English Language & Usage: Multi-Layered Discourse Room

KitFox

17:00

> 3/30/2012 12:57:53 PM

user19161

@Mahnax Oh this is at least the second time you call Cerb padawan!

RegDwight Ѭſ道

2

Q: Why do so many people use a preposition with which to end a sentence?

Possible Duplicate: When is it okay to end a sentence in a preposition? I see it a lot, even though my elementary teacher told me it is wrong. This is probably a new development, a sign that our language is in decay. Soon none of us will be able to understand each other. But this slopp...

prepositions

KitFox

So I need milliseconds, I suppose.

Cerberus

How come discussions about actual questions are not allowed anywhere, while discussions about the site get an entire website?

user19161

@Gigili Just visualising them in shiny clothes and matt clothes.

Mahnax

17:00

@WillHunting Yessir.

Cerberus

@RegDwightѬſ道 What!

user19161

@Mahnax Then you must be Yoda!

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@Cerberus discussions about questions are allowed in comments, on meta, and in chat.

Mahnax

@Cerberus Discussions about questions are allowed here.

Jinx, sort of.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

That's three places. Count them. three. Almost seven.

Mahnax

17:01

@WillHunting But of course.

Cerberus

@RegDwightѬſ道 Not about the actual content.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

Of course!

user19161

What is this seven joke flying all over the place?

RegDwight Ѭſ道

Which moon have you been living behind?

Cerberus

@Mahnax Yeah but this is hardly the place for serious, thorough discussions.

Matt Эллен

17:02

@KitFox you could go with Ticks

Mahnax

@Cerberus Fine.

Matt Эллен

but milliseconds is fine

user19161

@RegDwightѬſ道 The one in the sky.

Cerberus

Try writing a few paragraphs here!

Matt Эллен

good enough granularity normally

user19161

17:02

Hello @jon!

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@WillHunting Sorry, it wasn't supposed to be all over the place. I can help you pick it up.

KitFox

@MattЭллен I get the same number in Ticks. Why? Why? bangs computer

Matt Эллен

@KitFox oh

maybe I misunderstand Ticks

user19161

I noticed people are usually more talkative on Fri.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@Cerberus this place is for any kind of discussions we make it to be.

Matt Эллен

17:03

I thought ticks was clock ticks, not milliseconds

KitFox

Maybe I misunderstand Ticks.

Eat hot justice! —The Tick

user19161

tick != tic

RegDwight Ѭſ道

Right. The borshch.

Thanks Kit.

KitFox

Welcome.

Matt Эллен

@KitFox Not in the Face! —The Tick

user19161

17:03

Kit is tick read backwards.

KitFox

NOU!

RegDwight Ѭſ道

Anyhow. More to the point, people post questions about particular questions on MSO all the time, @Cerberus.

And they get actual answers on how to improve that one particular question.

At least it used to be that way when I was there.

And I was there for two years straight.

Cerberus

@RegDwightѬſ道 It is unfit for serious discussions: no threading, no long texts.

@RegDwightѬſ道 I mean discussions that are not administrative in nature.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

Well can you pin it down to one example?

Because right now it's just a general "meh, I just don't like it".

Cerberus

Discussing the merits of using the term "future tense" for English.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

17:06

How's that not a question for our main site?

Cerberus

It is a discussion.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

Well, okay.

Cerberus

A private chat room would be the best fit.

KitFox

Except there is only one right answer.

Which would be whatever I decided.

Cerberus

But other people will never find it, and you can't post long posts.

user19161

17:07

@Cerberus A private room is even better.

Cerberus

@KitFox People also spend plenty of time discussing the Word of God, so...

@WillHunting Huh?

KitFox

@Cerberus They should be deferring that to me as well.

user19161

@Cerberus Never mind, just crapping.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

See. People manage to discuss Lord himself using the framework, and you can't manage to discuss a measly tense?

Cerberus

@KitFox But you will be otherwise occupied.

KitFox

17:09

Holy oh sheep dip. That little test should not have taken hours.

Now I am wondering if I should be using Linq after all.

@Cerberus What? How?

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus surely a gallery room would be better than a private room. this is something we want people to see, after all

Cerberus

@KitFox Do you see God taking part in theological discussions?

@MattЭллен What is that again?

Matt Эллен

and you can post text of arbitrary length, you just have to use shift+enter

@Cerberus a chat room you have to be invited to speak in

KitFox

@Cerberus Uh, no.

Cerberus

Oh...

