant. I might make fun of you if it's REALLY funny, but we're already friends.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2017 16:10:25 GMT
I think anyone who has done it professionally learns a couple of things: 1) life is too short to be correcting people all the time, and 2) people really don't appreciate having their mistakes pointed out in everyday life. I wonder if the issue some have had is the fact that some people feel the need to point out their grammatical mistakes in public. I can imagine that's not a particularly nice feeling.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2017 16:13:27 GMT
The other thing that's cropped up the past few years is paranoia among my friends and family who've known me since I had a very different career path. Many of them joke, "Oh nooooo, I didn't want to make a typo in my text to you!" Like, WTF, man, I don't care. I know what you meant. I might make fun of you if it's REALLY funny, but we're already friends. I mean that's exactly it right? it's like if I'm speaking another language with friends, one that I'm learning and I say something really ridiculous like 'I like to ride my pig to work' well if we're all friends we can have a good laugh about it, because it is silly. And if we're not, as long as someone politely points out my mistake rather than mocking in a nasty way everyone is alright.
I think the issue was the slightly dramatic 'it's just the worst thing ever I cannot abide these stupid people' attitude in some cases.
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Post by infofreako on Mar 7, 2017 16:20:08 GMT
I always thought this was a nice relaxed place to come and chat about theatre and not be judged and reprimanded for the slightest thing. Are you, though? Or are you being hyperbolic? Or is this thread just revelatory, for better or for worse? I just genuinely think this thread creates divisions that weren't there previously. Not being hyperbolic at all. I think a large percentage of my posts have been fine and where they haven't if the bad grammar is pointed out its water off a ducks back. Having a thread designed to specifically have digs at people seems harsh to me and appears unwelcoming to potential newcomers. Surely we want to grow this community because we all enjoy talking about a shared interest.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2017 16:40:21 GMT
I think a large percentage of my posts have been fine and where they haven't if the bad grammar is pointed out its water off a ducks back. Having a thread designed to specifically have digs at people seems harsh to me and appears unwelcoming to potential newcomers. I don't think it was about having digs at people, and I'm rather disappointed that some people have chosen to respond to my posts as if that's what I was doing instead of considering what I've been writing. The way I interpreted the thread is that it's about the fact that some people simply aren't bothered about trying to be correct. I wasn't attacking dyslexics or people using English as a foreign language, and I wasn't attacking specific people. I was attacking the lazy attitude of "Why be right when being wrong is good enough?" I'm surprised that people take issue with that, and I'm more than a little hurt that people have attacked me for it.
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Post by kathryn on Mar 7, 2017 16:54:14 GMT
Matthew, I don't think that comment was aimed at you.
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Post by infofreako on Mar 7, 2017 16:56:34 GMT
Matthew, I don't think that comment was aimed at you. It wasnt. Puzzled as to why I was quoted to be honest.
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Post by Jon on Mar 7, 2017 16:57:51 GMT
For all this debate about grammar and spelling, I'm quite glad no one posts in Parsley speak
Because that
would be
very annoying
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2017 17:04:14 GMT
Matthew, I don't think that comment was aimed at you. I know it wasn't, but there were some earlier comments that were quite definitely directed at me. I posted in reply to infofreako because he and some others appear to have taken this whole thread as an attack on them personally, and I wanted to make it absolutely clear that, no matter how what I've been saying may have been misrepresented, I'm not trying to tell any poster that if they don't improve their English then they're not welcome here. On the other hand, any poster who eats crisps in a theatre is welcome ... in HELL.
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Post by kathryn on Mar 7, 2017 17:04:36 GMT
[quote author="@thematthew " source="/post/96630/thread" timestamp="1488904821" The way I interpreted the thread is that it's about the fact that some people simply aren't bothered about trying to be correct. [/quote]
The thing is, some people didn't interpret it that way. They interpreted it as a personal dig at their own shortcomings. And since the thread is specifically about people who post on this board - not some abstract hypothetical situation - it's not a stretch.
Edit: Cross posted with you, Matthew, but I will say, I don't think it was your comments in particular that people were offended by, it's the thread.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2017 17:23:43 GMT
Can we rename this thread 'how too piss everyone off'?
