Where are RPCArs\

"Adrian" wrote in message
...
Yowie wrote:

Not for me.

Facebook is for posting about anything and everything in short little
bursts (thankfully abit longer than tweets!) in almost real time, and
RPCA is for posting stories about cats, honorary cats... and
*significant* personal events worthy of several paragraphs.

Yowie


I agree, but I think it's taking over from usenet, especially as so many
ISPs are ditching there news servers. :-(
--
Adrian, sent from my iPod.

It does seem that way, and I agree it's sad. I was on Facebook for a while,
but I never really got into using it, so I opted out. I love the newsgroups
the way they are. It's a bit like books and newspapers. I'm old enough to
prefer the old version. If I'm lucky, I won't live long enough to see all
the things I enjoy disappear.

End of pity party. ;-)

Joy

Joy wrote:

It does seem that way, and I agree it's sad. I was on Facebook for a while,
but I never really got into using it, so I opted out. I love the newsgroups
the way they are. It's a bit like books and newspapers. I'm old enough to
prefer the old version. If I'm lucky, I won't live long enough to see all
the things I enjoy disappear.

I wouldn't count on that - you seem pretty active and healthy!

Newspapers might go away fairly soon, but I don't think books will.
Even if they do eventually go away, it's going to take a long time to
change. There are still tons of books in the world! Plus, a lot of people
prefer books. It's not like when CDs replaced vinyl records - I think
the majority of people thought CDs were better, for a number of reasons.
It's true there are people who prefer vinyl, but I think they're in a
smaller minority than the people who'd rather read a book vs. reading
electronically.

I also prefer to read a book. I like to lie in bed and read, and I don't
think I'd find a Kindle or similar device very conducive to that. Plus,
staring at a screen simply isn't relaxing. Common advice to insomniacs
is to stay away from the TV and computer for at least a couple of hours
before bedtime. That's because they're stimulating. I don't find it
necessary to avoid electronic viewing just before bed, as I have no
trouble falling asleep, but the point is, staring at a screen can be
stressful. Not emotionally stressful, but physically. I need to look at
something once in a while that doesn't have backlighting.

Joyce

--
audiophile, n:
Someone who listens to the equipment instead of the music.

On 28/01/2011 23:50, wrote:

Ah, but the real problem comes up when the word "and" is introduced.
There's a long-running feud between those who believe that when a
list is in a sentence, with the word "and" before the last item, there
should NEVER be a comma following the penultimate item, like so:

A, B, C, D and E.

Violation of this rule is punishable by death in some circles.

Whereas other believe that "A, B, C, D, and E." is fine and in fact
preferable. It's staggering how many bytes out in cyberspace have been
dedicated to this argument.

And even though I'm a tech writer, and should therefore have a position
on this and be *extremely* opinionated about it, I don't and I'm not. Hey,
I'm easy! I have a preference for the first way - it's what I'm used to -
but I think it's more important to be consistent about it, so "pick one
and stick with it" is my motto.

That said - if I were using a manual that was inconsistent about this? I
seriously doubt I'd even notice. I'd be too busy trying to *learn the
technnology the manual was written for*.

Both are equally acceptable as long as, as you say, you're consistent
about it. For some reason, the form '1, 2, 3, and 4' is called the
Oxford style, but I don't know if that refers to Oxford University in
England. If it does, maybe it's a UK/US difference? I use this form.

--
Marina, Miranda and Caliban.
In loving memory of Frank and Nikki.

Marina wrote:

Both are equally acceptable as long as, as you say, you're consistent
about it. For some reason, the form '1, 2, 3, and 4' is called the
Oxford style, but I don't know if that refers to Oxford University in
England. If it does, maybe it's a UK/US difference? I use this form.

Interesting. I hadn't heard of that name. Do you know what the other
one is called?

