Comments on 1422 | MetaTalk

whauat thuh? yu0 musst bei jhoking!
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:11 AM on November 27, 2001

Carol Anne: perhaps you, as our informal archivist, will be luckier than I was... Actually if you read through my much-maligned thread you'll come to see the error of your righteous and prissy ways. I know I did...
posted by MiguelCardoso at 5:44 AM on November 27, 2001

Carol Anne - I was being a smart ass there, and being a smart ass in the first comment on a thread is a Bad Thing, I know.

But some of the most-loved characters 'round here (*cough* clav *cough*) are creative spellers, and it adds to the flavour of the place.

(Note : Canastian spelling of 'flavour')

We can safely assume that everyone here is an intelligent adult, and if they misspell, it's probably because they're excited/angry/drunk/wacky or just plain sloppy, or simply someone who doesn't have the brain wiring that = good spelling. Doesn't mean what their ideas or what they sau are less valuable, or more valuable for that matter. We judge one another on what is said. Sure, how it's said is important, but that's the responsibility of the 'sayer'. Demanding that people put a layer of computer interpretation between what they think and type and what we read, in my opinion at least, means that the communication is less genuine.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:52 AM on November 27, 2001

Well, Miss Pelt, if the error is obviously due to sloppy typing, I agree that it should be silently passed over by the writer and the reader.

But there are times when you have to explain that you do indeed know how to spell a word but that the only reason you typed, for example, "segway" instead of "segue" was because your niece hit you in the back of the head with a brick just before you clicked Post. Bad spellers wouldn't understand (because they're so often wrong that they've given up caring), but no good speller wants the other good spellers to think he can't spell.
posted by pracowity at 5:54 AM on November 27, 2001

But some of the most-loved characters 'round here (*cough* clav *cough*) are creative spellers, and it adds to the flavour of the place.

I wouldn't say that clav is a creative speller as much as he's a creative grammatist.
posted by dogmatic at 5:54 AM on November 27, 2001

clavdivs is MataFilter's Ezra Pound. Read EP's letters and marvel at the man's useful, unique freedom with words. Same with the poet Clav. He can not only take liberties; he must. I often take a long time reading seven words of his; they're so packed and strong.
posted by MiguelCardoso at 6:01 AM on November 27, 2001

Same with the poet Clav. He can not only take liberties; he must.

Yeah. He once shat wet on something I'd written - called it guilty of "sheen malaise". Whether he was right or not, I have no idea - I've forgotten what it was about, but "sheen malaise" - how cool is that?

Would even make a great name for a comic book protagonist...
posted by Opus Dark at 6:23 AM on November 27, 2001

All hail clavdivs!

I move that we name clavdivs the Mayor Of MeFi for the month of December.

Ah hell, now I sound like a clavista!

crap.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 6:27 AM on November 27, 2001

Pracowity has hit the nail on the head. Also, those who correct their own spelling mistakes partly do so because they don't want the spelling cops to book 'em; and to be honest, it's hard to see how your request can change that, Carol Anne, when it gives the impression that there are spelling cops watching whatever one types. Personally, if I mistakenly post 'their' when I meant (and know perfectly well that the correct usage in a particular sentence is) 'there', I'm going to bloody well say so, because for every 'don't correct yourself'-er there will be dozens more 'don't-use-their-instead-of-there-tsk-tsk'-ers out there, and I'll want to reassure them that it was just a synapse short-circuiting and not a sign of some deep-rooted spelling failure deserving of a public stoning.

And even typing that I'm annoyed with myself, because I honestly don't care about spelling mistakes made in fluid online conversations (even if I'm sometimes amused by them, if they're particularly apt or Freudian - like Miguel's 'MataFilter' above - and will sometimes say so). So why should I care what the die-hard pedants care? I guess it's that I don't want my actual point to be derailed by an irrelevance, which is what most spelling complaints are. So, er, what stavros said, too.