RegDwight Ѭſ道

17:13

Well I guess now I have a better understanding of what Cerberus wants. So let me ask you right back, how does it work out for Philosophy.SE? Does it at all? Can it at all?

Cerberus

Well, even I don't know how those work, so that's probably not an effective way of letting people join a discussion about something. Especially given that most discussions ensue in questions/answers.

Matt Эллен

the problem with chat rooms is they decay after 17 days inactivity

Cerberus

@RegDwightѬſ道 Chat has always been pretty much dead there.

KitFox

like an old tooth.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@Cerberus I'm asking more about the site proper.

Obviously you can't have a philosophical discussion.

user19161

17:14

@MattЭллен Why 17? That is as arbitrary as having coffee when one can have marshmallows intead.

Cerberus

@RegDwightѬſ道 I have no idea: I never see any other chat rooms than the main rooms, because they aren't very visible.

Matt Эллен

@WillHunting IDK, I don't make the rules! Blame it on the boogie

KitFox

@Cerberus Click the "site rooms" button.

Cerberus

@RegDwightѬſ道 Huh, what? You are like Vitaly, but even vaguer.

user19161

@MattЭллен But 17 is a prime.

Matt Эллен

17:15

prime for the picking then

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@Cerberus you are like Cerberus. So let me chew your food for you.

2

Cerberus

@KitFox I'm not going to try that every time I see an interesting question on the main site that there might perhaps be a chat room about....

KitFox

I'm just saying.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

How does the SE platform suit Philosophy? Obviously you can only ask questions "did Kant write X", or "what did Kant write", but you can't have a discussion about his writings and how they relate to anything.

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus then too bad for you

Cerberus

17:17

@MattЭллен The main reason being that there won't be any such room 99.9 % of the time.

user19161

@mahnax I see your new look!

Mahnax

@WillHunting I went back. Refresh.

user19161

@Mahnax Why? Yoda is cool!

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus luckily, sometimes the main site tells you

Mahnax

@WillHunting Yeah, but I am unworthy.

Matt Эллен

17:18

Cerberus

@RegDwightѬſ道 Yeah, that is perhaps part of the problem. I actually rarely go there. Some discussions took place the way they do here, in comments.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

I see.

Mahnax

yoda

13.5k 4 19 51

matlab mathematica matrix plot vim latex math

user19161

@Mahnax No you are worthy.

Mahnax

There is already a yoda.

Cerberus

17:19

@MattЭллен Yeah sometimes I am lucky enough to see that.

Mahnax

@WillHunting Disagree, I must.

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus I think it should be more often, but it is quite often.

Cerberus

But I don't recall seeing that on Phil. Perhaps also because chat is usually dead there.

user19161

@Mahnax I had steak at my friend's place just now. It was such a huge chunk I feel bloated even now.

Mahnax

@WillHunting Ah, good. Steak soothes one's soul.

Cerberus

17:20

@MattЭллен Yeah I have seen it a few times, participated maybe thrice.

But I don't think it really works for the kind of discussions people like to have.

user19161

@Mahnax Also had alcohol and ice cream.

Mahnax

@WillHunting Good, did you enjoy your [?]evening?

ErikE

Do you think this question was closed just because it was basically asking for something a thesaurus could answer?

Cerberus

@MattЭллен Hey I have an idea. What if the comments under each answer would be an expandable (folded by default), but threaded, chat-like area?

ErikE

-2

Q: Another way to say "perfectly imperfect" - for a class project

What is another way to say "perfectly imperfect"?

slang

I enjoyed answering the question, and would like to understand a little more about why it was closed.

user19161

17:22

@Mahnax Sort of. You in class now?

KitFox

@ErikE It's essentially a single-word-request.

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus Yeah, that sounds likea good idea

KitFox

We have some guidelines on those.

Mahnax

@WillHunting No, it is still spring break.

KitFox

19

Q: Against single word requests

We've discussed single-word-requests before: Are single word requests always welcomed questions? Are word requests allowed? The consensus of earlier discussions was that these questions are on the low end, but not specifically disallowed. However, the last few months of experience have started...

discussion tags on-topic-off-topic

Cerberus

17:23

@ErikE Ehm well, I don't really understand the intent of the question. It sounds a bit like a weak paradox.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

0

Q: How many tenses there are in English language

Possible Duplicate: How many tenses are there in English and what are they? How many tenses there are in English language. I have counted this 14 tenses: present simple (I read) present continuous (I am reading) present perfect (I have read) present perfect continuous (I have been ...

verbs

Cerberus

And not very interesting.

