I came to The Escapist Forums under the impression that it was for mature, game orientated discussion. I assume the average age of users is older than the last gaming orientated board I frequented (a PSP ISO site) and so far I've been happily right.
But one thing that really irks me about this place is the amount with which misspelling, and incorrect grammar and punctuation is called out on and derided here. Whether it be subtle things such as highlighting mistakes when quoting to when people outright ignore the post's content to mock them for their spelling. It just comes across to me as absolute snobbery; not everybody is so fully educated that they never make a mistake when typing.

I'm 16 and I still have to type in the word necessary into google to ensure that I spell it properly, and recently my friend, who is dyslexic, left here because his argument was being ignored in replys by people who preferred to call him out on his spelling. I understand that there is some correlation between good english and the intelligent conversation this site is trying to achieve, and I agree that it can't be achieved when people use IM language because the use of good english often requires people to think about what they are posting.

I'm just saying that I don't think it's necessary for people on a mature forum like this to call people out on small mistakes when it doesn't affect the meaning of the post. Obviously when it's something like "They need to do way instain mother.." which I just don't understand, then mock all you want. Thankfully I've never seen the mods here calling people out when they are not as articulate as them. Let me know what you think, do mistakes in posts bother you?
Feel free to ignore my argument and pick out the grammatical and spelling errors.

i hate it when people make mistakes to the point when its illegible and somehow they think its acceptible but if its a common misspelling im fine with it and i just really like the word irked

I completely agree - is it really that big a deal? When you point out every little mistake in someone's post it just makes you look like a dick.

The only kind of misspells that bother me are the ones that are made with an easy word or a word that doesn't need shortening, as for grammar, I feel that grammar the dying art of speaking properly, is dying if not dead, so that I will stress upon people as much as possible.

Sometimes, as you pointed out, bad grammar and/or spelling mistakes can make a post hard, if not impossible, to read. I don't see myself as being a "snob" when I correct someones english, especially since I live in a rough estate and go to a bad school, I am just helping correct their mistakes while answering their questions.
There is no need to use Google to check spelling mistakes, assuming you are American, Firefox has a built-in spell checker. I refrained from correcting your grammatical errors in this point because, as you have made clear, it would have annoyed you.

Damage control. Stop the small mistakes now, they wont grow into larger ones because the person will make an effort to look over their posts before posting them. That said, I have ignored the urge to point out mistakes thus far, despite the fact that I have borderline OCD when it comes to grammar. Though if you misspell the name of anything from Greek or Norse mythology, I will hunt you down.

There are very few grammar nazis here, most of us kinda just ignore spelling so long as it's not spiraling down to the quality of other message boards.

I only call out atrocious spelling and grammar in the user review section because an opinion with a professional polish is expected to be well executed. In the more laid back forums (like the off topic discussion), it doesn't bother me as much unless it's truly obnoxious to the point where I really do think I'm chatting with ten year olds on MSN.

Come to think of it, I often don't call it out anyway because I'm not an editor who has all the answers and that would be a bit hypocritical of me.

Bling Cat:
Though if you misspell the name of anything from Greek or Norse mythology, I will hunt you down.

Hey, that's a cool avatar. Is that Zoos?

In posts, no, I wouldn't bother pointing them out. Titles for a thread however I would.

no,no,no, it's not zoos, it's tzus!

The thing is, the posts that have terrible spelling are often (but not always) pretty dumb anyway. The problem isn't the tiny spelling mistakes, it's the general lack of proof-reading in general in these sorts of posts. It really doesn't take much effort to install a spell-checker onto your browser and give everything a read-over before you post it.

I agree with you to an extent, I am also dyslexic by the way, I think I saw a mod putting [sic]'s in when quoting people to reply to their question which in my view is the epitome of smugness. the trouble with it is once you open the flood gates to poor grammar you're left completely defenceless against the leet speaks and numbers and such.

1 to 3 typos to me are acceptable. Huge typos and grammar-related screw-ups are unforgivable.

But one thing I have absolutely no tolerance for is people who type in complete broken English, or type like 12-year-olds who can't spell for crap. "u suk" is the first yet grand example of what I mean.

D2wontdie:
i hate it when people make mistakes to the point when its illegible and somehow they think its acceptible but if its a common misspelling im fine with it and i just really like the word irked

Yep exactly how I feel.

BardSeed:
Sometimes, as you pointed out, bad grammar and/or spelling mistakes can make a post hard, if not impossible, to read. I don't see myself as being a "snob" when I correct someones english, especially since I live in a rough estate and go to a bad school, I am just helping correct their mistakes while answering their questions.
There is no need to use Google to check spelling mistakes, assuming you are American,Firefox has a built-in spell checker. I refrained from correcting your grammatical errors in this point because, as you have made clear, it would have annoyed you.

