Dear friends

This month we came across a rather interesting and pertinent article. We have taken out an extract below. If you would like to read the full article, please click on the link below.

DON'T (EVER EVER EVER EVER) TRUST MS WORD SPELLCHECK!

If you use Microsoft Word’s grammar checker, beware. This program is seriously flawed; however, in all fairness, most grammar check programs are flawed. Writing is just too complex for computers to analyse (so far), but maybe that’s a good thing. Writing is an art and creativity can’t be (and should never be) measured in formulas and algorithms.

However, unlike fine art, writing does have rules and those can be measured. Unfortunately, anything more than just a basic, simple sentence is too complicated for a grammar checker; therefore, you get a lot of erroneous suggestions. And Word’s suggestions are more often wrong than right. In addition to the incorrect responses, Word also has a tough time making up its mind on some entries. For example, with some words, the grammar checker suggests a hyphen; then after you add the hyphen, it flags (underlines in red) the word again and recommends removing the hyphen!

Word’s grammar checker also can’t seem to tell the difference between restrictive and non-restrictive clauses (in laymen’s terms, “that” defines the necessary parts of a sentence; i.e., the restrictive clause; and “which” defines the additional, but not necessarily essential parts of a sentence, the non-restrictive clause). Word just assumes that this rule is always true. Regardless of the sentence and how these words are used, Word insists on commas after “which” and no commas after “that,” most of the time.

Even though Word’s grammar checker is flawed, it’s still a good feature to leave turned on because, if for no other reason, it alerts you to errors that may need attention. However, do not blindly accept all of Word’s recommendations. If your editing skills are not your best feature, use Word’s grammar checker to find the errors, then seek the help of an expert to determine if Word’s suggestions are correct or not.

Read the full article at http://bit.ly/24f5RC. With thanks to Examiner.com for this information.

And to illustrate the point:

Eye halve a spelling chequer
It came with my pea sea
It plainly marques four my revue
Miss steaks eye kin knot sea.
Eye strike a key and type a word
And weight four it two say
Weather eye am wrong oar write
It shows me strait a weigh.
As soon as a mist ache is maid
It nose bee fore two long
And eye can put the error rite
Its rare lea ever wrong.
Eye have run this poem threw it
I am shore your pleased two no
Its letter perfect awl the weigh
My chequer tolled me sew.
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