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus the problem is then finding the good commentary amongst the "thanks" and "hahaha, yeah you're mum codes in VB"

RegDwight Ѭſ道

Try clicking on Ask Question and typing "How many tenses there are in English language". The question this has been closed as a dupe of comes up first.

KitFox

Oi! Nuthin wrong wif VB!

Cerberus

17:24

@RegDwightѬſ道 Perhaps that user should be "advised" to change the style of his questions, because they often ehm are suboptimal?

ErikE

@Cerberus To you perhaps. :)

KitFox

@ErikE There is no research effort, no description of why this mysterious synonym is needed, and no context in which to fit a proper answer.

Matt Эллен

@KitFox hehehe hugs I know! I was trying to think like an SO troll

Cerberus

@MattЭллен Hmm yeah...but don't we already have that problem with comments, sort of? Perhaps if it didn't look like a chat at first sight?

Mahnax

@KitFox Yeah, get some VB and some mates up in me Holden, nationalism mate.

Cerberus

17:26

And it would only show starred comments when folded, as now?

ErikE

@KitFox Thank you @KitFox that was helpful about single-word-requests.

KitFox

Sumuv us don' haf a choice, ya know?

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus yes, and in here too! I think the only way would be strict moderation of comments, to keep them relevant to the topic

Cerberus

@ErikE True: I think all closings are subjective. But that is basically what my reason often is. But in this case I really don't quite get what the question is for.

Matt Эллен

@KitFox you should totally drop that and use jQuery

KitFox

17:27

groans

user19161

@ErikE It is unclear to me what is meant by "perfectly imperfect".

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@MattЭллен Better now.

KitFox

@Cerberus It's for a class project! Didn't you read the title?

Cerberus

@MattЭллен I don't think we would want anything that put more of a burden on your poor moderator. But then, would it really require more moderation than current comments? I would want it to be like a forum thread on any other forum.

Matt Эллен

@RegDwightѬſ道 Ah! You spotted my deliberate mistake. I was hoping you would

RegDwight Ѭſ道

17:28

I spot everything. I am a turd.

Cerberus

@KitFox Ohhh that clears it all up.

@RegDwightѬſ道 Eww you're spotted?

user19161

@RegDwightѬſ道 Except "existance" and "matress".

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus yes, if you want really good discussion (which is not what comments are for) then you would need a lot tighter moderation because otherwise it degenerates

RegDwight Ѭſ道

Will, do look up "troll" one day.

user19161

@RegDwightѬſ道 Nice save there.

Cerberus

17:29

@MattЭллен Oh, but it would be allowed to degenerate, just like comments.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@WillHunting Safe. You mean safe.

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus then it would be of no more benefit than these chat rooms, bar not fading way

KitFox

keeps reading 'degenerates' as 'denigrates'

RegDwight Ѭſ道

^ Nice safe there.

Mahnax

@RegDwightѬſ道 Oh, I want me one of them.

KitFox

17:30

Oh, nice safe.

Matt Эллен

lol

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@KitFox keeps reading 'Ellen DeGeneres' as 'Ellen Degenerates'

Cerberus

@MattЭллен The main benefit would be that it was right under the answer, and 2. that it didn't look like a chat room, so that it wouldn't be used for socialising, no more than current comments anyway.

Gigili

Why 194 constructions @ErikE?

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus so what you're asking for is a rule change to allow comment sections to be chat rooms?

No thanks

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

17:32

No socializing in this chat. Only capitalizing. Or communizing.

user19161

@RegDwightѬſ道 Oh I watch her show too.

Cerberus

@MattЭллен More like a mixture of chat room and regular discussion-forum thread.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@Cerberus that would be radically different from what SE wants to be.

Cerberus

@RegDwightѬſ道 Of course.

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus that defeats the purpose of the SE style

RegDwight Ѭſ道

17:33

You can't play chess here, either. But that doesn't mean we should add a chess function.

Matt Эллен

jinx

ErikE

@Cerberus Now that I've read up more on single-word-requests I understand more where you're coming from, and agree I probably shouldn't have done my thesaurus-fu on that question. But it was still fun.

A +2 answer to a -2 question isn't awful, though...

RegDwight Ѭſ道

user19161

@RegDwightѬſ道 We can play chess here. 1. e4 e5...

