Message to SysOpt Admin

[DavidX]

Okay, I know it's only a little tiny thing but . . .

Well, I've been coming to this board for a long time and I've kept quiet until now. Tried to ignore it but it faces me every time I visit and it's beginning to get to me. Sleepless nights, tossing and turning, taking it out on the cats, taking it out on the kids . . .

It's that darned apostrophe. The one in "Overclocking and CPU's". Well, it's like this . . . apostrophes are meant to be used in either a contraction (as in "can't") or a possessive form (as in "Paul's house"). It has no darned right being in the plural form of CPU. Or any other plural form come to that. The plural of CPU is simply CPUs (no apostrophe).

That offending apostrophe just kills the whole splendid image of the Sysopt forum. All that brilliant combined erudition stifled by an errant apostrophe. It doesn't bear thinking about.

Just thought I'd mention it. There, I'm starting to feel better already. The cats can come in now. (The kids can wait http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif )

[MrEd]

What are you, an English teacher???

Just kidding, I noticed it too, but kept quiet about it.
Anyway, good eye!

-MrEd

[DavidX]

English teacher? Nah, I wish I had that kind of job security and long vacations. But I do write as part of my living and my copy editor gives me hell if I so much as slip a comma in the wrong place. You get paranoid after a while.

[This message has been edited by DavidX (edited 06-07-99).]

[BBA]

You mean Word has been lying to me all these years?...

[MrEd]

http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

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[DavidX]

"Word"? What is that? Excuse my ignorance. Is it American? I live in the UK. (I can't stand the thought that your wit is totally wasted on me, BBA! Enlighten the ignorant!)

[This message has been edited by DavidX (edited 06-07-99).]

[Roy]

I get the same thing from my editors. Actually I give them more flak than they give me. They don't mind split infinitives, I do, etc.

"Word" is short for Microsoft Word, the defacto word processor that has overwhelmed Word Perfect and is required by many Publishers. I don't make that mistake, so I never have noticed that it is so lame. http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

[Cyclops]

Woe thar, I kinda like it cuz it dud'n look so dern much like CPUS! Whut the heck is CPUS anyhow?? Shure soundz kinda yuckee to me... http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

[socalgal]

DavidX ~ Tell your copy editor it can be used - correctly - either way.

Reference: Webster's II New Riverside University Dictionary, A Concise Guide to Style, Usage, and Diction, page 24:

Punctuation/Apostrophe #4: indicates the plurals of words, letters, and figures used as such:

Examples: 60's and 70's; x's, y's, and z's.

Nonetheless, I prefer no apostrophe also. It is correct when an acronym (such as CPU) is followed by a small (lower case) 's', not an upper case 'S'. CPUs not CPUS.


Sweet dreams http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif


[This message has been edited by socalgal (edited 06-08-99).]

[SysOpt]

Yes, I know it is not technically correct. However, it is a generally accepted practice to put an "'s" after an acronym to make it plural. Look at these and tell me which ones look better:

All of the CPUs, All of the CPU's
Several DVDs, Several DVD's
All of your TVs, All of your TV's

Basically, the 's prevents the "s" from being confused as part of the acronym. I think it's ok unless everyone is totally opposed to it http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif.

Scott

[MAGIC 8-BALL and THE ELF]

I might be ambivalent about it but I can't decide. - Elf

Let me know if you makeup your mind. Most people don't apply that stuff in there. - 8-Ball

What if I change my mind? Is that "Wardrobe"? - E

More likely Mary W. Shelley. - 8

[Jackal]

No! Apostrophes are evil! EVIL I SAY!

http://www.sysopt.com/forum/biggrin.gif

[DavidX]

BBA and Roy
Ah! That "Word"! Duh! So Microsoft condones apostrophes for plurals huh? What is the world coming to?

socalgal
I stand corrected. I assumed that American dictionaries followed the same usage for apostrophes as British ones. Seeing as SysOpt is American (I think?), then they are perfectly correct. As for my copy editor, it wouldn't wash - he's British to the core. He'd mutter something about those "damned Yanks" and laugh in my face. Since my publishers are also British, I wouldn't stand a chance.

SysOpt (Scott)
According to socalgal's Webster it's optional in American English and therefore you are correct. As to whether it looks better is a matter of personal taste and, also, what usage you grew up with and got used to. I grew up in Canada where British usage of the English language was most prominent and American usage was generally discouraged (something about wanting to be distinct from our big neighbour to the south, I suppose).

