« first day (702 days earlier)      last day (197 days later) » 
00:00 - 20:0020:00 - 00:00

Anonymous
20:03
Beta doesn't mean that the software is in the beta portion of a development cycle
Anonymous
@CopperKettle That's two words.
@snailboat i know it doesn't, but they're still small sites and problems with some of them could go unnoticed for a while
Anonymous
They run the same software as the big sites.
Anonymous
In any case, I suggest saving your drafts locally when you work on something large.
yup, lesson learned
Anonymous
20:05
Also, I edited your message.
what message?
Anonymous
The rude one.
Thank you snail.
ah, alright
you didn't edit out most of the cursing so i don't know what the big deal was
Anonymous
Oh, did I miss some more?
Anonymous
20:06
Let me read the logs more thoroughly
no, i was talking about that same message
Anonymous
Profanity isn't necessarily a problem
@snailboat I think he meant the fucking huge-ass
Anonymous
@JersonZuleta I missed it the first time
@snailboat I did too, I don't have a problem with cursing though.
Anonymous
20:08
@JersonZuleta Yeah, I know what you mean.
@snailboat if cursing isn't the problem, then why remove it?
it's not like i was insulting anyone here
Anonymous
Well, you did just use gay as an insult.
what about the rest of the edits?
i don't wanna stir up drama, but it'd be nice to know what's allowed and what's not
Anonymous
I was just finishing cleaning it up since you seemed to want me to be consistent in removing all of it
It's not allowed to be rude towards other members. Just be nice and you're fine.
Anonymous
20:10
Yeah, that.
i wasn't being rude to anyone, but alright, discussion is over
@clinch SE's chat rooms are public, so I think talking about people here or somewhere else will have the same problem. I let it pass the first time 'cause I understand your situation.
Your intention wasn't to be rude, but your choice of words was.
Anonymous
@JersonZuleta I take it as part of the author's style
@JersonZuleta That's a nice way to put it.
20:12
And you never know what is the sexual orientation of people who frequent this room and might feel slightly offended because of how you phrased it.
alright, sorry if i offended anyone
Anonymous
@DamkerngT. I think all three of those are okay.
@snailboat Upon not finding any other explanation, I guess that's alright.
@snailboat nods -- I read it again and I think I didn't read "If you won't be quiet ..." carefully.
Isn't it strange that I read "If you won't be quiet ..." and "If you don't be quiet ..." in different accents? :D
Anonymous
I tend to read everything in my own accent unless I know better :-)
Anonymous
20:14
Is "If you don't be quiet" nonstandard?
@DamkerngT. Maybe you've heard one in another accent in another occasion?
I kinda envy you a wee bit. :-)
@JersonZuleta I guess so.
@snailboat I've heard so.
Hmm... Maybe saying nonstandard is not quite right. Informal is more like it.
Anonymous
I don't think it's like "I don't be stupid"
Sorry for the misleading.
@DamkerngT. Well, I haven't heard of it as being standard.
20:16
@snailboat Me either.
About a page above, I mentioned "If you aren't quiet ..." is standard. This could be read as I was saying that the other two ("If you won't be quiet ..." and "If you don't be quiet ...") are non-standard.
(And at that point, "If you won't be quiet ..." somehow sounded wrong to me.)
Anonymous
"If you won't be quiet" = "If you aren't willing to be quiet"
Anonymous
I think "If you don't be quiet" is different in meaning from "If you aren't quiet"
Hmm...
Because it's more emphatic?
Anonymous
I think it conceptualizes "be quiet" as an intentional action
Anonymous
20:24
So it wouldn't necessarily be appropriate when "If you aren't quiet" is
Anonymous
But maybe it's nonstandard
Sort of "If you don't keep quiet", perhaps?
Anonymous
Maybe more like "If you don't shut up" :-)
Anonymous
According to CGEL, auxiliary do can only combine with auxiliary be in imperatives
Anonymous
20:30
But then later on, it says
Anonymous
Under "lexical be"
Anonymous
> If you don't be quick you'll lose.
Anonymous
They don't really discuss the semantics of it, though
Anonymous
Funny that they consider don't be in imperatives to be a string of two auxiliaries, but don't be in conditionals to be an auxiliary and a lexical verb
Anonymous
I don't really know why
20:34
@snailboat That sounds rather like a self-contradiction!
Anonymous
@DamkerngT. No, one is auxiliary be and the other is lexical be
Anonymous
In their analysis.
Ahh
What do they call the be in Be happy.?
Anonymous
"If you don't be quiet" does seem to (semantically) have some affinity with the imperative "Be quiet", though
(Or Be quick.)
Anonymous
20:38
As I understand it, they consider be auxiliary there
Anonymous
