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Subject:Re: there is vs. there's From:Janice Gelb <Janice -dot- Gelb -at- Sun -dot- COM> To:techwr-l List <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Thu, 17 Apr 2008 07:01:31 +1000
Zen C wrote:
>
> Is there a rule about using "there is/there's" in Technical Writing? or is
> it a standard followed based on preference.
>
For a long time, our style guide said not to
use any contractions at all. However, we found
that this made our writing sound stiff and very
formal. We checked with our localization department
and they then allowed a few acceptable contractions
that work for translators and most people with ESL
(don't, can't, isn't).
We wouldn't allow "there's" for two reasons: first,
it isn't a contraction that is easily understood by
translators or people with ESL. More importantly,
we discourage the use of "There is" and other
indefinite pronoun use (such as "These are") in
favor of more specific phrasing, for example,
changing "There is another method to change font
size" to "Another method to change font size is..."
-- Janice
***********************************************************
Janice Gelb | The only connection Sun has with
janice -dot- gelb -at- sun -dot- com | this message is the return address
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