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.
Subject:Re: The Plural of RPM From:foremangraphics -at- juno -dot- com To:tom -dot- green -at- iwon -dot- com Date:Tue, 2 May 2006 12:48:18 -0700
Tom -
I can foresee a time when you might want to use the plural of RPM. You
might say something on the order of "All standard RPMs are covered....
." The problem, as I see it, is the the use of the apostrophe. That makes
it a possessive and not a plural.
Just some more food for thought.
Happiness, joy & laughter
Jacque - Graphic Designer / Typesetter - Excellence by Design
since 1972 - Pen & Ink Renderings of homes & Bldgs. & portraits from
photos, Brochures, Ads, Flyers, Packaging, Business Forms, Manuscripts,
etc. - email: foremangraphics -at- juno -dot- com & @earthlink.net - 626-794-9620
Rendering/logo Samples: http://www.foremangraphics.com
On Tue, 2 May 2006 14:03:48 -0400 (EDT) "tom -dot- green -at- iwon -dot- com"
<tom -dot- green -at- iwon -dot- com> writes:
>
>
> I'm having a back-and-forth with an engineer about how to write more
> than one RPM. She wants to write, "RPM's." I freaked and said, "No,
> that would be saying, it's the Rotation Per Minute's problem."
> I know, it doesn't make sense.
> I want to simply write RPM, meaning Rotations Per Minute.
>
> Am I correct or is there another way?
>
> I also hate to apply the possessive to an inanimate object or a
> company for example, "IBM's net worth." Is there a rule about that,
> or is that just me?
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
WebWorks ePublisher Pro for Word features support for every major Help
format plus PDF, HTML and more. Flexible, precise, and efficient content
delivery. Try it today!. http://www.webworks.com/techwr-l