Comments on: Manual Labor – Booking Through Thursday

By: wordlily

wordlily — Tue, 13 May 2008 14:19:53 +0000

I have quite a few style guides around; I need them because some of the information they contain actually isn’t available online (at least not free), and when I’m editing professionally, “right” can vary depending on what the text is. I make the manuscript conform to a specific set of rules. I also still use a hard copy dictionary, although I also use online dictionaries and thesauruses (?) quite often.

In our small town, the phone book’s information isn’t online, either. While the paper version is practically useless, it does have a few numbers I reference occasionally.

Oh, and have you read Eats, Shoots and Leaves? It’s a great read, I laughed out loud several times while reading it. Not much of a reference book, just a fun book.

By: KittyCat

KittyCat — Fri, 09 May 2008 22:09:14 +0000

I don’t go for grammar books either Sorry to hear about your friend, Amy. I’d just lost my Dad to cancer and can imagine what she’s going through.

Bring her some cheery reads, ok? The best of my fighting spirit to her!

By: Nithin

Nithin — Fri, 09 May 2008 13:57:54 +0000

I prefer online dictionaries to paper ones. When it comes to grammar, I usually avoid using such books. It’s too difficult to find a specific topic about punctuations or about the who/whom problem you mentioned. I usually go with whatever “looks” correct to me.

By: Literary Feline

Literary Feline — Fri, 09 May 2008 03:25:45 +0000

I can relate to the person who didn’t want a copy of the phone book. I work for a very large agency with many different offices. Some people like to keep a binder with the all the lists tucked inside, but it’s so much more convenient and practical to just refer to the online database when we need a number. The printed lists go out of date quickly and as a result it’s a huge waste of paper to constantly be printing the updated lists.

By: Kat

Kat — Fri, 09 May 2008 03:10:43 +0000

I just use whichever sounds better at the moment. I suppose the reason why I have so many grammar books is because English, though spoken by almost everyone here, isn’t really the main language. Though I’ve got tons hehe.

I haven’t had a phonebook in years. And I truly trust an actual printed dictionary than an online one.

Here’s mine

By: softdrink

softdrink — Fri, 09 May 2008 02:03:10 +0000

I’m hopeless with the whole who/whom thing. Neither one ever sounds right (or is that correct?) to me.

By: jeane

jeane — Thu, 08 May 2008 20:02:26 +0000

For a whole two years I haven’t used a phone book. It’s so much faster to look up stuff online. But there’s always the problem Ann mentioned- out-of-date info. But then I just call 411. It still beats finding and lugging out that heavy volume of thin paper that tears too easily.

By: mervih

mervih — Thu, 08 May 2008 19:08:07 +0000

Well, not everyone has or can afford to have an internet connection or a computer. Not everyone wants either. Wanting everything to go on-line seems quite, well, self-centered to me.

I do use usually on-line dictionaries as long as I know that they are trustworthy.

By: Lesley

Lesley — Thu, 08 May 2008 15:52:16 +0000

Good point about the phone book. And those dreadful free ones that get hurled at your front door without a by your leave, full of businesses and ads that you’ll never need nor look at in a million years. Poor trees …

By: Mo

Mo — Thu, 08 May 2008 13:40:54 +0000

Oops! Sorry, didn’t read Jennifer’s response first, obviously.