Cerberus

This all began with my comment that SE encourages endless, boring discussions about administrative issues (Meta) while discouraging discussions about interesting stuff, i.e. what the site is really about, English/Linguistics/etc.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

17:34

@RegDwightѬſ道 I dunno. They added the chat rooms specifically to placate people who "didn't want to play chess anymore but rather wanted to play throw the pieces on the floor"

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@WillHunting r2 d2

Matt Эллен

@RegDwightѬſ道 thanks! I do enjoy food :)

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@MattЭллен you better do, as that was an order.

It's clear from the picture that she brings you an order.

Matt Эллен

eeep!

Cerberus

@ErikE No, it's fine. I am not in favour of closing questions that I personally don't like: they don't bother me either! There's enough space on the site.

user19161

17:35

@RegDwightѬſ道 I like the blonde.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

Thank you for the information.

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus and thus we have chat rooms! You know you can bookmark conversations?

user19161

@RegDwightѬſ道 You are welcome.

Matt Эллен

so essentially all the best stuff is there ready to be looked through

In theory

Cerberus

@MattЭллен I mentioned why they don't work that well for that specific purpose. They appear to be used mainly for socialising and off-topicness.

user19161

17:36

@RegDwightѬſ道 I also think that is too much food for 4 people.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@WillHunting but not for one.

Cerberus

In practice, you see more discussions about English in comments than elsewhere, agreed?

user19161

@Cerberus practice, since you use BrE

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus right, but that's just our nature. Keeping the discussion here, rather than on the site where it gets right in the way of business is a good thing

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@Cerberus you only do that because I delete like a hundred comments a day that say "hi I like you".

Matt Эллен

17:38

I will keep writing them too

I LIEK U

RegDwight Ѭſ道

Just don't keep writing them three.

KitFox

@MattЭллен You bookmarked the Mitsubishi story?

Cerberus

@WillHunting Oops!

Matt Эллен

@KitFox I like it :)

user19161

@Cerberus Hehe.

KitFox

17:38

blushes

Cerberus

@MattЭллен Well, I disagree about that.

ErikE

@RegDwightѬſ道 lol @RegDwight

Cerberus

@RegDwightѬſ道 Eh yes, but that wasn't my point.

Matt Эллен

Well, maybe I abuse the conversations feature a tiny little bit

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@Cerberus It is mine, however.

Cerberus

17:39

By the way, so that's why I never hear anybody say they like me here!!

KitFox

@MattЭллен As long as it is not self-abuse, I think we are OK.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

Yes. I delete those first.

Cerberus

@RegDwightѬſ道 Then stick it wherever you like!

user19161

@Cerberus I like you.

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus that's why there are forums on the rest of the web. that's how they work - how you like things to work.

Cerberus

17:40

@WillHunting Haha I was kidding.

But thanks.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

I do a Bing search for "@Cerberus" first thing in the morning, and delete everything I see, and then some.

KitFox

> Required Online Information Security Training – Please Complete by May 31, 2012

groan

user19161

Carlo R's questions are improving it seems.

Cerberus

@MattЭллен Yes, and what I would like is a part of this site that can do what fora do without disturbing the clean question-answer format. Because now we have less depth than we could have.

@RegDwightѬſ道 A Bing search, I see.

KitFox

bing

Matt Эллен

17:41

@Cerberus I LEIK U

Cerberus

Noooo don't bing me!

user19161

I love you.

KitFox

@Cerberus i liek u to

Cerberus

@MattЭллен Thanks!!

Mahnax

i duzent liek ppplzz

Cerberus

17:42

@KitFox Thanks, and bing back atcha!

@Mahnax !!

Mahnax

On a lighter note, my Bio lab is almost done.

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@Cerberus I'm pretty sure you can post that on MSO. I'm also pretty sure that you should post it on MSO, as opposed to just complaining into the vast endlessness of the Universe here. Lastly, I am somewhat sure that other people have posted similar requests in the past.

Mahnax

@Cerberus Joking.

KitFox

@Mahnax Yay! With nice diagrams?

user19161

@Mahnax Very good. To hell with Bio after IB!

Mahnax

17:43

@KitFox Haven't found any good 'uns yet.

@WillHunting Haha.

Well, haven't looked.

KitFox

@Mahnax Check wiki for molecular diagrams.

Mahnax

@KitFox Still working on my conclusion.

user19161

"Credit will be given for good diagrams" is what my geog teacher said, I recall.

Cerberus

@RegDwightѬſ道 I know it is never going to happen, see Jeff's ideas.

KitFox

I liked to draw diagrams in school. Especially with colored pencils.