Joyce

--
Taxes: Money you complain about giving the government, to pay for
services whose absence you would complain about.
-- John O'Hanlon

wrote in message
...
Joy wrote:

It does seem that way, and I agree it's sad. I was on Facebook for a
while,
but I never really got into using it, so I opted out. I love the
newsgroups
the way they are. It's a bit like books and newspapers. I'm old enough
to
prefer the old version. If I'm lucky, I won't live long enough to see
all
the things I enjoy disappear.

I wouldn't count on that - you seem pretty active and healthy!

Thanks for the compliment. I guess it depends on how long it takes for them
to disappear. I already have 3/4 of a century under my belt, so who knows?

Newspapers might go away fairly soon, but I don't think books will.
Even if they do eventually go away, it's going to take a long time to
change. There are still tons of books in the world! Plus, a lot of people
prefer books. It's not like when CDs replaced vinyl records - I think
the majority of people thought CDs were better, for a number of reasons.
It's true there are people who prefer vinyl, but I think they're in a
smaller minority than the people who'd rather read a book vs. reading
electronically.

I also prefer to read a book. I like to lie in bed and read, and I don't
think I'd find a Kindle or similar device very conducive to that. Plus,
staring at a screen simply isn't relaxing. Common advice to insomniacs
is to stay away from the TV and computer for at least a couple of hours
before bedtime. That's because they're stimulating. I don't find it
necessary to avoid electronic viewing just before bed, as I have no
trouble falling asleep, but the point is, staring at a screen can be
stressful. Not emotionally stressful, but physically. I need to look at
something once in a while that doesn't have backlighting.

Joyce

I'm not really worried about books disappearing in my lifetime. I'm
currently rereading my books for the second time (at least - I've read some
more than twice before), and there are still some I don't remember. I
figure I can do that a few more times before I have them all memorized. In
fact, considering the number of books I have (several hundred) and the fact
that my memory gets worse all the time, I seriously doubt that will happen.

I do think a Kindle or equivalent would be nicer to take on vacation than a
dozen books, though.
;-)

Joy

"Marina" wrote in message
...
On 28/01/2011 23:50, wrote:

Ah, but the real problem comes up when the word "and" is introduced.
There's a long-running feud between those who believe that when a
list is in a sentence, with the word "and" before the last item, there
should NEVER be a comma following the penultimate item, like so:

A, B, C, D and E.

Violation of this rule is punishable by death in some circles.

Whereas other believe that "A, B, C, D, and E." is fine and in fact
preferable. It's staggering how many bytes out in cyberspace have been
dedicated to this argument.

And even though I'm a tech writer, and should therefore have a position
on this and be *extremely* opinionated about it, I don't and I'm not.
Hey,
I'm easy! I have a preference for the first way - it's what I'm used to -
but I think it's more important to be consistent about it, so "pick one
and stick with it" is my motto.

That said - if I were using a manual that was inconsistent about this? I
seriously doubt I'd even notice. I'd be too busy trying to *learn the
technnology the manual was written for*.

Both are equally acceptable as long as, as you say, you're consistent
about it. For some reason, the form '1, 2, 3, and 4' is called the Oxford
style, but I don't know if that refers to Oxford University in England. If
it does, maybe it's a UK/US difference? I use this form.

--
Marina, Miranda and Caliban.

I try to be consistent in the same email or document, but I can't say I'm
really consistent otherwise. I've done secretarial work for years. I had
one boss for four years who wanted the comma in. Later I had one for
several years who didn't want the comma. I learned to do it the way of the
boss I was working for, but now I sometimes think one way looks better, and
sometimes the other.

Joy

On 29/01/2011 07:37, wrote:
Marina wrote:

Both are equally acceptable as long as, as you say, you're consistent
about it. For some reason, the form '1, 2, 3, and 4' is called the
Oxford style, but I don't know if that refers to Oxford University in
England. If it does, maybe it's a UK/US difference? I use this form.

Interesting. I hadn't heard of that name. Do you know what the other
one is called?

No, I don't know if it has a name, and I don't know if the Oxford style
name is used very commonly. It was just something I vaguely remember
from my student days.

