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I like to refer people to TECHWR-L to find out what we do, understand how we do
it, and show off the thoughtfulness and professionalism of tech writers. I am
also reluctant to do that because of the all-too-frequent examples of sloppy
writing. I cringe when I see professional writers who seem to believe that
"alot" is a word.
Please help us show how good we are, not what we "dash off without checking." A
large part of our job is checking, checking, checking. Let's show our stuff.
Jan
Scott Havens wrote:
>
> <RANT ON>
> I'm afraid I have more sympathy with Melissa than with John. . . .
> It never ceases to amaze me how many contributors to this list
> make systematic errors that any grade school student should be able to
> recognize and avoid. Sure, we all hit a wrong key once in a while or
> fail to proof something because there's just not enough time. I don't
> have a problem with that. What I do have a problem with is repeated
> misuse of possessives, frequent subject-verb-object disagreements, and
> so on. If we're going to represent ourselves as communication
> professionals, how can we get away with using language so sloppy that we
> lose any credibility we might otherwise have had? . . .
>
>