Although it doesn't seem to meet most of the syntactic tests for auxiliaryhood, now that I think about it … many linguists say be is always auxiliary
Anonymous
> Auxiliary do cannot combine with any other auxiliary (including the non-core ones): *He doesn't have read it, *Did she be working? The only exception is the imperative, as in Don't be making so much noise when your father comes home.
Anonymous
That implies that be is an auxiliary in imperatives
But in that sentence making is the main verb.
Or is it?
Anonymous
20:44
Ah, so
Anonymous
We want an example like "Don't be silly" :-)
nods :D
Anonymous
> iib. Don't be tactless.
Anonymous
> In imperative verbal negation do is required even if the corresponding positive does contain an auxiliary verb, as in [iib].
Ah! They call it an auxiliary verb.
20:47
@DamkerngT. I always heard of be as an auxiliary verb in most constructions.
@JersonZuleta Some people call some be (or other forms of it) a copula verb.
In both examples: "Don't be making so much noise" or "Don't be silly", be is still a verb, whether it's the main verb or not well...
Anonymous
> The distinction between auxiliary verbs and lexical verbs is thus irrelevant to the formation of negative imperatives: do is required in all cases.
In some ELL grammar books, they will use different terms, such as "helping verb" (for aux.) and "linking verb" (for copula be).
Yeah, linking verb, I've heard.
Anonymous
20:50
"Helping verb" is what they teach young native speakers
Anonymous
Presumably because "auxiliary" is a "big word" and hard to spell (one L or two!?)
Typing "ili" is a little challenging for me sometimes. :-)
How many i's and l's should I type, and which one comes before?
Anonymous
Is that why you typed "aux."?
Not really. I was just lazy.
Imperative: Don't be careful what you wish for. [Be not careful what you wish for]
Declarative: You are not careful what you wish for. [You don't be careful what you wish for]
20:53
Auxiliary is one of the words that I have to read while typing.
(So usually, I pause a little between "auxi" and "liary".)
@DamkerngT. Specially when there are words such as illicit.
LOL
@JersonZuleta Oh, this one is even trickier for me: Illicit is an adjective.
In some fonts, I and l will look the same.
@DamkerngT. You mean my handwriting? lol
It looks so weird.
Anonymous
20:58
@DamkerngT. I'm pretty used to auxiliary by now
Anonymous
Only 'cause of grammar.
@snailboat Ahh... This reminds me of singular. It's a word that I don't read it aloud very often.
Anonymous
It's kind of unfortunate, though, because auxiliary is used so many different ways in different contexts.
@snailboat I remember in some old computer interfaces, I got this AUX slot, and it was so curious!
"What should I plug into it?" :-)
Anonymous
All your auxiliaries!
Anonymous
21:01
Auxiliary what is always a good question.
Wait, auxiliary what?
Anonymous
No, no
Anonymous
"Auxiliary what?" is always a good question.
Anonymous
It's an in-situ wh-question
Anonymous
21:03
See, I'm using italics for multiple things.
Anonymous
I'd use other stuff more if it were available, but it's not, on purpose.
Anonymous
Bold is a bit heavy for emphasis in here, so sometimes I use italics
We got to make use of what we have.
Anonymous
And I just used italics because in situ is from Latin
Anonymous
So I just used italics for three different things.
21:04
nods -- It confused me a bit.
Anonymous
Sorry for the confusion! :-)
Come to think of it, I think italics for emphasis is common in novels.
Anonymous
Yeah.
Anonymous
Also for interior thought.
Anonymous
For telepathy, in The Demolished Man
Anonymous
21:05
Oh, and for book titles!
Oh, this reminds me of one thing that keeps me from buying more books on Kindle.
It allows me to choose my own font.
Anonymous
How dare they!
Read a book in Comic Sans & see how that goes ;)
Anonymous
That'd work okay if you got used enough to it.
Anonymous
21:07
Reading is overlearning.
Anonymous
But we don't like to have our expectations violated.
Anonymous
That slows us down or distracts or confuses us
When you stop desiring, you stop suffering.
nods -- I don't know why, but some fonts seem to be better on screen and others seem to be better on paper.
I still don't like reading anything too long on screen.
Distance?
Anonymous
21:09
Makes sense―reading is faster on paper
@JersonZuleta No, not distance, in length.
Anonymous
I assumed "too long" meant in terms of time
@snailboat Or on something I can hold it around. :-)
Anonymous
Was I wrong?
(Hey, another resumptive!)
@snailboat I think long conveys both senses.
Anonymous
21:10
@DamkerngT. Ah, I'm afraid it may have stopped me from understanding
Anonymous
Oh
Anonymous
Yeah, too long in terms of time or in terms of (e.g.) word count
Anonymous
Either of those
Anonymous
I think I confused myself. :-)
21:27
0
Q: the destination address vs recipient's address

