Paragraphs and Commas

,.?!
 
I agree with the original poster; posts without punctuation or whitespace are hard to read and understand. I usually skim or skip "Ulysses" style posts.

This isn't grammar nazism; no one needs to refer to "Elements of Style" before posting. That said, observing the most basic rules of punctuation makes posts more comprehensible.

Of course, people can write however they like. Just know that if your post is ten inches long with no periods, commas, or paragraph breaks, very few people will actually read it.

Finally, since we're letting out our inner nerds and airing our grammatical pet peeves, I find the incorrect use of ellipses particularly annoying. Without going into their proper use, there is no reason to use five or six periods when one will do.
 
I just thought posting ............... was nicer than posting: , you $#*$!!! idiot, but pehaps I'll reconsider now. :-D
 
I use the ellipses too often. Usually when I'm thinking about what to say. I don't do it as much as some others, but guilty as charged. I never do it in any formal setting though.

My biggest pet peeve:

www.d-e-f-i-n-i-t-e-l-y.com

One of the most valuable sites on the net for posting on internet forums.
 
This isn't grammar nazism; no one needs to refer to "Elements of Style" before posting. That said, observing the most basic rules of punctuation makes posts more comprehensible.
Click to expand...

I agree with taking at least a little care in all these details. It's not a matter of getting it perfect. Just check the punctuation and spelling at least briefly. And also check the message to see if conveys what you meant to say. You know what you mean. But will the reader know what you mean? Only if you explain it well.

It's just respectful to the readers to make a bit of an attempt to make the post easy to read and understand.

Tehy shuldnt haf too deecifur uh lott of gaurbac#e.

The Golden Rule of posting: Type unto others as you would have them type unto you.
 
Wowzers!!
Here, I've been reading,learning and contributing, on and from, these posts and had no idea that the entire time we also had the entire staff of the National Board of Education right here in our midst!
Ain't that, just sum'pin!?
All this time, I've never ONCE, noticed,(or, cared less, if I had), the grammar, spelling, punctuation, and/or, "white spacing" in any posts made because I was MORE interested in learning about other's ideas, tips and tricks concerning FLY FISHING.
Which I've obviously made the mistake of thinking, was sorta-kinda the whole idea behind this web page's conception.
Unfortunately, I've never "physically met", anyone that I've learned from, or maybe given an idea to, on this website. Being this given situation, I'd be the last person, then, to want to try and correct the way they comb their hair, sport a beard, whether or not-they eat red meat and least of all........the way they may grammatically enter a posting on a Fly Fishing forum site.
And, if I WAS lucky enough to meet some of the great members of this site, I still wouldn't do the above. Why not? Because not one of those things I've listed is any of my business.
I don't know what this site, would do, if the background was say....."blue", because then we'd have ourselves a real "Blue Space" problem, wouldn't we?
Instead of laying out the money to take a crash court in Rocket Science and so I don't work myself up to the point, it'll take a backhoe to pull a straight pin out of my rear end, if I should ever run across a post, here, that appears too difficult to read, or understand, (which so far, there' never been one, I couldn't), I simply wouldn't read it.
 
"All this time, I've never ONCE, noticed,(or, cared less, if I had), the grammar, spelling, punctuation, and/or, "white spacing" in any posts made because I was MORE interested in learning about other's ideas, tips and tricks concerning FLY FISHING."

You and everyone else, which is why this site has hundreds of posts on fly fishing and one on grammar and punctuation.

I don't mean to insult anyone, but posts are much easier to understand when ideas are divided into sentences and paragraphs. For example, your post is easier to read because you use paragraphs.

Also, I ought to clarify my problem with ellipses abuse. My mother-in-law finishes almost every sentence in her emails with five or six periods, when one period would be sufficient........
 
You are so right, about the ellipses! It was last summer, I think, when I almost burnt the cornea of my left eye, by improperly looking at an ellipse!
It's really amazing to me, that something that "blots out the sun", can actually cause eye damage with "too bright a light and an overabundance of UV! So, just imagine how much damage an ellipse could do, in a posting!?! Awful, even to think about.
I SURELY learned my lesson! It was dumb, I know, but I was in a hurry that day and on my way to the vegetarian with one of my injured dogs and wasn't thinking I guess.
 
My mother-in-law finishes almost every sentence in her emails with five or six periods, when one period would be sufficient........
Click to expand...

My mother-in-law is the same way:

"Well, you have a nice small house............."

"I don't have to have any grandchildren.........."

"It sounds like a good job for you........"

"I could always help clean your place........"
 
Ian, I know exactly how you feel ... NOT!

Are you printing out each message and concerned about the extra ink it takes to print a couple extra dots?

For Pete sake, they are just dots on a screen, and i coubt your mother is getting paid to write to you.

(_*_)

Edit: OK, there was at least one typo in there, but I assure you that I used the correct finger. :p
 
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