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Apple permits "then" to be used as a coord. conjunction in instructions
Subject:Apple permits "then" to be used as a coord. conjunction in instructions From:"Tom Johnson" <thj -at- tampabay -dot- rr -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Mon, 11 Jul 2005 21:13:12 -0400
I have never been more baffled, astonished, and completely nonplussed about
a point of grammar before. Apparently, for the last 6 months I have been
harboring an incorrect sense of condescension toward what I believed to be a
complete grammatical error committed by some of my colleagues. Yes, I'm
referring to the use of "then" as a coordinating conjunction, to its
elevation alongside the "for, so, nor, yet, and, but, or" crowd. Yet
according to the Apple style guide -- which is not an insignificant
authority on matters of style -- when writing instructions that require the
imperative mood (and instructions almost always require this mood), the use
of "then" to separate two independent clauses "is OK." In other words, I can
write, "Click the File menu, then select New and Open." Appalling.
If anyone can supply the logic, the textbook backing, or any similar
stylistic agreements to the below style principle, please inform me. Here is
the excerpt from Apple:
"Then" is not a coordinating conjunction. In plain, declarative sentences
that consist of two or more independent clauses, "then" should (usually) be
preceded by a comma and "and," or by a semicolon:
EXAMPLE: First you insert the CD, and then you install the printer software.
EXAMPLE: First you insert the CD; then you install the printer software.
In the imperative mood, as in how-to steps, "then" is OK without the
conjunction:
EXAMPLE: Insert the CD, then install the printer software.
It's also correct to use "and then" in imperative sentences consisting of
two independent clauses, or to precede "then" by a semicolon:
EXAMPLE: Insert the CD, and then install the printer software.
EXAMPLE: Insert the CD; then install the printer software.
Whichever style you choose, be consistent throughout a project.
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