Well, the school system I came through didn't teach the subjunctive explicitly either. I became aware that that's what it was called through studying Spanish. My official English education was quite pathetic. I sought out and read The Elements of Style and other grammar books on my own. However, much of what I know of grammar comes just from reading a lot.
I'm not sure I understand the distinction you're trying to make. The subjunctive does follow the normal agreement rules. I think that maybe you just don't understand the grammar that you thought you did.
Well, yeah. But, I wouldn't say Aluminum is an invented element. It's kind of naturally occuring.
From what I can find on the net though, it seems that aluminum was discovered by a Dane, so the argument really doesnt make any sense at all to me.
I will say though that I can't help giggling when I hear "Aluminium." I know that it's just as valid or perhaps more valid as "Aluminum" but it just sounds funny to me.
Actually, I don't think that mistakes like those are as important as mistakes you would actually make in speech. They may look a whole lot worse in print, but making one of those mistakes doesn't demonstrate the same level of misunderstanding of the language as pure grammatical errors do.
When I read and write, the printed word I see is almost directly translated to understanding, and conversely, I can put my ideas down directly to print. I don't process language with an audio filter unless I'm really slowing down and pondering a difficult piece of prose(or poetry!) However, I think that 99% of people do process written words with a mental audio layer to some extent, and that this accounts for a lot of bad spelling and homophone confusion in English. Have you ever seen someone that has comprehension of written word so linked with speech that they move their lips a little when they read silently? I would be willing to bet that person is a bad speller also, but not that they are necessarily less intelligent or have a looser grasp on grammar. Although people with bad spelling also often have bad grammar, the fact that so many exceptions exist proves there is no direct correlation. For example, many computer programmers have bad spelling, but they have the ability to master the rigid syntax of many artificial languages.
Understanding code syntax isn't any different from understanding English syntax, but when you make a mistake in English, you don't usually get corrected, whereas your compiler will certainly let you know if you have a problem, and thereby force you to learn the language properly.
You corrected the grammar mistake! Bravo man! You forgot the capital letter to start, but personally I feel typos and miscapitalization is far less important than errors that one would actually make while speaking.
You're right. I think James bond would have something along the lines of this, only 5 times smaller and equipped with a built-in single-shot pistol and one button on the side that "hacks" the wireless network for him.
It doesn't sound right because it isn't. You failed to use a proper example, thereby flaunting your ignorance.
This sentence is in the indicative mood: "James Bond was killed by me."
This sentence is in the imperative mood: "Kill James Bond."
This sentence is in the subjunctive mood: "If James Bond were here, I would kill him."
All three sentences are grammatically correct.
Where did you finish your schooling? I hope that wherever it was, you went there for a technical education, and not for anything related to language. Otherwise, you should go back and ask for a refund.
Your statement is very wrong. Why didn't you have enough sense to type "English subjunctive mood" into the nice box at http://www.google.com and press the search button before spouting such arrogant ignorance?
If you had not already said it, I would have done so myself. Note my name.
The English subjunctive mood's ailing health is a linguistic tragedy, but it hardly compares to some of the language's other maladies. Email and chatrooms seem to have somehow brought many to the conclusion that punctuation is only needed when ending a sentence with question marks and exclamation points(and that multiples of these marks is acceptable), that the shortest, most common words are the ones that need to be abbreviated, and that emphasis is a proper use for capital letters.
Teenagers and adolescents are turning in essays in English class containing gibberish like "w/e," "alot," "b4," and "ttyl i g2g." After March of 2005, the SAT I will have an essay section. That will be quite interesting.
Mutterer, I always find it amazing(amusing?) how clueless people are about their own language. Even after pointing out their error, they fail to recognize it. Whenever I point out a sentence where the subjunctive mood should have been used, there is a high chance of getting a response along the lines of:
"But James Bond isn't plural!"
You dolts! Haven't you ever ever even seen the inside of a grammar book? I sometimes wonder.
Muggings don't happen that often in suburbs, and people don't walk around very much at night in suburbs. I live in a suburb, and I think that the grandparent poster is right.
No, my objection was not to the word "reconnoitered." My objection is indeed, to the structure. A diagram of that sentence would be an ugly mess.
I would either break the sentence into two, or restructure it with semicolons in a way that would make it easier for the reader to follow. I don't think the human mind likes to deal with sentences like yours, ones that almost contain comma-offset parenthetical statements within other comma-offset parenthetical statements.
A good way to split the sentence would have been to make the text in parentheses a sentence of it's own. Oddly enough, I think doing so makes it sound a tad more rude somehow. But, seeing as how you were being very pedantic and annoying already, this probably isn't of import.
While grammatically correct, even down to proper period placement outside parenthesis, your sentence was painfully awkward. I would give a very poor grade to an entire paper written in similar style.