Cerberus

17:44

@Mahnax Phew! wipes brow

RegDwight Ѭſ道

@Cerberus but then I'm not sure how we are supposed to help.

user19161

@KitFox Oh we don't use coloured pencils.

Mahnax

@Cerberus Yeah, y'all is safe.

Gigili

I hear voices in my head telling me to do things.

Mahnax

@Gigili Do things like what?

KitFox

17:45

Just wait, @Gigili.

It will be all be OK.

user19161

@Gigili It's just you talking to yourself.

Gigili

@Mahnax Like there's a typed message and I can't send it

Mahnax

@Gigili I'm not sure what you mean.

user19161

@Gigili Huh?

KitFox

@Gigili Just wait. Trust me.

The time isn't ripe yet.

user19161

17:47

@KitFox Wow, Kit knows stuff.

KitFox

Kit understands the ways of the heart.

user19161

I cannot comment as I don't even know what's happening.

Gigili

^

ErikE

@KitFox Your bookmarked bellicophage conversation had me laughing. Well done. I like it a lot. I will use it.

Matt Эллен

sending without sending. clever

Gigili

17:49

@KitFox Uhum, I will. But, HOW LONG?

KitFox

►

user19161

@Gigili Not sure what you want to mean with that incomplete sentence.

Gigili

@WillHunting Never mind.

ErikE

@MattЭллен It's like traveling without moving, using spice. From Dune. Of course.

KitFox

Or tessering.

@ErikE nods Thank you. I am pleased.

Cerberus

17:50

@RegDwightѬſ道 You're not.

KitFox

Just a bit longer, @Gigili.

user19161

@KitFox Nice blue.

KitFox

Foreigner has the answers to everything.

Matt Эллен

:D

user19161

I see more people are becoming cryptic these days.

Matt Эллен

17:53

:4035144 bless you

Mahnax

Stupid link.

KitFox

I wish I could find it with Fernando's intro.

Cerberus

@ErikE Dune!!

KitFox

►

Got it!

RegDwight Ѭſ道

Dear Google! As a parent, a Christian, and an American, I demand that the video titled "Foreigner waiting for a girl like you" be taken down.

Matt Эллен

17:53

@WillHunting well, fascist regimes require that we keep our communications off beat so that our privacy is secured

RegDwight Ѭſ道

Think of the children!!!!

Matt Эллен

@KitFox yesss!!!

Cerberus

Haha wtf.

ErikE

@Cerberus "sending without sending" made me think of a trance song that says "travel. without moving." all about spice.

KitFox

@RegDwightѬſ道 Oh that reminds me of another one! Hang on!

Cerberus

17:54

Ohh yes, I remember that.

From the book, I mean.

Have you read all the Dune novels?

I only read the first few, and I liked the first one far better.

ErikE

I've read about the first 3 or 4 but got lost when it got all weird and the story wasn't very good any more. But that was like 15-20 years ago, maybe I'll like them more now?

Cerberus

The books written by his son, which take place before the story of the main novel, are fun, but a bit less deep and tragic.

@ErikE I am in exactly the same situation, except 10 years ago.

ErikE

I am planning an expedition soon to yon refrigerator land wherein lay dormant all manner of vile foodstuffs, waiting in deceptive quiescence to leap upon unsuspecting victims! But no, I am rehearsing my tactics and laying out a pretentious provender punishment plan! I have acquired mighty weapons of comestible subjugation--a new brand of plastic knife with sturdier serrations. I plan to wield two of these fine microswords when I engage.

It will be quite satisfying to dentate the VERY LIFE out of my baby carrots.

Matt Эллен

woohoo!

Cerberus

You Jew!

I.e. baby-eater. But people never get my baby-eater jokes.

ErikE

17:58

They cannot withstand my onslaught! ROARRRR!

Matt Эллен

@Cerberus a little bit out there

Cerberus

What a pity.

ErikE

< picture wild-eyed, skewy-bearded Viking chewing madly >

KitFox

Hooray!

Cerberus

That's easy.

ErikE

17:59

er. wild-bearded? Can't think of a good way to say that.

Mahnax

Ah, popcorn chicken. I look forward to ripping you apart with my incisors, grinding you up with my molars, and digesting you with my amylase and assorted lipases, but only after drowning you in a serving of honey mustard sauce. Prepare to be vanquished, O puny foes, for you cannot stand up to the power of Mahnax's mandibles!

Transcript for

English Language & Usage: Multi-Layer…