English Language & Usage: Multi-Layered Discourse Room

ЯegDwight

12:28

@tchrist: what kind of weirdo punctuation is this?

0

A: Procedure expects parameter which was not supplied

In fact, l once had that； it's easy to tackle.what bothered me was the null admin & passport.But l can't log in in another admin.eventually，it's the privacy issues in IE，just pull down the safety level to mid and sth. bright new will emerge！

tchrist

@ЯegDwight Wrong weirdo, clearly.

BTW, Nortonn has now posted a dupe of his own stupid question.

@ЯegDwight The “sth.” brands him an ESLer.

Robusto

@ЯegDwight How is that even an answer to a SQL question?

tchrist

You know, it’s getting so I bet I could write a predictive machine-learning system that correctly guesses Nortonn’s postings.

Robusto

It's good to know I can now tell users to simply lower their security settings if my cross-site scripting doesn't work in IE.

Hahahaha. You have been warned.

tchrist

Scotland or New Zealand?

Robusto

12:37

Dunno. I'd have to log into Facebook to find out, and I'm not prepared to do that.

tchrist

You can log into Facebook? Ewww!

Robusto

Yeah. I've had an inactive account for several years.

tchrist

Isn’t there a purgative for that?

Robusto

I prefer a catharsis.

1

Q: What's the correct way to imply that a course is not taken online?

I'd like to know how I should write on my CV that some courses I've taken were taken online (i.e. on websites, through videos and such) while others were actually taken on an institute/school etc. For example: Online Education Foo Bar (place your suggestion here) education Baz (at example...

Umm, have a degree from a real university?

John Junior

@Robusto Is that sign for real?

Robusto

12:43

I didn't photoshop it.

I presume it's an instruction not to herd sheep on that road.

John Junior

My presumption was a lot more perverted :/

tchrist

Well, I’ve just flounced the tiger’s tail.

Or more precisely, the hummer’s.

SO mods are sleepy on Saturday morning. And no, that’s not the tiger.

Robusto

13:00

Not his tail, either.

tchrist

Whiskers?

Monica

13:11

Hello

Jez

14:13

hey guys, what do you think of this:

I've only done the "g" so far

Cerberus

14:52

That looks...gooey.

tchrist

Thank you so much for the edits, tchrist. Do you charge for them, or do they just give you a charge? I wasn't aware that there was a style manual for this site. Care to name the tome? Your book on Perl? Those golden tablets that Moroni handed down to you? I also find your presumptuousness rather precious and emblematic of your finely honed arrogance and sense of infallibility. — Huizhe 24 mins ago

I can’t make up my mind.

ΜετάEd

15:37

@tchrist Whether it's rude/offensive or only unconstructive? I say rude. The first Huizhe comment in that thread by was merely unconstructive.

tchrist

@ΜετάEd Yes, that was the question.

ΜετάEd

@tchrist Personal attack: in my view, they cross the line from merely unconstructive to rude/offensive.

Levenshtein distance was exactly what I needed, by the way. Thank you.

tchrist

Sometimes he’s too chatty, too. Depends on the posting.

I am slow to flag as rude/offensive something that is attacking me personally, since I am an interested party.

I edited his posting to take out the bullshit. While I was in there, I fixed other things, too.

I don’t think Huitzilopochtli is going to work out. He’s far too full of himself.

And nasty.

Mahnax

15:54

Hmm.

tchrist

Tuning up?

Mahnax

I must say that I don't like this Huizhe fellow. He's rather rude.

I saw some comments where he was being condescending because someone was a computer programmer.

Oh well. I need to go.

tchrist

Bye!

Cerberus

16:26

Hi.

Robusto

16:37

Hi.

I would give you an upvote, but this account isn't registered, so I can't log in. — Huizhe 2 hours ago

He's not registered?

tchrist

He says that several times.

It wasn't me (not registered, so can't up- or downvote), but I'm sure the explanation is something like "You're wrong!", "I disagree!", or "You piss me off!" My last two downvotes included explanations. One was a simple "You're wrong", but the other was "You didn't address the question". For the first, there was a link to a Web page that was, IMHO, inappropriate for the point, but for the second, there was a good explanation and the downvoter was correct -- about that, at least. My mistake in the second case. It's nice to know why one gets downvoted: constructive criticism can help. — Huizhe Sep 5 at 12:39

Cerberus

Or not on the ball.

tchrist

Wait, if you got to his user page, it does say unregistered. What does that mean?

Cerberus

It is possible.

You just don't register.

tchrist

What does it mean?

simchona

16:40

We know he's unregistered, and he's explained why. Don't worry about it.

Cerberus

You only get a user name, I think, but no privileges.

tchrist

Really? I had never heard of that.

