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.
>Nonetheless, I prefer not to use "display" as an intransitive verb. It
>doesn't sound right to my ear. I use "appear," which to many folks sounds
>like a supernatural event. I find that interpretation odd since things
>appear in the paper, police appear on the scene, and so on. (And if it DOES
>sound like magic, then I don't mind adding to the mystique in this case. ;-)
>
Ironically (given the business Bill's company is in), I have always heard
that the objection to "appear" derives from translating the word into other
languages where the local culture might interpret it as "supernatural."
--Wayne
---------------------------------------------
Wayne Douglass phone: 408-542-2139
Verity, Inc. FAX: 408-542-2040
894 Ross Road mailto:wayned -at- verity -dot- com
Sunnyvale, CA 94089 http://www.verity.com
---------------------------------------------