Unless we have a lot of primary school students hanging out here who are still in their formative stages, taking other members to task about their spelling (or telling them to 'write the word three times to learn how to spell it') is pretty pointless.
posted by rory at 6:30 AM on November 27, 2001

Be proud of your misspellings! They indicate you're thinking hard and typing fast, which is the way to be.
posted by UncleFes at 7:10 AM on November 27, 2001

Misspelt

Carol Anne is, of course, using the British spelling of the past tense of spell, and not referring to the negation of a type of grain, lest anyone be critical of her spelling.
posted by iceberg273 at 7:27 AM on November 27, 2001

Chaaaa! Whoooooooooosh! Pow!

Ooomph. Thud. Ooops.

(starring : Icey as UltraMan, Carol Anne as the Mutant Invader. Brought to you in HaugheyVision. All Verbal, All the Time.)
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 7:34 AM on November 27, 2001

MataFilter

FilterKill
Everything. All The Time.
posted by liam at 7:45 AM on November 27, 2001

Don't post a comment with the corrected spelling and your apology for it.

It's probably defensive. Some people stoop low enough to believe they have the right to go around correcting other people's mistakes ;)
posted by walrus at 7:49 AM on November 27, 2001

Misspelt ... Carol Anne is, of course, using the British spelling of the past tense of spell

The British past tense of the verb to spell is spelled, as in "I spelled it out to Carol Anne in no uncertain terms." I believe spelt is actually the past particple, as in "Carol Anne has spelt that word incorrectly." I guess it's no use crying over spilt spelt.
posted by dlewis at 8:16 AM on November 27, 2001

em tcerroc esaelP .niaga loohcs ni m'I ekil leef em sekam sihT

lanosrep AND egdelwonk tuoba retlifatem t'nsi tub gnorw m'I fi

?s'i ruoy tod ro s't ruoy ssorc uoy rehtehw ton snoinipo

Please hold monitor in front of mirror...
posted by tilt at 8:20 AM on November 27, 2001

.m llamS .namartlU
posted by pracowity at 8:27 AM on November 27, 2001

So, wait, clavdivs is a facist?
posted by fidelity at 8:32 AM on November 27, 2001

!elbaliava llits si 'moc.metafilter' !kciuQ
posted by rory at 8:34 AM on November 27, 2001

Text reversing widget at iceberg273.org.

Just in case you need it.
posted by iceberg273 at 8:34 AM on November 27, 2001

I guess it's no use crying over spilt spelt.

I make a terrible pedant.

*cries anyway*
posted by iceberg273 at 8:35 AM on November 27, 2001

Text reversing widget [bad link]

Ack! stupid self links that don't work.

*runs away and hides*
posted by iceberg273 at 8:37 AM on November 27, 2001

*taunts icy mercilessly until someone cries....
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 8:44 AM on November 27, 2001

iceberg that reverses but it doesn't mirror... :-)
*ylsselicrem gnitnuat*
posted by tilt at 8:58 AM on November 27, 2001

somebody smack baby jesus on the bottem please, he hasn't started crying yet

sorry dlewis, but it's to spell-spelt-spelt
they made me learn it at school, I forgot so looked it up ;-)
posted by ginz at 9:02 AM on November 27, 2001

recovering fascist...I like burroughs brand of elitism, a place were "liberals"and "conservatives" can have equal opportunity to be....elite? I WAS AN ENGLISH MINOR...so look out... I really like opus darks style, almost flawless. There are a few great writers at MeFi. I like the way Holgate turns a phrase. of course the great Kaf and Uncle Fes. Carol Anne has a point for which im guilty. Miguel is a prolific writer (really?) whom always catches me attention. Being a poundian can bring havoc to an academic career, but i just recall the Bolligen that EP won, how his hatred was forgiven by his peers. Don Hall has some remarkable pieces on pound...and im just spilling now...
posted by clavdivs at 9:09 AM on November 27, 2001

But what sbout the Elizabethans!?!
posted by y2karl at 9:11 AM on November 27, 2001

iceberg that reverses but it doesn't mirror...