Cerberus

I have seen it before.

I don't know how they filter for spam.

Has anyone here ever seen a Bollywood film?

tchrist

Not I.

Robusto

Nor I.

I've seen brief snatches of them, though, enough to persuade me that I don't need to pursue the matter.

Cerberus

16:46

Same here.

I get the impression they are something in between a Hollywood film and a musical.

People are strange.

Robusto

►

Cerberus

I know that song.

Spare Oom

@Cerberus I've seen just one, Bride and Prejudiced, and I can't recommend it.

Cerberus

It's a miracle.

@SpareOom Oh my God. The title alone.

Spare Oom

@Cerberus I had high hopes, since I'm an Austen fan. XP

Cerberus

16:54

Fan fiction rarely rewards high hopes.

Or any hope at all.

Spare Oom

17:04

@Jez Gooey or slimy. What's it for?

@Robusto @tchrist What do you think about companies that have Facebook pages or accounts?

David Wallace

17:35

@SpareOom Not really a typical Bollywood film.

Spare Oom

@DavidWallace You've seen it? Are they usually better? Is there hope?

David Wallace

Umm, different. I don't know about better - kind of apples and oranges, if you see what I mean.

Spare Oom

Uh-huh.

David Wallace

B&P is more western than other Bollywood films; and not just because of the two NZ actors. It doesn't really have any specifically Indian themes - it's a western story, the characters have western agendas, Aishwarya appeals to westerners, and so on.

Cerberus

Hello.

Are there any Bollywood films that you liked?

David Wallace

17:42

Err, I'm going to be really unhelpful here. None that I remember the titles of.

And really, I've seen far too few to give any good comparative recommendations. Why don't you chat to someone in your local video store?

Hey, @simchona, if you're around - your best friend Xavier just struck again. On english.stackexchange.com/questions/81023/…

Spare Oom

@DavidWallace Are there still video stores?

simchona

@DavidWallace My biffle.

David Wallace

@SpareOom Umm, yes? Maybe they're called DVD stores now?

@simchona Oh come on. You love him almost as much as you love Carlo.

simchona

@DavidWallace A circle of biffles.

David Wallace

A frustration of pineapples.

Spare Oom

17:52

@DavidWallace They've disappeared. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blockbuster_LLC

Not entirely, of course.

David Wallace

There are several near me.

Spare Oom

Electronics stores still have DVDs. And we have those red boxes from which to rent DVDs.

Cerberus

@DavidWallace But were there any at all that you liked?

David Wallace

Yes

Cerberus

OK.

Do you generally like blockbuster H'wood films?

David Wallace

18:02

No

Cerberus

Hmm.

What do you like about (some) B'wood films?

David Wallace

The characters are in a different world. They are not people I would meet every day. They have different perspectives on life from the people that I DO meet every day. Yet somehow, it is still possible to empathise with them.

They are oddly compelling.

Cerberus

Okay, that is good.

Would you say they resemble musicals?

David Wallace

Look, just watch one if you really want to know what they're like. But not Bride and Prejudice; it's far from typical.

Yes, they are musicals.

simchona

-2

Q: Collective Noun for Fire

What is the collective noun for fire? A ____ of fires. To clarify: This is actually a school curriculum text question and I have never heard of such a collective noun. This is an example I can think of: Suppose that several fires raged yesterday in the city and the newspapers wanted to say...

collective-nouns

I cleaned the comments up.

Cerberus

18:12

@DavidWallace I was trying to take a shortcut, hehe.

Now groceries, bai!

David Wallace

@simchona I just knew you would.

simchona

@DavidWallace It was turning into "you can't vote, and you're doing it wrong"

David Wallace

I prodded the bull, or whatever the saying is. But it would be a shame if people got their ideas about what ELU is/isn't from Xavier's comments.

simchona

That it would. But as fun as it is to provoke him, please try not to. He posts enough "OMG TOO SHORT NARQ -1" as it is. With ellipses.

tchrist

You forgot the !!!!!!!!

David Wallace

18:17

Sure, but I thought it was important to air the POV that his POV was wrong.

Spare Oom

@simchona Is he looking for something like an outbreak of fires (something that isn't particular to fires)?

David Wallace

conflagration?

simchona

@SpareOom Not sure

Spare Oom

Cluster of fires?

tchrist

pyroclasm

Spare Oom

18:24

users.tinyonline.co.uk/gswithenbank/collnoun.htm for some other interesting groups.

Jez

@SpareOom my site, which is gonna be called "gooey software"

Spare Oom

Are there already fonts that look gooey?

Jez

probably not as good as if you design the thing yourself

Robusto

@SpareOom I think it's just one more thing I would never do. I'm old enough to remember when companies tried to do things for me, and didn't beg me to do things for them.

