Holly ([info]ercasse_ainince) wrote,
@ 2005-05-07 11:32:00
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Current mood:accomplished
Entry tags:meme, nerd

Just a silly quiz, but . . .
. . . it confirms what I knew before.


Your English Skills:



Grammar: 100%

Punctuation: 100%

Vocabulary: 100%

Spelling: 60%





Spelling is an obsolete skill now that we have spellcheck. I'm absurdly proud at these results.

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[info]crazybetsy
2005-05-07 05:45 pm UTC (link)
You should be! =) I took that quiz and was too embarassed to post my results... I, uh, don't remember what they were... =) I think spelling (the admittedly obsolete skill) was the only one I got 100% on.

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[info]ercasse_ainince
2005-05-07 09:16 pm UTC (link)
::bows::

Just remember that I'm an English major. If there were a "does your biology cut the mustard" quiz, you'd beat me hands down.

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[info]guillamo
2005-05-08 02:47 am UTC (link)
Spellcheck only checks if the spelling is correct. If you misspell something and that misspelling is still an actual word (spelled correctly), Spell check will not notice.

It's just a program. Programs are fallable. And thus, it's spellcheck that's obsolete, not the ability to spell. :p

Moreover, spellcheck only knows the words in its databanks. Surely you've a larger vocabulary than that. ;)

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[info]firebreatherjen
2005-05-08 05:36 pm UTC (link)
I hate spellcheck. It sometimes helps, but I don't think we should be depending on a computer program to help us remain able to communicate with other people.

And do NOT get me started on the stupid grammar check. >:-P

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[info]ercasse_ainince
2005-05-10 01:24 am UTC (link)
I, too, hate grammar check. But I will shamelessly use spellcheck.

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[info]ercasse_ainince
2005-05-10 01:23 am UTC (link)
To rebut each of your statements chronologically:

Although I may not be the best at spelling multisyllable words or word with "ie/ei" combinations, I am quite capable of recognizing if I type one word instead of another. These types of "spelling" errors I would catch and do not need a software program to do so.

I understand that spellcheck is a fallible program. However, most people's individual spelling skills are just as if not more fallible. Spellcheck is hardly obsolete, as it is still heavily in use, even (if not in even greater percentages) by those in the English language and literature community.

Then, yes, spellcheck has only a limited number of words in its vocabulary, and I might flatter myself that my vocabulary is greater. However, spellcheck will note any word not in its databank as misspelled, in which case I can use the old method -- the dictionary.

Finally, I would prefer to be less strong in spelling than in the other categories tested, as there are easy methods for help therein. Problems with grammar, vocabulary, and punctuation are far more difficult to catch with a quick-fix-type system and are skills that should be learned on an individual basis for correct writing.

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[info]guillamo
2005-05-10 01:48 am UTC (link)
It could be argued that grammar and vocabulary are just as obsolete as your claim of spelling. After all, language is an idea that is continually in a state of evolution. But my main problem with your statement that spelling is obsolete (and thus that spellcheck is the solution to any spelling question) is that it promotes laziness of a sort. I can understand using spellcheck on big long papers. I did it all the time in college(though I rarely ended up needing it), but I can't agree with using technology as a crutch for a part of your brain you choose not to use. Moreover, when people say the skill of spelling is obsolete do you really think it's far down the line when they'll start saying vocabulary and grammare are as well? Every part of grammar is interconnected. And, in fact, I believe spelling to be a large part of understanding words themselves. But, maybe I just take the language more seriously than others.

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[info]ercasse_ainince
2005-05-10 04:32 am UTC (link)
I find the idea that you might "take the language more seriously" than I to be amusing, but you probably have yet to learn just how big a linguistics geek I am. And to clear up any misunderstanding, my spelling skills are probably greater than those of the majority of English speakers; they simply aren't as well-tuned as my grammar and punctuation skills. I am not lazy about spelling, in that I take care that my work is correctly spelled (usually). It is simply that I require help with making my spelling presentable.

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[info]shadmere
2005-05-18 01:47 pm UTC (link)
This is the funniest conversation I've read in awhile. I can't believe I missed it for so long.

No offense, Kurt, but... wow. Umm... I dunno what to say.

I'm *vaguely* amused that you mispelled "grammar" in your post, Guillamo. Not that it means you're a bad speller, it just illustrates that spellcheck exists mostly for the reason of "silly mistakes like putting extra letters on words."

::blinks::

Wow.

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[info]azubi
2005-05-10 03:11 pm UTC (link)
Actually, a sutyd ta Cmabrdige Uvinersity shweod taht splelngi deosnt' ralely mtatre snice the hmaun eey raeds wrods as a wohle rtaher thna ltetre by letter. Makes me feel more comfortable, certainly (I know this cause it hangs on my refrigerator to encourage all my flatmates never to use spell check - even if it annoys the examiners).

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