A month ago I did a whole bunch of work for a real estate agent in his home office, making hardware and software upgrades, etc. I have seen the multi-listing and real-estate specific database software that they are using, and while based on some ancient code, it was very powerful, very polished and good, and from what I gather, the software from this company is quite entrenched in the real estate business.
I installed and setup systems using Agent Office/Online Agent and for the Lightning 2000 mls service, which essentially seems to be a very fancy terminal emulator. screenshots here
They have been buying software from this company for FOURTEEN YEARS. You're competing against some big guns I think. The best thing you've got going for you is that these softwares are quite expensive, due to the fact that they are niche softwares, and that there is a lot of money in real estate. If you can offer a better real-estate -specific database at a lower price, maybe you can compete, but it had better convert and import the database they already have.
... for the same amount of money? How much beastly apple computing power will $900 get me?
Don't get me wrong, I love macs, but to try to say that their prices come anything close to good when compared to x86 systems is rediculous.
I just bought an hp pavilion ze4420 with 256 megs of ram(64 shared w/ video though) a 40 gig hd, dvd/cd-r combo drive, and an amd athlon xp2200 for 900 dollars after 250 in rebates. Battery life is 2-3 hours, probably half as much as an ibook. Can I get an ibook with comparable speed, storage and with a dvd/cd-r?
e.g. no third world labour setup to manufacture them yet
i.e. abbr. Latin
id est (that is).
e.g. abbr. Latin.
exempli gratia (for example).
You should have used the former abbreviation and not the latter. That's strike one.
Strike two is that you're an idiot. Chopping the pci slots off of an ATX motherboard does not make it suitable to be used in a mobile device.
Strike three is that your website is ugly. Don't give some lame excuse like "I'm redoing it from scratch." You might as well put up an animated gif of a guy in a yellow hard hat.
Man invented word, and calls it god.
"The Word World", imposed by the
academic institutions, is synonymous
with the Matrix's induced "Dream
World". Both are most efficient mind
enslavers, and humans know not their
difference from "The Cubic World",
the creation principle of all that exist.
That's from Gene Ray. Check out more of his views on the Matrix, and the nature of reality at www.timecube.com
Slashdot Mirror
Well, the school system I came through didn't teach the subjunctive explicitly either. I became aware that that's what it was called through studying Spanish. My official English education was quite pathetic. I sought out and read The Elements of Style and other grammar books on my own. However, much of what I know of grammar comes just from reading a lot.
I'm not sure I understand the distinction you're trying to make. The subjunctive does follow the normal agreement rules. I think that maybe you just don't understand the grammar that you thought you did.
Well, yeah. But, I wouldn't say Aluminum is an invented element. It's kind of naturally occuring.
From what I can find on the net though, it seems that aluminum was discovered by a Dane, so the argument really doesnt make any sense at all to me.
I will say though that I can't help giggling when I hear "Aluminium." I know that it's just as valid or perhaps more valid as "Aluminum" but it just sounds funny to me.
I really don't know how that comma got there. I didn't intend it.
Right, theoretically the speed of sound in a neutron star, would be much faster than light.
At least that's my understanding. I am not an astrophysicist.
Language is just as much a thing of beauty as it is a utilitarian tool.
Actually, I don't think that mistakes like those are as important as mistakes you would actually make in speech. They may look a whole lot worse in print, but making one of those mistakes doesn't demonstrate the same level of misunderstanding of the language as pure grammatical errors do.
When I read and write, the printed word I see is almost directly translated to understanding, and conversely, I can put my ideas down directly to print. I don't process language with an audio filter unless I'm really slowing down and pondering a difficult piece of prose(or poetry!) However, I think that 99% of people do process written words with a mental audio layer to some extent, and that this accounts for a lot of bad spelling and homophone confusion in English. Have you ever seen someone that has comprehension of written word so linked with speech that they move their lips a little when they read silently? I would be willing to bet that person is a bad speller also, but not that they are necessarily less intelligent or have a looser grasp on grammar. Although people with bad spelling also often have bad grammar, the fact that so many exceptions exist proves there is no direct correlation. For example, many computer programmers have bad spelling, but they have the ability to master the rigid syntax of many artificial languages.
Understanding code syntax isn't any different from understanding English syntax, but when you make a mistake in English, you don't usually get corrected, whereas your compiler will certainly let you know if you have a problem, and thereby force you to learn the language properly.
You corrected the grammar mistake! Bravo man! You forgot the capital letter to start, but personally I feel typos and miscapitalization is far less important than errors that one would actually make while speaking.
You're right. I think James bond would have something along the lines of this, only 5 times smaller and equipped with a built-in single-shot pistol and one button on the side that "hacks" the wireless network for him.
It doesn't sound right because it isn't. You failed to use a proper example, thereby flaunting your ignorance.
This sentence is in the indicative mood:
"James Bond was killed by me."
This sentence is in the imperative mood:
"Kill James Bond."
This sentence is in the subjunctive mood:
"If James Bond were here, I would kill him."