Jez

goddamn barbecue, making me seriously hungry

Spare Oom

18:31

@Robusto We have it at work, and I have to use my account to post updates. That really bugs me.

There's something about asking the customers to do your advertising ("like" this company on your Facebook page) that doesn't sit well with me. Also, I don't see the point in buying shirts with brand names blatantly advertized on them. They should be paying me to advertise, not asking me to buy their shirts.

Robusto

Like I want the world to know I "like" some brand of iced tea or deodorant. "Yes! This is how I identify myself!"

2

Spare Oom

@Robusto Amen.

@Robusto Now I did consider buying a Coca-cola shirt written in Japanese, however.

I don't drink Coke any more and I don't wear red, but the logo in Japanese looked cool.

Spare Oom

19:04

Help! I forgot a question mark on my comment in the fire question. Can that be edited at this late date?

simchona

@SpareOom If you really need it edited, after the 5 minute grace period a mod can edit.

Spare Oom

@simchona Pweeze would you fix it, or is that too much to bother you with?

simchona

@SpareOom Which comment?

Spare Oom

It's the 9th comment under the question.

simchona

Done.

Spare Oom

19:17

Thank you.

Cameron

0

Q: Which is the suitable preposition for a perspective?

Consider several well known phenomenon. I would like to describe these phenomena from a different point of view. Do I allow a different perspective on these phenomena, of the phenomena, at all phenomena in focus, or should I use a diffident proposition?

word-choice

diffident proposition?

Spare Oom

several phenomenon?

Cerberus

20:20

Hi.

Anyone played Crusader Kings?

> During my last Crusader Kings 2 session, the dilemmas I faced included… Should I blackmail an enemy noble I know to be gay? Should I reprimand my daughter for torturing rats? Should I entrust my son’s education to a lovely schizophrenic Ethiopian lady? Should I lock-up my mum for plotting to kill my half-brother? None of these situations were scripted. They all sprung spontaneously from an astoundingly rich and yeasty depiction of medieval Europe.

This sounds like fun.

pcgamer.com/review/crusader-kings-2-review

Cameron

I haven't played it, but it looks like the same game engine as Europa Universalis 3

which was pretty fun

Cerberus

Yes, it is.

@Cameron It was!!

One of the best games ever.

Did you ever play any the last expansion pack, Heir to the Throne? I didn't.

Cameron

No, I never did, I got a job instead :(

Cerberus

Hehe.

I see.

I don't think that I will allow myself to play Crusader Kings now.

Spare Oom

I've not played any of those.

Cerberus

20:26

But it looks so much fun.

Cameron

Yeah, I have that dilemma frequently

I'm saving up my game time for Assassin's Creed 3

Cerberus

Best turn-based strategy game ever, together with Civilization; but the Paradox games are deeper.

@Cameron Hmm is that fun? Action/stealth?

Yes, yes.

Cameron

The first one was quite fun, never played the sequels but I heard they were even better

Cerberus

That doesn't mean Civ is less fun.

simchona

I play Civ!

Cerberus

20:28

Have you played Thief?

simchona

No

Cerberus

Is A's C anything like it?

@simchona Great. If you want Civ², maybe try EU3.

simchona

@Cerberus EU3?

Cameron

I haven't played Thief

Cerberus

Europa Universalis III.

simchona

20:29

Europa Universalis?

I'll give it a whack

Cerberus

@Cameron It was great. The highest goal to achieve in a mission was to not kill anyone.

And attacking someone one to one? You could perhaps pull that off once each mission without dying. And only if noöne else could hear or see you.

Cameron

sounds interesting

Cerberus

@simchona It's great. But the learning curve is steep.

Cameron

kind of reminds me of metal gear solid, the only way to get the highest rating was to go unseen (except for the boss fights)

Cerberus

@Cameron But an unseen arrow was a one-hit kill. As long as nobody else could see it, could be quite useful.

Cameron

20:31

sounds interesting

are you looking forward to Spy Party?

Cerberus

@Cameron That sounds similar.

What's that?

I haven't played many games over the past 10 years or so.

Spare Oom

Fun time-waster

Cameron

it's an independent game under development now

spyparty.com

@simchona do you play other games?

Spare Oom

I don't like the shooter games. My reaction time is way too slow. I like those with puzzles to solve. I'm not sure I'm any good with strategy games.

simchona

@Cameron Civ is pretty much it. Other than iPhone games

My significant other is into LoL

Cerberus

20:36

@Cameron This sounds fun!

A bit like Werewolves.

Or what is it called in English?

@simchona Civ is one of the best ever, so you're good.

