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:Ubiquitous connotations From:"Geoff Hart (by way of \"Eric J. Ray\" <ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com>)" <ght -at- MTL -dot- FERIC -dot- CA> Date:Mon, 12 Oct 1998 13:16:32 -0600
John Nesbit wondered about the word "ubiquitous" <<Does it have a
negative, positive, or neutral connotation?>>
Standard answer number 3: "It depends." Almost every word is
inherently neutral; the obvious exceptions are profanities and
intentional slurs of various other sorts. For all other words, it's
the context and the audience that together determine what
connotations attach to the denotation (the dictionary definition). If
we talk about Microsoft, "ubiquitous" generally seems to have a
negative connotations; if we talk about oxygen, "ubiquitous" is
certainly positive for those of us who aren't methane breathers. Most
of the rest of the time, it's pretty much a neutral word unless the
context specifically makes it positive or negative.
--Geoff Hart @8^{)}
geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca
"Microsoft Word: It grows on you... but with a little fungicide,
you'll be feeling much better real soon now!"--GH
