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.
RE: Apple permits "then" to be used as a coord. conjunction in instructions?
Subject:RE: Apple permits "then" to be used as a coord. conjunction in instructions? From:Bruce Byfield <bbyfield -at- axionet -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Tue, 12 Jul 2005 10:40:13 -0700
On Tue, 2005-07-12 at 10:12 -0700, Wilcox, Rose wrote:
> (BTW, I tend to avoid the singular use of "they" in formal writing... so
> I do have prescriptionist tendencies, in spite of some of my radical
> ideas about certain grammar/style decisions. In the above I would
> rewrite to make the subject plural.)
At the risk of taking a wry comment seriously, I have to say that I
don't see this as a prescriptionist tendency. Instead, I see your
preference as a concern for clarity.
While using "they" as an indefinite pronoun has a long history in
English and is perfectly acceptable so far as I am concerned, it can
still cause readers to stumble. That being so, it only makes sense to
avoid any possible confusion by making the subject plural. Making this
change doesn't strike me as prescriptive. Rather, it suggests an
interest in clarity.
As an aside, I've never cared much for a singular indefinite pronoun in
any form. It's meant to refer to more than one person -- (after all,
when you say, "Everyone is entitled to his opinion," you don't usually
mean that only one particular person is entitled). So, to my literal
mind, it should be plural in the first place. Why complicate you writing
with a needless transposition in the sense from the single to the
plural?
Now Shipping -- WebWorks ePublisher Pro for Word! Easily create online
Help. And online anything else. Redesigned interface with a new
project-based workflow. Try it today! http://www.webworks.com/techwr-l
Doc-To-Help 2005 now has RoboHelp Converter and HTML Source: Author
content and configure Help in MS Word or any HTML editor. No
proprietary editor! *August release. http://www.componentone.com/TECHWRL/DocToHelp2005
---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as:
archiver -at- techwr-l -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Send administrative questions to lisa -at- techwr-l -dot- com -dot- Visit http://www.techwr-l.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.