Cameron

@Cerberus Mafia?

Cerberus

Hmm could be, I'm not sure how that works.

Cameron

you sit in a circle, people pick others to get killed in secret, etc.

Cerberus

With werewolves, you play it with a group of friends.

Yes, yes!

There's werewolves and innocent citizens, and there can be various other roles.

simchona

I've played that!

Cerberus

20:38

Like seer, peeking girl, mayor...

simchona

You can make up all sorts of roles

Cerberus

Sure.

simchona

@Cameron I've always called it Mafia too

Cameron

@simchona are you in the US?

simchona

@Cameron Mhm

Cameron

20:40

me too, I guess that's it

we could ask Carlo what they call it in Italy...

@simchona I was going to try league of legends, but then I read this comic:

penny-arcade.com/comic/2011/06/10

simchona

Hahahaha

Cerberus

But Werewolves only became popular around these parts a couple of years ago. But I think we had a game with gangsters ten or twenty years ago that worked like that; but I was too young, I never played it or quite understood how it worked.

It could be that both games are old, but that their popularity fluctuates arbitrarily.

Cameron

like denim jackets

Cerberus

Yeah!

Cameron

Or, as I call them, canadian tuxedos

Cerberus

20:43

But they were only high fashion, starting around a year ago: I don't feel that they have become mainstream again.

Haha wat?

Cameron

Fashion faux pas

A fashion faux pas is a perceived error in fashion etiquette. Examples Socks and sandals There are many variations of socks and sandals today, including the pairing of stockings with heels. Shrimp cocktail toes Shrimp cocktail toes are created when a person wears a pair of heels or sandals which are too small for them, causing their toes to extend beyond the edge of the shoe and grip the outer edges of their footwear. This causes their feet to resemble a shrimp cocktail. The origins of this term are unknown. Wardrobe malfunction A wardrobe malfunction is a fashion faux pas which i...

Cerberus

Haha.

I see.

But I think you can actually get away with a Canadian tuxedo now.

You do need to look hip, or it won't work.

So the cut needs to be right.

Or something.

Spare Oom

0

Q: "On the first floor stood a salesman with [number] artificial legs"

On the first floor stood a salesman with two artificial legs. On the first floor stood a salesman with three artificial legs. On the first floor stood a salesman with four artificial legs. I'm not sure whether the preposition with can be interpreted as 'in possession of' or 'charac...

prepositions

Cerberus

I'm not into that sort of fashion.

Spare Oom

search results?

Cameron

20:48

@Cerberus yeah, I'm definitely not cool enough to pull that one off

Cerberus

@Cameron I'm sure you could—but you'd have to want it first.

And throw it away after a year or so.

Or stow it away at the back of your closet until 2031.

Cameron

indeed, then it would be back in style and vintage all at the same time

Cerberus

Exactly.

Then again, if a different cut should be en vogue then, you're screwed.

I mean, a denim jacket from the 80s would be like a tent now.

Cerberus

21:02

> The realm labels that festoon the map hide power hierarchies populated by hundreds of historically based and randomly generated characters. Every one of these characters is out to realise their own ambitions and further their own family interests.

simchona

... @SevenSidedDie ... yes, I share with you this perspective on the matter, but ... , but, you know, ambiguity is a serious problem during semantic interpretation, even for competent people! ... — Xavier Vidal Hernández 1 min ago

He's his own example.

Cerberus

Haha.

I was just posting an example how how extremely ambiguous English noun adjectives can be.

Can you read that first sentence and understand it in one try?

Luke

How long has the name of the room been spelled like that?

simchona

Which first sentence?

Cerberus

Every other word could be either a noun or a verb.

Or a noun adjective.

> The realm labels that festoon the map hide power hierarchies populated by hundreds of historically based and randomly generated characters.

@Luke I don't know! I saw it yesterday.

In Dutch, it's so much clearer, if correctly spelled: De landenopschriften die de kaart versieren verbergen machtshiërarchieën bevolkt door honderen...

Jez

21:09

@Cerberus How do people get time to play these kinds of games? :-)

Cerberus

How much time do you imagine it takes to play a game of Civilization? A few hours.

Depends on what you do and how.

Jez

takes me days usually on the rare occasion i do it

Spare Oom

@Cerberus It would take me a few hours to figure out the rules and mechanics.

Cerberus

Yeah OK.

But you don't need to play it for 48 hours on end to enjoy it.

> I may be a king who gets deposed to rule a small speck of a county, or a duchess who successfully manipulates their way into becoming an empress. This helps keep CK2 dynamic and tense.

^ This is how they with a singular antecedent can mess up the language and degrade it. See? @tchrist

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English Language & Usage: Multi-Layer…