kittyIt is late in night and I am so tired. I don't think I can get up early tomorrow morning, so I am writing a short message on a paper. Although the message is to be read by my little sister, I want to make use of this opportunity to learn and improve my English. Here is what I am writing: "MewMew...

A Christmas card after a Christmas!
21:39
@DamkerngT. I say it because sometimes the same amount of text looks bigger on screen rather than on the book so I'd rather read it on paper than on a computer.
Anonymous
21:58
It's hard to take pictures of baby snails with my phone
Anonymous
They're too small!
Anonymous
Are your favourite animals snails?
Anonymous
Probably. I like lots of animals, though :-)
My favourite animal is probably one I still don't know of.
Anonymous
22:29
I've always contented myself with having multiple favorites.
Anonymous
That way I don't have to worry about comparing different things I like and figuring out which one I like more.
@snailboat I see a baby snail!
Anonymous
I've been worried about her but she seems to be doing okay! :-)
She looks happy enough on the lettuce!
Anonymous
3
Q: If it's incorrect to "learn" someone, then why is "learned man" correct?

DanielI am well aware that "learn" is incorrect when used as "teach" (referenced in Is 'learn' the new 'teach'?). So why is "learned" common fare, since it is apparently just a participial version of the incorrect usage?

Anonymous
22:40
Lexicalization! :-)
Anonymous
Though I'd prefer "non-standard" to "incorrect"
Anonymous
Just because it reduces the number of assumptions by one
Ah, I just noticed that we use "learn" to mean "inform" in higher registers in Thai!
Anonymous
Japanese has a decent range of verbs that correspond to "learn" in different contexts
Anonymous
This discussion reminds me of おしえる and おそわる
22:43
nods -- Learning is quite an important activity in any cultures.
Anonymous
Both おしえる and おそわる are transitive verbs corresponding to teach, except that in one, the subject is the teacher, and in the other, the subject is the learner!
Anonymous
So おそわる is kind of like 'learn' or possibly 'be taught'
Anonymous
With おしえる, the subject is the teacher. The direct object can be what is being taught...
Anonymous
> せんせい が にほんご を おしえる ← The teacher teaches Japanese
Anonymous
22:49
Or it can be the learner:
Anonymous
> せんせい が がくせい を おしえる ← The teacher teaches the student
Anonymous
But if you have both, then:
Anonymous
> せんせい が がくせい に にほんご を おしえる ← The teacher teaches the student Japanese
Oh! を again!
Anonymous
が = subject
を = object (direct)
に = object (indirect)
22:51
The last one has all of them, が に を!
Anonymous
So that's the "outgoing" version of the verb.
Anonymous
The "incoming" version of the verb looks like this:
Anonymous
> がくせい が せんせい に にほんご を おそわる ← The student is taught Japanese by the teacher
Anonymous
Now the student is the subject!
Oh, the same verb!
Anonymous
22:54
Well, おしえる and おそわる are related but you can probably call them different verbs :-)
Anonymous
Japanese has lots of verb pairs
Anonymous
Where the two are clearly built on the same root but differ in some key aspect
Anonymous
In this case, it's an "ingoing / outgoing" relationship
Anonymous
Although they're both transitive, the semantic roles played by the arguments differ
Anonymous
More commonly, Japanese has transitive/intransitive pairs (hundreds of them)
22:57
This reminds me of a question on ELL. It was about (something like) I want to rent my room, and the OP said that it could be ambiguous.
Anonymous
I guess so...
Anonymous
Though personally, I think I'd be likely to phrase both meanings differently
Oh, it was a car not a room.
3
Q: rent a car, rent out a car, hire a car

