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Subject:Re: (Fwd) Re: Fwd: Importance of grammar? From:"Eric J. Ray" <ejray -at- RAYCOMM -dot- COM> Date:Sat, 13 Jun 1998 09:56:22 -0600
Forwarded on request.
Eric's note: I'm forwarding this at Geoff's request--for
technical reasons, he cannot post it directly. I would like
to stress to everyone interested in this thread that the
discussions MUST focus on technical communication--grammar
per se and any sort of grammarian vs. not wars are not acceptable
topics for discussion on this list.
Eric
>*************
>Tony Markatos and I began discussing the earlier thread on the
>importance of grammar off-list, and he declined to forward my
>responses to his on-list reply because he felt the debate could grow
>rather heated. Fair enough. My bottom line is that the statement
><<only a small sub-set of the rules of grammar come into play in
>writing procedures>> is patently indefensible. Similarly, Tony's
>comment that <<with grammar checkers and administrative assistants,
>grammar is no big deal.>> is equally indefensible, as anyone who's
>worked as an editor for any length of time can assure you. There's no
>question grammar checkers can be useful tools, but by no means do
>they eliminate the need to understand the basics of grammar... and
>more than just a small subset of the rules.
>
>Nonetheless, it's interesting that perhaps our techwhirling is less
>grammar-bound than some other forms of writing... so here's my
>challenge: _are_ there any grammatical rules that we can dispense
>with in procedural/technical writing? (Let's ignore the non-rules
>such as banning split infinitives and ending sentences with
>prepositions... what about the _meat_?)
>--Geoff Hart @8^{)}
>geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca
>
>Hart's corollary to Murphy's law: "Occasionally, things really do work right."
>
>
*********************************************************
* Eric J. Ray, ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com, http://www.raycomm.com/
* TECHWR-L Listowner, co-author _Mastering HTML 4.0_
* _HTML 4 for Dummies Quick Reference_, and others.
* RayComm, Inc., currently accepting contract inquiries.
