RE: "and then," or simply "then"?

["Hemstreet, Deborah" <DHemstreet -at- kaydon -dot- com>]

Sean wrote " What do you have to lose by getting the point
across AND being grammatically correct?"

======
I've not really been following this thread too well, but Sean's comment
reminded me of something I read in my studies about grammar years back.

The book/article/lesson page (no longer remember which), discussed the
issue that grammar is a tool of language and should not rule language.
What I found interesting was that the case was set for NOT following
grammatical rules in the interest of clearer communication.

So the issue would be, I guess, if I'm going to break a rule:

1. Is it poetry? It's OK <grin>

2. Is the message still clear to the reader (of a manual, for example)?
Then it might be OK.

3. By breaking the rule, am I reducing the number of words the reader
must digest to comprehend instructions? If yes, I could be improving
readability and usability.

When Rules 2 & 3 are met, I consider this acceptable.

If Rule # 1 is met, I hope its not in my manual - though (and I digress
here), as a test to see if anyone was reading the online Help, I once
put a poem I wrote about Purkinje fibers in a link about a medical
system's use for treating arrhythmias. The project manager got a letter
from a physician asking if the author of the poem was available to hire
(they loved the poem).

So someone DID read the help, and I felt good. And the poem, and this
email, broke just about every grammatical rule there is.

Have a great day!

Deborah


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