Re: Seed crystals

[Rowena Campbell <campbell -at- ANGIS -dot- SU -dot- OZ -dot- AU>]

Hurrrumph!

My dictionary gives the defintion of displays as "to show, to arrange (a
thing) so that it may be seen". AND it describes a "display terminal" as "a
computer terminal that displays information on a screen".

You have to have SOMETHING to display.

In the (entirely repulsive) sentence
"A progress message displays in the Message Window."

The message appears to be displaying itself.  In this sense it must be
displaying in the manner of a bird - From the dictionary "(of birds and
animals) to make a display ... a special pattern of behaviour used by birds and
animals as a visual means of communication".

If you don't like the passive form "is displayed" try to use some more
accurate term refer to the appearance of the message on the screen, e.g
appears.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with the passive voice!  It's
just that the active is stronger.  It can be more appropriate to write in the
passive in certain circumstances.  But to limit yourself entirely to the
active voice is utterly dopey!  I should think that any large document in
which all sentences were in the active voice would be quite boring to
read.

Rowena Campbell                                 Dont worry ladies, don't cry:
campbell -at- angis,su.oz.au                         for every D.H. Lawrence
                                                there's a Thomas Hardy,
                                                for every Charles Dickens
                                                there's a George Elliot.