A question about punctuation

[two sheds]

Never heard of that rule ..

Generally good usage, not quite sure why though.

 

[weltweit]

when is it better to say .. do not rather than don't ?

 

[two sheds]

if you're stressing it (like do not), or in a more formal writing

 

[two sheds]

I quite like considering punctuation - it's a bit like logic: concerns clarity of thought.

 

[weltweit]

It often stops me in my tracks. Why would I write it is or it's or even its' these sorts of questions keep me from publishing my articles until I have found a reasonable answer. Still I wonder will someone who knows more than I see that I have perhaps ignorantly split an infinitive? grr

 

[two sheds]

Not sure there's an its', but it's is again a bit less formal than it is (or again if you want to stress it is). Not sure how important split infinitives are viewed now, though. To boldly go and all that.

I'd say fuck it and just write.

Then when you've forgotten about it and just written, check it with a grammar/spell checker and let that sort it out. Possibly afterwards get it looked at by someone who knows these things, but even if you've got a few things wrong in the scheme of things it's more important the substance of what you say than the niceties of the language.

 

[weltweit]

I proof read, sometimes I get word to read it to me also which can be useful but I dread permitting a basic mistake or typo to get right through my checks and onto the www.

A simple error can spoil a many thousand pound web presence leaving the reader with the impression that you don't do detail! And if what you are promoting is complex and full of detail, it doesn't inspire confidence.

 

[two sheds]

only if they know and care

I'll happily proofread a couple of key pages if you want

 

[weltweit]

..
I'll happily proofread a couple of key pages if you want

A kind offer, thanks.

 

[two sheds]

happy to, it's what i do for work (or mainly did before I retired )

 

[weltweit]

I write, rewrite, edit, cut, rephrase, juggle sentences, try to maintain an upbeat vibe and surgically remove anything negative, usually these days when I pass my stuff past my boss he is happy with it which pleases me and then out onto the www it goes.

So two sheds what sort of work did you used to do?

 

[Saul Goodman]

happy to, it's what i do for work (or mainly did before I retired )

 

[weltweit]

I have recently learnt to re-read and check everything before sending. We have a sort of instant messaging system online and it is easy to press send without having checked what you just typed then a typo can be inserted into the dialog - never then to be corrected. Now I make a point of re-reading and checking, it only takes a moment longer but makes a difference.

 

[tim]

This is a nice little guide for the perplexed:

Guide to Punctuation

 

[weltweit]

This is a nice little guide for the perplexed:

Guide to Punctuation

This bit I struggle with Possessives : The Apostrophe

There are three types of exception. First, a plural noun which already ends in s takes only a following apostrophe:

the girls' excitementmy parents' weddingboth players' injuriesthe Klingons' attackthe ladies' roomtwo weeks' work
This is reasonable. We don't pronounce these words with two esses, and so we don't write two esses: nobody says *the girls's excitement. But note that plurals that don't end in s take the ordinary form: see the cases of children and women above.

Second, a name ending in s takes only an apostrophe if the possessive form is not pronounced with an extra s. Hence:

Socrates' philosophy

 

[farmerbarleymow]

No, it should be one or the other. Mixing is wrong.

I mix it up just to annoy pedants.

 

[two sheds]

I write, rewrite, edit, cut, rephrase, juggle sentences, try to maintain an upbeat vibe and surgically remove anything negative, usually these days when I pass my stuff past my boss he is happy with it which pleases me and then out onto the www it goes.

So two sheds what sort of work did you used to do?

still do the odd bit - freelance technology writing/editing

 

[two sheds]

I'm arguing in my spare time now