And what you typed makes no sense when held up to a mirror, but does make sense when the order of the characters is reversed.

At least one of us is confused.
posted by iceberg273 at 9:15 AM on November 27, 2001

::: rolls eyes :::
posted by rushmc at 9:22 AM on November 27, 2001

Oh, damn!

Seriously, In my case, I have a tiny monitor and a family history of macular degeneration and I've been posting misspellings like that 'about' up there because I can't see things very well sometimes. And the spellcheck is so slow.... I really try to write everything in Word first now--but I was too hot to be clever just now to do it.

As an aside, my Word is busted--if I try to insert a link, it gives me that illegal operations prompt and crashes. I've lost so many notes that way. My cybermentor's going to help me reinstall it. But in the meantime, I've been using this very box I'm writing in right now for finishing my notes. I put the link in here, hit preview and then cut and paste it back ttto my note in Word.
posted by y2karl at 9:22 AM on November 27, 2001

oops... me thinks confused is me! forgot, can't type that way... has to be written with reversed characters... man i need "hope" logging off and hiding...
posted by tilt at 9:25 AM on November 27, 2001

sorry dlewis, but it's to spell-spelt-spelt
they made me learn it at school, I forgot so looked it up ;-)

Ok, now I'm crying. My apologies to iceberg273, and my gratitude to both of you for demonstrating the timeless truth that foreigners can speak better English than the English.
posted by dlewis at 9:29 AM on November 27, 2001

Glad to know I'm not the only one that thinks clavdivs sounds a bit like Ezra Pound (in only the best way, clav). But wouldn't Carol Anne's suggestion still allow for stylistic variations like that? She was just saying that if it is going to bug you if you mispel something, you should probably spell check before posting.

(That said, maybe rory and walrus are right, and correcting your own spellings is the only way to avoid having them corrected for you repeatedly and violently. If so, that's a shame.)

(I still long to play a game of Scrabble with Elizabethan spellings.)
posted by moss at 9:30 AM on November 27, 2001

(I still long to play a game of Scrabble with Elizabethan spellings.)

Try it against Tory Spelling instead, moss. I think you could probably take her.
posted by Kafkaesque at 10:25 AM on November 27, 2001

If you go through Postroad's front page post's—not comments—you'll see that more than 50 percent of them have some sort of typographical, grammar-related or spelling-related error. Consistency, at least, promotes forgiveness.
posted by Mo Nickels at 10:31 AM on November 27, 2001

Me, I'm just glad that someone else introduced the topic of Tori Spelling for once. Anyway, here are some Tori Spelling -related things for sale on eBay.
posted by sylloge at 12:54 PM on November 27, 2001

The tiny sounds of ancient bees resound forth from the forrested coercions between your toes. Troglodyte kidneys measure your eyes in sardonic spasms not unlike the movements of an albatross buried in creosote. You have no socially redeeming value.
posted by obiwanwasabi at 2:55 PM on November 27, 2001

grazie, clav. and language is liquid: the aim is to cultivate whatever fine vintage you see fit.
posted by holgate at 3:06 PM on November 27, 2001

ghoti
posted by jpoulos at 3:22 PM on November 27, 2001

Just posted a link on the front page semi-related to all the reversi you guys are playing in here. Go have a look. New toy!
posted by Su at 3:38 PM on November 27, 2001

Try it against Tory Spelling instead, moss.

The dictionary can tell you many fascinating things--not least that that party didn't start till Elizabeth had been dead for some decades--but my new favorite is this:

Properly used of the Irish bogtrotters who robbed and plundered during the English civil wars, professing to be in sympathy with the royal cause; hence transferred to those who sought to maintain the extreme prerogatives of the crown; probably from Irish toiridhe, tor, a pursuer; akin to Irish & Gaelic toir a pursuit.

Eng. Politics indeed.

also:

umop 6p!sdn
posted by moss at 4:25 PM on November 27, 2001

grazie, clav.

