Re: cross section vs cross-sectional - what about cross sectioned andcross sectioning

[Robert Lauriston <robert -at- lauriston -dot- com>]

I'm fairly liberal as regards adopting new usage myself, which has led
to many arguments with copy editors and proofreaders, in which I've
learned that they don't give Merriam-Webster much respect. Apparently
M-W is too liberal in adding emerging usage, jargon, and so on without
flagging it as nonstandard.

Sometimes it's appropriate to use jargon in documentation, or even
inappropriate not to use it, depends on the audience.

Most of the documents Google indexes were not posted on the Web by
their authors. The Internet didn't even exist when a lot of the stuff
on Google Books was written.

On Wed, Dec 23, 2009 at 11:16 AM, Combs, Richard
<richard -dot- combs -at- polycom -dot- com> wrote:
> Robert Lauriston wrote:
>
>> When my instincts and 1970s-vintage dictionaries say one thing and an
>> online dictionary says another, I sometimes use Google to see who's
>> using it in what context.
>
> You seem to have a low opinion of "online dictionaries." Maybe there are
> some dubious and disreputable ones out there, but this is
> Merriam-Webster. You'll find the same words and definitions at m-w.com
> that you'll find down at your local Barnes & Noble leafing through the
> 11th edition of Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.
>
> There have been a few changes since the 70s, though. :-o
>
>> Google is authoritative as to actual usage by all kinds of writers,
>> though Google Books and Google Scholar often give different results
>> than basic Google Web search.
>
> Google is authoritative as to usage by writers who post on the internet.
> I'm not sure that group is either reputable or representative of the
> broader population. :-)
>
>
> Richard G. Combs
> Senior Technical Writer
> Polycom, Inc.
> richardDOTcombs AT polycomDOTcom
> 303-223-5111
> ------
> rgcombs AT gmailDOTcom
> 303-777-0436
> ------
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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