Call me old-fashioned (God knows I've been called worse!) but apostrophes for plurals still look wrong to me. Nevertheless, I support and defend your right to use it (this is beginning to sound like a freedom rights march). Apostrophes forever!! (But not for plurals in the UK.)

Roy
I guess Star Trek survived despite "to boldly go" http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

[DavidX]

Hmmm. Funny you should mention MS Word, BBA. It seems you have good reason to be sarcastic about its reliability. I just read that some versions of Word97 think a correct spelling of "history" is "histyory". Good old Microsoft; how we love them!

[Roy]

DavidX - Yes, Star Trek survived my cringing everytime I heard the phrase. More often I would shout back "BOLDLY TO GO!!!".

But didn't you mean your publishers also are British? http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

SysOpt indeed is in the middle of the U.S.

[DavidX]

Yup, Roy - "publishers also are British". I can see I'm going to have to watch my "p"s and "q"s from now on. Or should that be: Ps and Qs? Or P's and Q's? Or . . .

I'm beginning to hate this stupid language http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

BTW thanks for the support there Kali 1.

[This message has been edited by DavidX (edited 06-08-99).]

[Ziz]

>All of the CPUs, All of the CPU's
>Several DVDs, Several DVD's
>All of your TVs, All of your TV's

Those are all accurate, to a point. It depends on the rest of the sentence.

All of the CPUs released by Intel will be moving to the Socket 370 architecture.
All of the CPU's new SIMD instructions will be used by Quake 3:Arena.

Several DVDs come with supplementary material, in addition to the main program.
Several DVD's decoder cards have SPDIF connections on them.

All of your TVs have at least a coaxial connection on it.
All of your TV's inputs are on the back of the set.

It all depends on the context of the whole sentence.

[This message has been edited by Ziz (edited 06-08-99).]

[DavidX]

Ah! Possessive plurals (as opposed to just plain ol' plurals), Ziz!

I believe that if DVD is plural the apostrophe should come after the 's', as in: "several DVDs' decoder cards". Or there may even be another 's', as in: "several DVDs's decoder cards". I can't remember. Comments anyone?

The plot thickens . . .

[Kali1]

I did some online technical support for a while (mfr.to remain nameless) and our style guide indicated NO apostrophe. I think it's pretty much an informal standard.

CPUs
CD-ROMs
etc etc ad nauseum....

[Scott Evans]

DavidX-

Just be careful about the term 'Yanks' or 'Yankee' and individuals residing below the Mason-Dixon line here in the US ;> )

In fact, many of aforementioned individuals wuld probably call YOU a 'Yankee' after hearing the accent!

People are funny, I think I'll keep one as a pet.

[DavidX]

Scott
It's not my word. I said it's what my copy editor would say. He even calls me a "Yank" sometimes (I still have a trace of a Canadian accent) just to irritate me. But he says it with a smile. http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

[This message has been edited by DavidX (edited 06-09-99).]

[StarWatcher]

DavidX, We Yanks broke off from the Brit's "erudition" over two hundred years ago http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif


Really, though I'm always chastizing my 12 year old son for his bad grammar. I'm showing him this thread.


Funny thread. Thanks everyone http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

[DavidX]

Recess, socalgal? Certainly not! Get back to your classroom and be good http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

[socalgal]

=-PPPP

http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

[This message has been edited by socalgal (edited 06-09-99).]

[BBA]

i wuz l8te 4 clas dat day, sooos i missd sum gramma lessns

bBa

[DavidX]

Right! That's it, socalgal. Detention!

Looks like you've been using that MS Word spell-checker again, BBA. http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

[This message has been edited by DavidX (edited 06-09-99).]

[MrEd]

ZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..... !!!! Huh, What?, Oh, Okay.

ZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzz............................ ...............

http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

[socalgal]

Excellent catch, Ziz - It DOES depend on the rest of the sentence.

Yepps, DavidX!

Several DVDs' decoder cards...

Is it recess yet? http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

[This message has been edited by socalgal (edited 06-09-99).]

[wanderlick]

Get a life Homer

[socalgal]

BBA, MrEd ~ wanna ditch and go to the beach? http://www.sysopt.com/forum/biggrin.gif

[This message has been edited by socalgal (edited 06-11-99).]

[DavidX]

Yeah, me too, socalgal. That's more than enough of grammar anecdotes (MrEd definitely has a point http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif ). The beach sounds good . . . or maybe even computers . . .

[This message has been edited by DavidX (edited 06-11-99).]

[MrEd]

Already got my speedo on babe!

-MrEd

[socalgal]

woo woo MrEd! lol http://www.sysopt.com/forum/biggrin.gif