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Subtle ways Microsoft Word has changed how we use language

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Re: Subtle ways Microsoft Word has changed how we use language

#191

Post by teekert »

olejorgenb wrote: post #167
teekert wrote: post #138

I’m Dutch, and the ways autocorrect changes my language, and I guess the German language as well, is not so subtle. We have a rule that when something is one “thing” like a “biophysics group”, we make it one word (Biofysicagroep). But almost any form of autocorrect will split these words. I’m really tired of correcting it all the time and I guess many others with me.

Same for norwegian

We have a website for this (pretty low key, but fun) [0]. Sometimes adding a space changes the meaning of a sentence, and sometimes in a funny way. Like, "weekbroodje" is sandwich of the week, but "week broodje" is a mushy sandwich. Maybe it's because "week" can be "week" or "mushy". The same happens for "Corona cases", which, in Dutch with a space (Corona gevallen) means "Corona fell", the proper way is "Coronagevallen". Usually it is clear what is meant from context but a sentence that starts out the wrong way can trip you up for a moment.

Almost all spell checkers will split these examples so it's really changing our language. I have considered filing a bug with Apple because I mostly notice it on my iPhone. Perhaps it's already to late, wrong space use is very pervasive nowadays.

[0] https://www.spatiegebruik.nl/

Re: Subtle ways Microsoft Word has changed how we use language

#192

Post by mnw21cam »

otteromkram wrote: post #2

> Write a word ending in "-ise" and it will suggest changing it to "-ize" [...] Sounds like it's working fine to me. Joking aside, this is a great article with many strong points, but disabling or mitigating spellcheck is always a possibility. I usually disable it since many of the grammar suggestions Word provides are questionable. In a workplace setting when consistency is key, it seems like grammar and spellcheck…

If consistency is what you're after, then Word doesn't provide it. Even if you set the language to en-UK, it has a habit of conveniently forgetting every now and again and trying to change all your words back to US versions. This is why Word is changing language - its repeated gaslighting is at abusive level, and many people are too worn down by it to maintain their standards.

Re: Subtle ways Microsoft Word has changed how we use language

#193

Post by mikepurvis »

josephg wrote: post #61
mikepurvis wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Related to that is all the angst about how Sim City basically just lets you make car-centric hellscapes, not at all unlike San Jose, the city in which it was birthed. And City Skylines inherited a lot of that legacy, that designs centered around mass transit and cycling (such as one would find in Europe or Japan) really only become fully practical with a bunch of mods installed.

I visited Amsterdam recently and instantly noticed something weird about the road layouts there. I did some research - they differentiate between streets (meant for short distances, or getting to a local destination) and roads (meant for long distance travel - or driving past a location). As a visitor, it seems brilliant. And it makes way more sense than what a lot of roads look like here - with cyclists trying to fi…

I’ve noticed this a number of times in recent travel— Kyoto, New Orleans, Quebec City, all very old places where the narrow side streets (often with little to no sidewalk and certainly no dedicated bike space) are in fact a paradise for walking and biking, despite what you might think listening to some urbanism advocacy.

Re: Subtle ways Microsoft Word has changed how we use language

#194

Post by TeMPOraL »

Gibbon1 wrote: post #169
TeMPOraL wrote: post #161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Didn't Japanese culture get pretty much rewritten after WWII to be US-compatible?

The US forced the Japanese to rewrite their constitution with input from the US, the Japanese government and from non governmental groups. US demands were mostly to make it harder for militarists to seize power. Probably the biggest changes was press freedom and the legal rights of women. My impression of the place is you have a modern industrial society replacing large parts of the preexisting feudal culture. Import…

Still can't find the source of it, but I remembered more details behind the "culture rewrite" hypothesis I read the other day. That source argued that US didn't just defeat Japan, but it thoroughly broke the cult of emperor that existed there until end of WWII, and thus (implied) from the POV of the whole society, the west slew their god, and became a new role model.

Re: Subtle ways Microsoft Word has changed how we use language

#196

Post by cubefox »

TeMPOraL wrote: post #194
Gibbon1 wrote: post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The US forced the Japanese to rewrite their constitution with input from the US, the Japanese government and from non governmental groups. US demands were mostly to make it harder for militarists to seize power. Probably the biggest changes was press freedom and the legal rights of women. My impression of the place is you have a modern industrial society replacing large parts of the preexisting feudal culture. Import…

Still can't find the source of it, but I remembered more details behind the "culture rewrite" hypothesis I read the other day. That source argued that US didn't just defeat Japan, but it thoroughly broke the cult of emperor that existed there until end of WWII, and thus (implied) from the POV of the whole society, the west slew their god, and became a new role model.

The Japanese culture is still very different from the Western one. It's more similar to South Korea probably, perhaps even China in some ways.

Re: Subtle ways Microsoft Word has changed how we use language

#197

Post by pictureofabear »

cxrlosfx wrote: post #111

Are human beings responsible for changing how they use their own language? Or is just Word responsible for that? Maybe MS Word is just changing things so fast that we are able to notice it, but the languages we use and the ways we comunicate have changed over time and will keep changing.

I think humans are easily influenced by programs that autocorrect/autocomplete grammar and spelling.

I notice a huge stylistic difference in articles written today compared to twenty years ago. There seemed to be much more variety and colorful language. Today, the trend is concise, simple sentences.

Re: Subtle ways Microsoft Word has changed how we use language

#198

Post by some_random »

cubefox wrote: post #158
some_random wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not even American prudeness is many cases, it's "making sure everything is advertiser safe" as interpreted by poorly paid Filipino moderators.

"Advertiser safe" means something else for a US American (person/company/advertiser) than for a European.

Of course, and yet it turns into the same thing when your advertisers are based in Dubai.

Re: Subtle ways Microsoft Word has changed how we use language

#199

Post by cubefox »

some_random wrote: post #198
cubefox wrote: post #158

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Advertiser safe" means something else for a US American (person/company/advertiser) than for a European.

Of course, and yet it turns into the same thing when your advertisers are based in Dubai.

There does indeed seem some overlap here between the US and Muslim countries.

Re: Subtle ways Microsoft Word has changed how we use language

#200

Post by some_random »

cubefox wrote: post #199
some_random wrote: post #198

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of course, and yet it turns into the same thing when your advertisers are based in Dubai.

There does indeed seem some overlap here between the US and Muslim countries.

I know that being progressive is really important to the self esteem of you Euros, but you all need to stop letting it cloud your worldview so much.
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