user2118559English not my native language. I'm trying to understand what would be correct in British English. If I want to use a car for some time. I can say, "I want to rent a car". But from my knowledge there may be a misunderstanding. I can say the same words if I want to give a car to someone to use f...

Anonymous
Like, I might use rent out, for example
Anonymous
Oh, I see
Anonymous
22:58
"I want to rent a car" is relatively unambiguous, I think
Anonymous
(If I were talking to a rental company, I'd say something like "I'd like to rent a car" instead, since it's more polite)
Anonymous
I don't know about BrE hire a car
That was the first time I'd ever heard hire a car!
Anonymous
It sounds silly in my dialect.
Anonymous
23:01
Since a car is not a person.
Anonymous
I guess you can hire agencies or companies or such, too,
Anonymous
-2
Q: Which one is more British: "car hire" or "rent a car"?

tugberkI am wondering which one is more commonly used in the United Kingdom: car hire or rent a car?

Hehe! A car is not like, say, a hitman. :D
Oh, -2!
Anonymous
Seems like a reasonable question. Maybe it's been downvoted for lack of research effort
Anonymous
I'd upvote it, but I'm too lazy to log in right now :-)
23:04
I upvoted Colin Fine's answer as well.
Anonymous
Colin Fine writes good answers.
Anonymous
(I had to struggle not to say "fine answers")
:D
Oh, this could be funny. Thai word for training is อบรม. อบ = bake, รม = smoke. I guess that after having been baked and smoked, one would become more skillful. :-)
Anonymous
Hehe, do you know what the etymology is? :-)
I do not! trying to find its etymology...
I still couldn't find its etymology, but the search also reminds me that the full phrase is also interesting: อบรมบ่มนิสัย. อบ = bake, รม = smoke, บ่ม = ferment, นิสัย = habit. :D
Anonymous
23:17
I don't know what the state of Thai etymology is like today
Anonymous
(or ever)
Anonymous
Japanese etymology has come a long way in the last hundred years :-)
I give up! Thai etymology is much vaguer than in English.
Anonymous
English is a rather well-documented language and there's lots of contact with other languages to help trace the history of words
I guess that it has something to do with our culture. Cultivation always has an important role.
Anonymous
23:19
I did a lot of cleaning on Christmas, by the way, and my muscles are all still angry at me!
Anonymous
I don't know how long it's supposed to take before muscles stop being angry.
Give it a day. :-)
I think I will have a lot of installation to do during this New Year.
Anonymous
Oh, yeah?
Anonymous
Are you getting a new computer?
23:27
I found out that I don't have to buy a new computer!
Anonymous
Oh!
Anonymous
Yay!
My mainboard just couldn't make the RAM worked properly.
Anonymous
Ahh
So, I overclocked it in the BIOS. (Previously, it was set to Auto.)
Now everything is working fine. Don't know for how long, though. :-)
Anonymous
23:28
Oh, interesting
I'm gonna order an Intel Atom mainboard anyway, to replace an old broken one.
I checked the old Intel Atom main board and I found that it has DDR2 1GB 667 on board, while the PC I thought broken uses DDR2 2GB 800.
Anonymous
My hands are too cold to play guitar!
