Re: Off Topic: English Grammar, Spelling, colloquialisms, etc.

new topic     » goto parent     » topic index » view thread      » older message » newer message
AndyDrummond said...

Can you imagine how hard it would be to write a Euphoria interpreter which would accept the variations in spelling and grammar (syntax?) which are being proposed as acceptable?

You'd have to consider all the ways a word might be misspelled with possible phonic equivalence, and then, worse still, try and work out what the user actually meant when he omitted words or symbols?

Yes, it'd be quite difficult.

The human language organ is believed to work quite differently from a conventional computer, though, so I think this is comparing apples to oranges.

AndyDrummond said...
fr i-1 2 10 du 
prnt I 
j is i pow 2 
If j.GT.i times 4 stop 

It's very hard just to imagine the rubbish code. Yet it is possible for us humans to understand it. Maybe. There is a fighting chance we'd get it wrong, of course, but hey ho! Who gives a Buzz Lightyear?

This is getting very close to the point where the errors in spelling and grammar interfere with the ability (of a human) to derive understanding, if it hasn't already crossed the line.

If there's a fighting chance that you or I would get it wrong, then the line has been crossed.

AndyDrummond said...

The point of grammar and spelling is to ensure not only error-free communication but also communication with the minimum of excess processing/thinking to effect that communication.

I agree. The idea is to make this as easy and effortless as possible.

Of course, real life is neither easy or effortless. Sometimes you have to deal with people who do not know your native language very well, and who speak a language that you don't know at all.

If in situations like these you are able to communicate relatively error-free, then I don't see why a missing apostrophe should cause problems.

AndyDrummond said...

Just as true for a human as for a computer.

I disagree. Conventional computers are not as flexible as human minds are. Change a single bit in an executable and you may not be able to run it anymore. Change a single character in a written sentence and the reader can generally discern the meaning.

AndyDrummond said...

Bad grammar and poor spelling is not a sign of originality or individuality but of laziness. Possibly of ignorance, but that smacks of being insulting which I do not intend.

None of this is true for a person who has learned English as a Second Language in adulthood. That person can make every effort to speak, pronounce, and write perfect english, but it is a rare case when that person's grammar is perfect or when that person's accent is identical to a native speaker's.

What is your view on typos?

new topic     » goto parent     » topic index » view thread      » older message » newer message

Search



Quick Links

User menu

Not signed in.

Misc Menu