Bad Grammar

[harryhaller]

My parents phone number no chance. I can't remember my own mobile number, and when I write down the land line I have to check I haven't reversed the positions of the first and fourth digit. I had a panic in Lidls the other day, as they have put in a cover for the chip and pin, I remember my pin number by the pattern my fingers go in.

Is trouble with numbers also dyslexia? I worked in banks for a decade or so (IT), but was also involved in input control on the clerical side. Problems with numbers is common even among those who work with numbers as a profession such as in accounting and book-keeping, especially the reversing of numbers (transposing). This is why there are so many controls in the input process such as batch totals and check digits.

Remembering numbers is a common problem. I don't remember my mobile number because I never phone myself! In order to remember my pin number - I look at it as a year number in the middle ages - I remember the century and the number is at the end of that century. For my old pin numbers I used other tricks, including the one you use: remembering the pattern as I type it in.

If I can't see my fingers I can't remember my pin. I use the same method to spell better with a keyboard. The word "behaviour" i used to have real trouble getting the three last vowels in the right order, but once I remembered the pattern my fingers went in I was fine.

I wonder whether you would find touch typing easier or harder.

This is really interesting, as my worst problem is leaving out small words. For example I will write "I like the smacking of under two's, they don't understand why they are been hit, and it is cruel" so either I am a sicko or left I out the word Don't.

In Germany we once spent a whole day over a problem because in the German handbook, which was a translation of an American handbook, the translator had left out the word "not" ! Similarly, I spent two days trying to find a bug in a program, with all my colleagues also themselves looking through the program for the error. We couldn't find it until I spotted that there was a full stop where there should have been a comma.

I can design my own celtic knotwork and develop new nalbinding stitches, and I can look at countless plants and fungi and remember what uses they have. Oddly if i forget the name I remember the page in my field guides that they are on. There is certainly visual memory skills that come with dyslexia either that or useless knowledge like english grammar has been disposed of to make way for the more useful knowledge of fungi .

I wonder how well people who suffer from dyslexia would do with a language which uses graphical characters, ideogrammes etc. such as Chinese, Japanese or Korean. I suspect they would find it easier than those of us who are more comfortable with single letter alphabets.

[OFF-TOPIC] What field guide do you use, xylaria?

 

[harryhaller]

If you are using the firefox browser, it is possible to set up "style sheets" for a particular site, such as this one, and you can then use your own fonts. You can also do things such as having italics shown in a different colour.

 

[WhichDoctor]

I wonder how well people who suffer from dyslexia would do with a language which uses graphical characters, ideogrammes etc. such as Chinese, Japanese or Korean. I suspect they would find it easier than those of us who are more comfortable with single letter alphabets.

I have herd that languages like Chinese and Japanese are easier for dyslexics to learn. Also languages that are spelled phonetically like Spanish and Dutch are supposed to be easier to learn as well.

I do think wonderful as it is English is a terrible language in its written form. So many of the written words bare so little relation to there spoken counterparts that I'm amazed anyone can learn it at all.

 

[philaw]

Please try harder philaw. That should (I suspect) read "sometimes". It would probably be better phrased as "at times" however

Oh come on....someone had to......

How did I walk into that one!?

 

[demographic]

How do these threads go from saying that as long as its easy to understand what someones saying it doesn't matter if theres a punctuation mark out of place to the point where its just a competition between uptight grammer nazis to see who can slash highest up a wall?

They never fail to do this on every forum I have seen.

 

[Toddy]

Sorry, Mother Nature left me singularly unequipped for that activity

Actually, niggling aside, it's been an interesting discussion.

It never occurred to me that my habit of writing as I speak could be taken to mean anything but that

I also wasn't aware that using italics in a sentence could be problematical for other people.

Spelling ? If the dyslexic people who have responded on this thread are a fair example, then their courtesy in using a spellchecker puts some others to shame. I have never had a problem reading any of their completed posts.

As a generally conversational forum the odd mis spelling is neither here nor there.

I think I have twice asked someone who started a thread if they wished me to change the title they had entered, but only after seeing them use a more readily understood spelling in the body of their posts.
That's a Mod only function, and the originator can't edit the heading.

I didn't know that dyslexics could have such problems with numbers That could be even more problematical than our written words.
My family have an ease with numbers that I take for granted. My eight year old accurately quoted pie (spelling ) to twenty eight significant digits.
To struggle with a pin number in this day and age must be a real issue.

cheers,
Toddy

 

[Mikey P]

Communication is based on "protocol" - if the two parties aren't using the same "protocol", they can't communicate. The word "protocol" comes from computer jargon to describe the manner in which two computers communicate with each other.

The great break-through necessary for the internet was that all our PC's use the same "protocol". Before that they didn't.

Communication is the name of the game - and everything is allowed as long it works

Using this analogy, protocols only work when they are used correctly and messages follow the right format (ie, spelling and grammar), otherwise the message is rejected and does not get through. Furthermore, poorly written, badly spelt posts require the reader to do more work to be able to read them; ie, from the computer analogy, 'error detection and correction'. This activity needs excess time ('bandwidth') from the reader, which is inefficient.

When you write a post, you write it once; however, it is often read many times. Surely, a bit of respect for the readers is in order here as, why should we have to spend longer than necessary having to decipher someone else's lazy effort? If you've got something to say, say it properly!

I do not agree that 'everything is allowed as long as it works'. We have a written language with grammatical rules that enable us to make a point and express ourselves clearly. 'Text speak' is for mobile phones, chat rooms, and other 'real time' forms of communication. This forum is NOT a real time form of communications and, so, 'text speak' is unsuitable.

Ambiguity (look it up) in the views expressed in some posts has led to frequent arguments and bad-tempered exchanges. This could often be prevented through correct use of language.

The bottom line is that, if dyslexics and non-native English speakers can be bothered to try and get their posts into a form of clear English that is understood by all (see previous posts on this thread), then everyone should.

Bushcraft is a broad church and welcomes all, regardless of skills, knowledge, age, sex, colour, etc. Nevertheless, if we want to be a part of this hobby/interest/lifestyle/whatever, I think it also requires us to make an effort too. A couple of minutes spell-checking or re-reading a post is all that is needed. Surely this is not too much to ask from anyone, especially when no-one's actually expecting perfection? We all make mistakes but there's a difference between the odd spelling error and the 'stream of consciousness' garbage that often appears. There are arrow and delete buttons on keyboards - you are allowed to go back and change text, you know!

If you think I'm some sort of 'grammar nazi', so be it. Frankly, I applaud those who strive to improve their written communications skills; the remainder can wallow in their ignorance.

PS - This is not an attack on harryhaller: his posts are, in fact, very well written! I just don't agree with what he said in this one...