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2017 17:28:23 GMT
I think a large percentage of my posts have been fine and where they haven't if the bad grammar is pointed out its water off a ducks back. Having a thread designed to specifically have digs at people seems harsh to me and appears unwelcoming to potential newcomers. I don't think it was about having digs at people, and I'm rather disappointed that some people have chosen to respond to my posts as if that's what I was doing instead of considering what I've been writing. The way I interpreted the thread is that it's about the fact that some people simply aren't bothered about trying to be correct. I wasn't attacking dyslexics or people using English as a foreign language, and I wasn't attacking specific people. I was attacking the lazy attitude of "Why be right when being wrong is good enough?" I'm surprised that people take issue with that, and I'm more than a little hurt that people have attacked me for it. My thoughts exactly, and that's what disappointed me about some of the reactions on this thread as well. It seemed to me to turn into a thread where the only acceptable opinion was that no-one should give a damn about grammar mistakes in any form, without recognising that there is a difference between people who clearly simply don't care about grammar accuracy and those who have a valid reason for not always getting it right. I've felt like I've been attacked for having the opinion that in some cases it is simply just about taking a brief minute more to consider how a post is phrased when you're writing it, and that's been pretty unpleasant to deal with. As I read it, the thread was started simply as a general comment on grammar points that often arise, not individual digs at individual posters, which is as generalised a topic as whether threads about touring productions should be in the Musicals sub-forum or a separate one - it simply invites individuals' opinions. I think it's equally offensive that people have been jumped on for expressing general views on the assumption that individual posters are being targeted, when that wasn't my intention and clearly wasn't the intention of others either. The initial comment was a general one that could just as easily have been made as a random ramble on the off-topic thread without anyone batting an eyelid as it's just someone airing their own personal view.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2017 17:41:29 GMT
Personally I don't care about the spelling and grammar of others, nor the amount of slang, gifs etc. that they choose to use. Everyone has different ways of expressing themselves, different struggles with language and so on. If I find a post hard to understand then I'll just scroll past it or if it's in direct response to me, ask them to clarify their meaning. I'm sure everyone on this board is trying their best to speak in plain, simple and concise terms so I don't feel the need to call anyone out if they don't quite manage to do so.
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Post by 49thand8th on Mar 7, 2017 17:45:33 GMT
Can we rename this thread 'how too piss everyone off'? No, because that's not what it is.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2017 17:57:18 GMT
Can we rename this thread 'how too piss everyone off'? Just to put things into perspective, most of the 1000+ members of Theatre Board have made no contribution to this thread for whatever reason. ggesrsten's initial post attracted 14 'likes' in seven hours which suggested that he was not alone in his views. In fact this number outweighs the number of people who might be perceived as 'pissed off'. A few have overreacted, posting repeatedly and drawing more attention to themselves than was necessary. Then there was the usual crowd (actually very small in number when you reread the whole thread) who like to descend on any hot topic, whatever it might be about, posting endlessly and rather aggressively throughout the day and who have stirred up those who might have genuinely felt aggrieved because they thought the post was aimed at them. So it's hardly everyone that is pissed off. Far from it.
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Post by foxa on Mar 7, 2017 18:11:39 GMT
In another life, I was an English teacher and it doesn't bug me if folks make errors/use slang/write casually/show they are human with the occasional typo (which I do myself.) I've spent too much of my life correcting others' writing, so have no inclination to do it here. Frequently I'm impressed by how well people write - which is why I recently complained about a Times review of 'Hamlet' - people posting here were so much more insightful and eloquent. And for our posters for whom English is their second language - I have nothing but respect.
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Post by Phantom of London on Mar 7, 2017 18:17:21 GMT
Oh dear, Phantom, and I was just about to tell you that we've finally got the last of the Grammar Squad's heads from out the pilot's arse. He's a bit sore but he now knows that he should have kept his wits about him. He would have been fine with this lot, but he turned to sort out the flame, and that's when it all went arse-upwards. Still, it could have been a lot worse... Apart from this, an uneventful day on Theatre Board forum. As they say; Beware of the Ides of March.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2017 18:21:34 GMT
Can we rename this thread 'how too piss everyone off'? Just to put things into perspective, most of the 1000+ members of Theatre Board have made no contribution to this thread for whatever reason. ggesrsten's initial post attracted 14 'likes' in seven hours which suggested that he was not alone in his views. In fact this number outweighs the number of people who might be perceived as 'pissed off'. A few have overreacted, posting repeatedly and drawing more attention to themselves than was necessary. Then there was the usual crowd (actually very small in number when you reread the whole thread) who like to descend on any hot topic, whatever it might be about, posting endlessly and rather aggressively throughout the day and who have stirred up those who might have genuinely felt aggrieved because they thought the post was aimed at them. So it's hardly everyone that is pissed off. Far from it. Yes, of course I was being silly though. Why don't everyone put down the internet and go tell someone real and close to them that you love them, the world is too round for people to get upset over something that really donut matter
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Post by foxa on Mar 7, 2017 18:21:53 GMT
Oh - I missed the flame up (turned up late, so I guess the tone of my posting is a bit off-kilter - I assumed it was a fairly light-hearted discussion) - but nine pages on this - goodness!
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Post by hulmeman on Mar 7, 2017 18:56:11 GMT
Here's one that really makes me cross "Happy belated birthday". I get told off on facebook for correcting people by saying it's the greeting that is late, not the birthday!
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Post by ncbears on Mar 7, 2017 19:17:16 GMT
Ok. I'm a little sorry I started this up. I wasn't trying to stir the pot. It was simply my pet peeve, and something inside me compelled me to make it public. It was not directed at any particular poster. I did not and do not want to be a grammar police officer. I do not think less of any person who posts here based simply on grammar or spelling errors. (I may think less of them for content.) I am sure I make grammar mistakes and misspell words, especially if I am posting from a mobile device as my thumb dexterity is basically nil.
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