I'm not American, I'm British (but I don't see what that has to do with anything) and I don't use Firefox because I can't. Also I'm talking about intellectual snobbery not social snobbery. Assuming you're British you know that grammar is very rarely tought at our schools; I only learnt about comparatives and superlatives from French lessons.

D2wontdie:
i hate it when people make mistakes to the point when its illegible and somehow they think its acceptible but if its a common misspelling im fine with it and i just really like the word irked

WHERE'S YOUR PERIOD???!?!?!

I don't mind a spelling mistake here and there, but if there's a constant spiral of misspelled words that could easily be fixed, then it's annoying and I tend to just ignore it completely and think they cam from some other website (IGN).

I just love the irony that the Escapist prides itself on proper grammar when one of its most popular segments is called Zero Punctuation.

ThaBenMan:

Bling Cat:
Though if you misspell the name of anything from Greek or Norse mythology, I will hunt you down.

Hey, that's a cool avatar. Is that Zoos?

the monopoly guy:
In posts, no, I wouldn't bother pointing them out. Titles for a thread however I would.

no,no,no, it's not zoos, it's tzus!

GAAAAHHHH!

afrophysics:
I'm not American, I'm British (but I don't see what that has to do with anything) and I don't use Firefox because I can't.

Why can't you? It's free and if you're here it means you have access to the Internet, so unless you're using a company/school/public computer there should be no reason to not download it.

As for the thread, I'll correct spelling and grammar only if I have something on topic to say; unless the thread has already gone way off-topic. Then I figure one more post can't hurt the chances of returning to its intended purpose.

I hate it too when people think that spelling is optional, but I don't call people out on it. I make mistakes too whether its I hit the wrong key or whatever, but when I have to actually sit and STUDY what is being said, there is a point of OMG take 5 more minutes in your post to look at what you are writing.

Grammar is important. I've got a lack of grammar and trying to improve. If your pissed about the Escapist decision, you can always go to another forum. Although, I don't recommend it. Unless you like "wen ppl tawk like this, woot, pawn, roxors-boxors".

haven't had anyone call me out on spelling or grammar yet (allthough I'm kind of asking for it now that I've said this). I don't think it's too much to ask for people to check their spelling at least a little bit, If I post something and notice I mispelled something or left out a word by mistake, I edit the damn thing and fix it. pretty simple really. Oh and I don't even try to use words that I don't know how to spell (like Tchaikovsky, oh wait... I guess I can spell that)

Bling Cat:
Damage control. Stop the small mistakes now, they wont grow into larger ones because the person will make an effort to look over their posts before posting them.

Brilliance. Now tell me the one about how if we take 1 step on the slippery slope, we'll slide all the way down.

afrophysics:
I'm not American, I'm British (but I don't see what that has to do with anything) and I don't use Firefox because I can't. Also I'm talking about intellectual snobbery not social snobbery. Assuming you're British you know that grammar is very rarely tought at our schools; I only learnt about comparatives and superlatives from French lessons.

Firefox uses American spellings; the Americans tend to use the letter Z instead of an S quite frequently. I am British and I agree that our education system is poor, unless you're paying of course but that's another rant.
I like your user-name.

I think this isn't looking at the whole picture. To give an example, PurpleRain, pretty much the most popular forumgoer, consistently spells it 'medicle' (as well as many other typos) but he goes about things in an intelligent manner, so nobody minds. If the post as a whole has a good point and is conveyed with an intent to be legible, I don't think anyone calls out poor spellers. The only times people are called out for spelling that I've noticed is when the post is either copiously misspelled or there's a delightful malapropism just waiting to be exploited.

There are some folks who point out others' mistakes simply to make themselves feel superior, and you'll find those people in virtually any online environment. Everyone makes mistakes, typos are a sign of being human, and not everyone heeds every last rule of grammar. Nor should they.

That said, when the grammar and spelling of your post breaks down to the point that the reader has to struggle to understand your meaning, you're due for some criticism. When the only communication you have with an audience is the written word, it behooves you to make an effort to communicate your thoughts clearly and well.

Also, "u suk" and other such shortcuts simply make you appear lazy and careless. If you're texting on a phone, that's one thing (though I don't like it then, either), but if you're at a computer keyboard there's simply no need for that kind of shortcut.

has anyone ever thought that current language is devolving into a slur of a few reused words

BardSeed:

afrophysics:
I'm not American, I'm British (but I don't see what that has to do with anything) and I don't use Firefox because I can't. Also I'm talking about intellectual snobbery not social snobbery. Assuming you're British you know that grammar is very rarely tought at our schools; I only learnt about comparatives and superlatives from French lessons.

Firefox uses American spellings; the Americans tend to use the letter Z instead of an S quite frequently. I am British and I agree that our education system is poor, unless you're paying of course but that's another rant.
I like your user-name.

