English Language Learners

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learner

21:00

like "Good one". I think I shouldn't use phrases I have not mastered well

StoneyB

@DamkerngT. I know the feeling. I gave my son a SNES for Christmas, and it didn't work. We took it to the shop, and it worked fine. Now we know the TV we plugged it into doesn't work....

learner

Too bad

Damkerng T.

@StoneyB LOL -- I think I'd had that with some of my computers, too!

StoneyB

@DamkerngT. Yeah, same like my Windows 98 database software - modern technology can't run it.

Damkerng T.

@StoneyB Oh, maybe it's a good time for a new 3D TV!

StoneyB

21:03

@DamkerngT. Prolly not. My son's new TV can't handle 240p input. 480, 720, 1080, but 240's too primitive.

Damkerng T.

Aww

StoneyB

So my project for the afternoon is to dig out an old CRT TV with working composite jacks. Forward into the past!

Damkerng T.

Now I wonder what res my LED TV can handle. I remember it was able to handle the 800x600 mode quite well when we plugged our PC to it a few years back.

@StoneyB Composite jacks! Something I haven't seen for a while!

Anonymous

Our new LCD TV can handle s-video fine.

StoneyB

We have heard the chimes at midnight, Master Shallow.

Damkerng T.

21:07

Nice! Really nice!

Anonymous

I have an s-video cable for my Super Nintendo.

Anonymous

(I refuse to call it an LED TV for the same reason I don't call my old monitor a CCFL display.)

StoneyB

All I got is composite output - not even an RF adapter.

Damkerng T.

@snailboat Oh, so you LCD TV is an LED TV!

Anonymous

The funny thing about Super Nintendo on a modern TV is that everything is giant. :-)

Anonymous

21:09

@DamkerngT. Well, yes, it would be, if I acknowledged that term, which I am obstinately refusing to do.

StoneyB

That's the problem with getting old -- "new" technology may be twenty-five years old.

Anonymous

Most LCDs today have LED backlights.

Anonymous

But they're still LCDs.

Anonymous

We shouldn't let marketing departments ruin the term LED TV. After all, what will we call LED TVs when they finally come around if we've already used up the term?

Anonymous

Won't that be confusing!

StoneyB

21:11

Isn't it already?

Anonymous

I'm sure it is. But I'm pretending I'm taking a stand on principle here. I have to make some sort of argument!

Damkerng T.

It's hard not to call them LED TVs these days.

Anonymous

It's quite easy for me.

Anonymous

Just watch me!

Damkerng T.

I know, I know!

I just check out the back of my TV, and I think it has no plugs for any composite input.

Anonymous

21:12

In Japan, they call CRTs "Braun tubes". I like that term.

Anonymous

Well, technically, Buraun-kan.

StoneyB

I've never called them LED TVs. Or LCD TVs. Just 'flatscreen'.

Damkerng T.

It has some other mysterious thing called "Component In" instead. Whatever that is.

Anonymous

Component is like that other stuff but a little bit better!

Anonymous

Don't ask me. My eyes are terrible. It's all the same to me.

Damkerng T.

21:13

@StoneyB Ah, that's a good word.

@snailboat I think I don't have anything that has "Component Out".

StoneyB

@DamkerngT. Most devices which can handle component video use the Y input for composite video and translate it.

Anonymous

@DamkerngT. My old DVD player, may it rest in peace, had "Component Out"

Damkerng T.

Ahh

Anonymous

I always liked it because they picked better colors for the RCA jacks.

Anonymous

There aren't enough green RCA jacks in the world.

Damkerng T.

21:16

@StoneyB Maybe I still have some spare parts or Y connectors in its box. Now if only I can remember where the box is...

Anonymous

Everything's HDMI for me now, though.

StoneyB

@snailboat And if you have one you plug it into the Y input.

Damkerng T.

Same here. And some HDMI cables are very expensive. Since I can't tell the difference between the output of the cheap ones and the expensive ones, I usually buy cheaper ones.

Anonymous

Well, as long as the digital signal arrives intact, it doesn't matter how cheap your HDMI cable is :-)

Anonymous

That's one of the nice things about digital.

Damkerng T.

21:22

Indeed. Though sometimes I miss those yellow-red-white thingies.

I tried looking for [point].[n*] to in COCA for a bit, and I think they tagged the PoS incorrectly in many extracts.

Anonymous

I think I've had about enough of cords going bad to last me a lifetime.

Damkerng T.

@snailboat Oh, no! I'm pretty sure I have more of them awaiting for me in the future.

Anonymous

@DamkerngT. You should expect it to be 95-98% accurate, by UCREL's estimates

Damkerng T.

Oh, they use UCREL?

Anonymous

natcorp.ox.ac.uk/docs/claws7.html

Damkerng T.

21:26

I think point as a noun is not easy for a PoS tagger.

@snailboat Many thanks!

Anonymous

COCA is tagged with CLAWS7

Anonymous

ucrel.lancs.ac.uk/claws

Damkerng T.

Nice! This is really nice to know. big happy face

I think I just got a nice present!

Anonymous

(-:

Damkerng T.

Thanks for the present!

StoneyB

21:35

You guys are cleaning up on presents. snailboat got a question mark, Damkerng gets CLAWS. I get Chinese for dinner. Everybody's happy!

Damkerng T.

Yay!

1 hour later…

Damkerng T.

23:06

Q: Why ONLY some questions asking lyrics meaning are off topic and not all?

I had asked this question What is the meaning of “I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together" It took no time for CarSmack to vote 'close' stating the song lyrics are off topic (surprisingly, then s/he answers the same question!). I myself had ask about MJ's lyrics earlier ...

Could be interesting. (I haven't read it though. Save it for later.)

Anonymous

I haven't read it either.

Anonymous

I've noticed that some questions about audio transcription are off-topic and others are left alone

Anonymous

I have no desire to force a discussion one way or the other, though, since I imagine it'd tilt away from what I want :-)

Damkerng T.

nods

Anonymous

I do think it makes sense that only some songs about lyrics would be off-topic.

Anonymous

23:08

Some questions are more subjective or unanswerable than others.

Damkerng T.

I think I'd agree to that.

Anonymous

Lyrics are not inherently unclear or more ambiguous than non-lyrics

Damkerng T.

And probably not the best place to learn grammar of a language.

It's a great place for learning what is idiomatic in a language, though.

Anonymous

Hmm.

Anonymous

Lyrics aren't always idiomatic

Anonymous

23:10

In fact, they often use phrases you'd never find anywhere else… :-)

Damkerng T.

Good point!

Anonymous

Lyrics are usually planned and under constraints that spontaneous speech is not

Anonymous

So they tend to be somewhat different from what we think of as naturally produced language

Damkerng T.

Oh, we have this phrase in Thai: the poem carries it away. (It's very ambiguous what this it is. In fact, we drop that it in the phrase: กลอนพาไป, so it's highly ambiguous.)

The phrase is about the poetic license, but more focuses on the poem and all the constraints as the cause.

Maybe rather than saying It's a great place for learning what is idiomatic in a language, though, I think I could say It's a great place for learning what is possible in a language, though.

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