OK, a point of clarification. Is it pronounced clav-divs, or claw-di-us? I always figured clavdivs was pronounced like claudius, just spelled in the classical Roman manner.

Or maybe clavdivs simply forgot to spell-check when he registered his username?
posted by mattpfeff at 4:34 PM on November 27, 2001

Right, take away the mystery.
posted by rodii at 6:11 PM on November 27, 2001

Or maybe clavdivs simply forgot to spell-check when he registered his username?

Never credit to chance what can be imputed to genius.

--Psalm 32, The Book of Tenure
posted by Opus Dark at 6:47 PM on November 27, 2001

"clavdivs was pronounced like claudius" I believe Claudius Germanicus 'invented' the letter 'u' (a letter to represent a sound between i and u. A letter for bs or ps and a letter for consonantal u.)
posted by clavdivs at 8:45 PM on November 27, 2001

my first pick was Fabius Africanus
posted by clavdivs at 8:46 PM on November 27, 2001

And just your luck, a guy named Fabius Africanus had already signed up.
posted by pracowity at 11:03 PM on November 27, 2001

I think I went to school with that guy....
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 3:04 AM on November 28, 2001

He was president of the chess clvb.
posted by Kafkaesque at 9:03 AM on November 28, 2001

This is going to get vgly, I can tell.
posted by mattpfeff at 9:11 AM on November 28, 2001

You're no fvn anymore.
posted by Kafkaesque at 9:16 AM on November 28, 2001

Do all these characters belong to the Roman alphabet? A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z. In modern times surely yes. But in Roman Times some characters less. Which ones? There was no 'U', instead there was the semi-vowel 'V'. There was no 'W', although 'V' was pronounced as the modern 'W'. They didn't have the letter 'J', instead they had the semi-vowel 'I'. Because 'C' was hard in Classic Latin, 'K' was used solely in the acronyms "K." or "Kal." for "kalendae" (the first day of a month) and in words borrowed from Greek. (Wikpedia)

posted by Carol Anne at 9:22 AM on November 28, 2001

This lesson was brought to you by the letter V.

(The Roman alphabet didn't have any lower-case letters, either. Bit of a bummer for clav, or should that be TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG.)
posted by rory at 9:58 AM on November 28, 2001

It always brings back happy memories of watching I, CLAVDIVS on PBS in my childhood.
posted by moss at 10:04 AM on November 28, 2001

and the NEV ZOO REVVE
posted by Kafkaesque at 10:55 AM on November 28, 2001

the new zoo review! gracious be, it's ben years since i thought of my ole friends.

wow. how can you not love metafilter?
posted by danOstuporStar at 11:18 AM on November 28, 2001

Antiquis temporibus, nati tibi similes in rupibus ventosissimis exponebantur ad necem.

posted by obiwanwasabi at 7:06 PM on November 28, 2001

Antiquisyay emporibustay, atinay ibitay imilessay inyay upibusray entosissimisvay exponebanturyay adyay ecemnay
posted by y2karl at 9:53 PM on November 28, 2001

Igpe Atinle ademe uchme oreme ensese ote eme enwhe I artedste ellingspe it ikele isthe.
posted by moss at 11:06 PM on November 28, 2001

Silly bvggers.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 3:51 AM on November 29, 2001

ubbabubby dubbabubby?
posted by jpoulos at 11:11 AM on November 29, 2001

mushmouth?

or Zoom?
posted by Kafkaesque at 11:27 AM on November 29, 2001

tvvalv. vlvlation. ovvlation. "lvv". pvlverize. sovvenir.
posted by moss at 12:18 PM on November 29, 2001

Cafcaesqve.
posted by mattpfeff at 12:27 PM on November 29, 2001

HEYBA MANBA Iba wantsta thankyaba allba forba the presents-a ba. mushmouth-thats funny
posted by clavdivs at 7:43 AM on November 30, 2001

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