--
Marina, Miranda and Caliban.
In loving memory of Frank and Nikki.

Joy wrote:

I'm not really worried about books disappearing in my lifetime. I'm
currently rereading my books for the second time (at least - I've read some
more than twice before), and there are still some I don't remember. I
figure I can do that a few more times before I have them all memorized. In
fact, considering the number of books I have (several hundred) and the fact
that my memory gets worse all the time, I seriously doubt that will happen.

I used to know someone whose memory had sharply declined in the preceeding
years, who used to say that with a memory as bad as hers, she's never bored.

Someone like that would be a great conversation partner for me, because I
often forget what I've *said*, and tend to repeat myself.

I do think a Kindle or equivalent would be nicer to take on vacation than a
dozen books, though.
;-)

I'd rather take my iPod with a bunch of audio books!

Joyce`

--
It is better to give than to lend, and it costs about the same.
-- Unknown

On 29/01/2011 1:46 PM, wrote:
Joy wrote:

It does seem that way, and I agree it's sad. I was on Facebook for a while,
but I never really got into using it, so I opted out. I love the newsgroups
the way they are. It's a bit like books and newspapers. I'm old enough to
prefer the old version. If I'm lucky, I won't live long enough to see all
the things I enjoy disappear.

I wouldn't count on that - you seem pretty active and healthy!

Newspapers might go away fairly soon, but I don't think books will.
Even if they do eventually go away, it's going to take a long time to
change. There are still tons of books in the world! Plus, a lot of people
prefer books. It's not like when CDs replaced vinyl records - I think
the majority of people thought CDs were better, for a number of reasons.
It's true there are people who prefer vinyl, but I think they're in a
smaller minority than the people who'd rather read a book vs. reading
electronically.

I also prefer to read a book. I like to lie in bed and read, and I don't
think I'd find a Kindle or similar device very conducive to that. Plus,
staring at a screen simply isn't relaxing. Common advice to insomniacs
is to stay away from the TV and computer for at least a couple of hours
before bedtime. That's because they're stimulating. I don't find it
necessary to avoid electronic viewing just before bed, as I have no
trouble falling asleep, but the point is, staring at a screen can be
stressful. Not emotionally stressful, but physically. I need to look at
something once in a while that doesn't have backlighting.

In defence of the Kindle, it is not backlit like a screen. From what I
have seen of htem, it looks like it uses thousands of little flip-fop
dots that can either be black or white depending on which they are
flipped[1]. That way, it can be read in bright sunlight and least well
in low light, unlike a screen which is the opposite.

[1] It could be a liquid crystal display over a white surface, though.
Either way, it looks much more like printed text than an ipad or any
other backlit device I've seen.

Yowie

On 29/01/2011 8:50 AM, wrote:
Yowie wrote:

wrote:

(Except for a technical writer's list. I
could easily get 50 posts in one day, in which people are arguing about
where to put commas in a list. )

Item 1,
Item 2,
Item 3.

:-)

Ah, but the real problem comes up when the word "and" is introduced.
There's a long-running feud between those who believe that when a
list is in a sentence, with the word "and" before the last item, there
should NEVER be a comma following the penultimate item, like so:

A, B, C, D and E.

Violation of this rule is punishable by death in some circles.

Whereas other believe that "A, B, C, D, and E." is fine and in fact
preferable. It's staggering how many bytes out in cyberspace have been
dedicated to this argument.

And even though I'm a tech writer, and should therefore have a position
on this and be *extremely* opinionated about it, I don't and I'm not. Hey,
I'm easy! I have a preference for the first way - it's what I'm used to -
but I think it's more important to be consistent about it, so "pick one
and stick with it" is my motto.

That said - if I were using a manual that was inconsistent about this? I
seriously doubt I'd even notice. I'd be too busy trying to *learn the
technnology the manual was written for*.

Agreed, and, agreed. :-)

Yowie