All three sentences are grammatically correct.
Where did you finish your schooling? I hope that wherever it was, you went there for a technical education, and not for anything related to language. Otherwise, you should go back and ask for a refund.
Your statement is very wrong. Why didn't you have enough sense to type "English subjunctive mood" into the nice box at http://www.google.com and press the search button before spouting such arrogant ignorance?
If you had not already said it, I would have done so myself. Note my name.
The English subjunctive mood's ailing health is a linguistic tragedy, but it hardly compares to some of the language's other maladies. Email and chatrooms seem to have somehow brought many to the conclusion that punctuation is only needed when ending a sentence with question marks and exclamation points(and that multiples of these marks is acceptable), that the shortest, most common words are the ones that need to be abbreviated, and that emphasis is a proper use for capital letters.
Teenagers and adolescents are turning in essays in English class containing gibberish like "w/e," "alot," "b4," and "ttyl i g2g." After March of 2005, the SAT I will have an essay section. That will be quite interesting.
Mutterer, I always find it amazing(amusing?) how clueless people are about their own language. Even after pointing out their error, they fail to recognize it. Whenever I point out a sentence where the subjunctive mood should have been used, there is a high chance of getting a response along the lines of:
"But James Bond isn't plural!"
You dolts! Haven't you ever ever even seen the inside of a grammar book? I sometimes wonder.
I think he may be talking about supermount
It is nice, I'd be willing to bet it does make it into the mainstream kernel eventually. I think maybe even Red Hat 9 might have it now.
I don't understand your point.
Muggings don't happen that often in suburbs, and people don't walk around very much at night in suburbs. I live in a suburb, and I think that the grandparent poster is right.
So do I. Check out this thread.
I always learned that if a conjunction is used to link independent clauses, the proper mark is the comma.
Of course I agree that the sentence would be better without the "or" and with a semicolon instead.
No, my objection was not to the word "reconnoitered." My objection is indeed, to the structure. A diagram of that sentence would be an ugly mess.
I would either break the sentence into two, or restructure it with semicolons in a way that would make it easier for the reader to follow. I don't think the human mind likes to deal with sentences like yours, ones that almost contain comma-offset parenthetical statements within other comma-offset parenthetical statements.
A good way to split the sentence would have been to make the text in parentheses a sentence of it's own. Oddly enough, I think doing so makes it sound a tad more rude somehow. But, seeing as how you were being very pedantic and annoying already, this probably isn't of import.
While grammatically correct, even down to proper period placement outside parenthesis, your sentence was painfully awkward. I would give a very poor grade to an entire paper written in similar style.
A month ago I did a whole bunch of work for a real estate agent in his home office, making hardware and software upgrades, etc. I have seen the multi-listing and real-estate specific database software that they are using, and while based on some ancient code, it was very powerful, very polished and good, and from what I gather, the software from this company is quite entrenched in the real estate business.
I installed and setup systems using Agent Office/Online Agent and for the Lightning 2000 mls service, which essentially seems to be a very fancy terminal emulator. screenshots here They have been buying software from this company for FOURTEEN YEARS. You're competing against some big guns I think. The best thing you've got going for you is that these softwares are quite expensive, due to the fact that they are niche softwares, and that there is a lot of money in real estate. If you can offer a better real-estate -specific database at a lower price, maybe you can compete, but it had better convert and import the database they already have.
I don't see where on that page it says that. And at fink.sourceforge.com, it says Carmack.
read
... for the same amount of money? How much beastly apple computing power will $900 get me? Don't get me wrong, I love macs, but to try to say that their prices come anything close to good when compared to x86 systems is rediculous.
I just bought an hp pavilion ze4420 with 256 megs of ram(64 shared w/ video though) a 40 gig hd, dvd/cd-r combo drive, and an amd athlon xp2200 for 900 dollars after 250 in rebates. Battery life is 2-3 hours, probably half as much as an ibook. Can I get an ibook with comparable speed, storage and with a dvd/cd-r?
That was the joke. Now you've ruined it.
Fuck Dvorak.
e.g. no third world labour setup to manufacture them yet
i.e.
abbr. Latin
id est (that is).
e.g.
abbr. Latin.
exempli gratia (for example).
You should have used the former abbreviation and not the latter. That's strike one.
Strike two is that you're an idiot. Chopping the pci slots off of an ATX motherboard does not make it suitable to be used in a mobile device.
Strike three is that your website is ugly. Don't give some lame excuse like "I'm redoing it from scratch." You might as well put up an animated gif of a guy in a yellow hard hat.
Man invented word, and calls it god. "The Word World", imposed by the academic institutions, is synonymous with the Matrix's induced "Dream World". Both are most efficient mind enslavers, and humans know not their difference from "The Cubic World", the creation principle of all that exist.
That's from Gene Ray. Check out more of his views on the Matrix, and the nature of reality at www.timecube.com