I replaced DDR2 2GB 800 with DDR2 1GB 667 and it worked! That was how I know it was the RAM.
@snailboat Ah!
Anonymous
I'm using a mug of tea to warm my hands :-)
I remember that it wasn't very cold there, last time you told me.
Anonymous
23:32
Mmm, tea.
Nice tea!
Anonymous
It's 15°C right now.
Anonymous
Low of 5°C in the evening.
Wearing gloves wouldn't help, I think. :P
Anonymous
I can't play with gloves on
Anonymous
23:33
They make guitar gloves, though.
Oh, that's new!
Anonymous
Some people with skin problems can't play without things like that.
Hah! The gloves look like paint!
Anonymous
And that's okay.
Anonymous
23:35
But I think that playing normally is better.
Anonymous
You need to be able to feel
nods -- Silly me. I expected something like this before I was able to see the guitar gloves.
:D
Anonymous
I guess some people do wear fingerless gloves! :-)
Anonymous
But if you can keep your hands warm another way I think it's better
Indeed!
Anonymous
23:39
My hands get cold very easily.
My hands are rather warm.
Anonymous
Right now, or in general?
In general.
Anonymous
My hands and feet get cold easily. I wear socks, but usually not gloves!
@snailboat Hey, this reminds me of a Japanese anime, J-Pang. One of the characters uses swimming to keep his hands warm!
Anonymous
23:42
J-Pang pronounced in Japanese sounds like Zipangu (Cipangu) = Japan
This is strange. I couldn't find good results for the manga/anime on Google.
Anonymous
『焼きたて!! ジャぱん』(やきたてジャぱん)は、橋口たかしによる日本の漫画作品。第49回(2003年度)小学館漫画賞少年向け部門を受賞。 == 概要 == 週刊少年漫画雑誌『週刊少年サンデー』に2001年から2007年まで連載された。単行本は小学館:少年サンデーコミックスより全26巻。もともとは5週限定の短期集中連載だったが、正式に連載となった。 パンの魅力に魅せられた少年が、プロのパン職人として理想のパン「ジャぱん」を追究する姿を描く。作品当初はギャグ要素を織り交ぜつつも比較的真面目な作品だったが、徐々に荒唐無稽な設定が登場するようになっていった。また、作中にて専門用語を解説している。 === テレビアニメ === テレビアニメ化され、2004年10月12日から2006年3月14日まで毎週火曜日19時00分から19時30分にテレビ東京系で放送された。全69話。パンチラなどのお色気描写は控えられている。また、原作で死亡した人物が辛うじて生存していたり、一部描写(カビの生えたパンを食べるシーンなど)をカットすると言った変更点もある。 番組スポンサーである山崎製パンが本作をテーマにした菓子パン(マヨネーズ焼きそば・米粉入りピザパンは惣菜パン)を製造し、全国のローソン(一部地域を除く)、デイリーヤマザキとジャスコで販売され、累計販売数は2005年2月時点で600万個を突破...
Ah! They use a different title!
Anonymous
Anonymous
See Zipangu? :-)
Anonymous
23:47
Looks kinda like ... Zipangri?
Kind of!
INDIA superior!
Anonymous
Good ol' tall-s.
Terra florida!
Anonymous
It's fuperior to the short s.
Ahh... So this is how Columbus might've thought the world looked like.
Oh, no! Canibali!
Anonymous
23:50
Where's that?
Near the middle of the right side of the map.
Anonymous
Eep!
It has a big bush hanging a human head and a leg!
Anonymous
The Man-Eating Myth: Anthropology and Anthropophagy is an influential anthropological study of socially sanctioned cultural cannibalism across the world, which casts a critical perspective on the existence of such practices. It was authored by the American anthropologist William Arens of Stony Brook University, New York and first published by Oxford University Press in 1979. Arens' primary hypothesis is that despite claims made by western explorers and anthropologists since the 15th century, there is no firm, substantiable evidence for the socially accepted practice of cannibalism anywhere in the...
23:58
@snailboat The myth continues!
00:00 - 20:0020:00 - 00:00

« first day (702 days earlier)      last day (197 days later) »