TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
A software developer wants to use "You can not enter a blank password." instead of "You cannot enter a blank password." in the user interface. My fellow technical writer and I tried to convince him, and another development manager, that "cannot" is the preferred usage and, most often, also the grammatically correct usage.
The developer and manager contend that it is a matter of personal preference and that either spelling is acceptable, as long as the spelling is consistent. The manager also noted that Microsoft's grammar and spelling tools do not flag "can not" as incorrect.
I sent them links to various online resources indicating that "cannot" is usually more correct because "can not" often leads to a different meaning. For example, "You cannot enter a blank password." means that you are not able to enter a blank password. "You can not enter a blank password." means that you are able to not enter a blank password.
Can any of you point me to a site that would end this discussion?
WEBWORKS FINALDRAFT - EDIT AND REVIEW, REDEFINED
Accelerate the document lifecycle with full online discussions and unique feedback-management capabilities. Unlimited, efficient reviews for Word
and FrameMaker authors. Live, online demo: http://www.webworks.com/techwr-l
Doc-To-Help 7.5 Professional: New version with new features, improved performance and reliability, plus much more! Download your free trial today at www.componentone.com/techwrlfeb.
---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as:
archiver -at- techwr-l -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Send administrative questions to lisa -at- techwr-l -dot- com -dot- Visit http://www.techwr-l.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.