I use an English dictionary app on my firefox. and I'm sorry but having gone from private to mainstream education I can tell you that the British education system is fantastic, more and more private schools are shutting down all the time from lack of business. I mean to be fair my school was rated something like 15th in the country but I think it provided a fantastic education and did teach grammar, hence one of the reason grammar is required in exams in England.

zirnitra:

I use an English dictionary app on my firefox.

Which one? I can't find one that works with 3.0.1.

zirnitra:

BardSeed:

afrophysics:
I'm not American, I'm British (but I don't see what that has to do with anything) and I don't use Firefox because I can't. Also I'm talking about intellectual snobbery not social snobbery. Assuming you're British you know that grammar is very rarely tought at our schools; I only learnt about comparatives and superlatives from French lessons.

Firefox uses American spellings; the Americans tend to use the letter Z instead of an S quite frequently. I am British and I agree that our education system is poor, unless you're paying of course but that's another rant.
I like your user-name.

I use an English dictionary app on my firefox. and I'm sorry but having gone from private to mainstream education I can tell you that the British education system is fantastic, more and more private schools are shutting down all the time from lack of business. I mean to be fair my school was rated something like 15th in the country but I think it provided a fantastic education and did teach grammar, hence one of the reason grammar is required in exams in England.

Don't praise anything the government does, ever! The British education system is so great that after Blair praised it he sent his own kids to a private school. I didn't go to a high-ranking school but I was top set in everything but maths(set 2). The top set wasn't too bad but everything below it was 60%-70% crowd control with the remainder being teaching, poorly in some cases.

I completely agree with the people who say that lazy shortcuts and illegible posts aren't acceptable, and I am actually pleasantly surprised at the amount of people who agree with me here about the accidental mispellings.

D2wontdie:
has anyone ever thought that current language is devolving into a slur of a few reused words

I don't, I think our vocabulary is expanding, although some new words I dislike (such as "tanorexic"- It doesn't make sense!) are a bit stupid and others (such as lol) are overused, but I still don't think it's devolving.

BardSeed:

afrophysics:
I'm not American, I'm British (but I don't see what that has to do with anything) and I don't use Firefox because I can't. Also I'm talking about intellectual snobbery not social snobbery. Assuming you're British you know that grammar is very rarely tought at our schools; I only learnt about comparatives and superlatives from French lessons.

Firefox uses American spellings; the Americans tend to use the letter Z instead of an S quite frequently. I am British and I agree that our education system is poor, unless you're paying of course but that's another rant.
I like your user-name.

I don't actually think the British education is poor, it just is lacking in some aspects. Although like zirnitra I go to a pretty good school (A grammar school, not a private school) so I can't really make a fair comment of schools in general.

Imitation Saccharin :

Bling Cat:
Damage control. Stop the small mistakes now, they wont grow into larger ones because the person will make an effort to look over their posts before posting them.

Brilliance. Now tell me the one about how if we take 1 step on the slippery slope, we'll slide all the way down.

Thank you, it's a similiar argument people here use to complain about immigration. I don't think that the allowance of small mistakes leads to a complete ignoration of basic rules of grammar.

HBrutusH:

zirnitra:

I use an English dictionary app on my firefox.

Which one? I can't find one that works with 3.0.1.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/3366 this is it I do not know if it works with 3.0.1. though because I don't know how up to date my version is.

As someone who has quoted someone's post and then bolded mistakes to correct them, it's a mixture of two things. Now if you spell one or two things wrong in a longer post, I can tolerate that, it happens. But if someone consistently spells words wrong or it's just something that they should really be doing right (misusing then or than being an example) I'll call them out.

But really spelling and grammar are just a huge pet peeves of mine.

Most schools are, probably, going to be more like mine than both of yours if you went to high-ranking schools. My school isn't terrible, some of the departments do well, I believe. Our budget is so tight that the sixth form have to share a single computer that, regularly, has a broken mouse or missing keys. The teachers rarely get a chance to do their job and there are large number of people in the UK that come out of secondary school who can hardly read.

Well at least no one "tlks lyk dis" on here.
I'm forever correcting my friends.
But yeah, no one is perfect.

Do not mind the odd grammatical error. Or Spelling mistake. However if text speak and words like "Dat" etc are used. Then I get somewhat annoyed. On the forums I moderate they get a PM with the message.

I make mistakes and do not use full correct grammar in my posts but I try to make it easy to read and digest. As I do not want to have to go back and proof read all my posts.

"(Quote of original post)

If you can not even be bothered to try and use language we can understand easily. Then I can not be bothered to have your post taking up site bandwidth and my time trying to translate it. As a result your post has been deleted.

Please feel free to continue posting however just have the common decency to make it legible for all. Not all of us want to spend 10 minutes translating it and inducing a migraine in an attempt to work out what you were trying to say."

And normally you get 1 of 2 replies either they apologise and improve their grammar. Or they go off at me and I get to ban them. Either way it is a win, win situation as I just love the ban button.