Question about the period (grammar related)

[Beckett]

Over the years I have been annoyed on a few occasions while reading. My problem is that, while capitalization (and spacing, of course) is used to indicate the beginning of a sentence, I find that I sometimes still get confused as to when a declarative sentence actually ends. The decimal point I don't believe has ever been a problem but when a dot is used to abbreviate a word, sometimes the accompaniment of a capitalized word following has caused confusion.

I'm just curious to know if there is a symbol or mark (accessible on my keyboard) similar to a period that I can use to indicate the end of a declarative sentence, seperate from the dot used in URLs or abbreviations?

Edit: While writing this I decided to see if I could create a bold period using HTML. Yep, it worked. I now have a nice obvious mark to differentiate a period that ends a declarative sentence from the decimal point and other dots, provided I don't use HTML otherwise. I suppose my question now is, how do I make it easier to type a bold period without having to retype the HTML using my keyboard?

Actually, I would like my original question to be answered as well if possible. The English language is an old one and I can't possibly be the first or only person to take an interest in making the period unique from it's relatives. Is there already a mark easily accessible on a keyboard resembling a bold period? Is such a mark actually in use?

Your help would be greatly appreciated. <--

 

[Abdul Alhazred]

Over the years I have been annoyed on a few occasions while reading. My problem is that, while capitalization (and spacing, of course) is used to indicate the beginning of a sentence, I find that I sometimes still get confused as to when a declarative sentence actually ends...

You seem to have done just fine to me my problem is commas.

Somebody or other (maybe Ambrose Bierce?) once suggested a "never mind" mark. The curly top of a question mark with a comma instead of a period below.

This is for when you ask a question and then keep going because you are not interested in the answer.

 

[Mendor]

The way TeX does it, I think, is to vary the amount of space it puts after the period.

e.g. something like this.Note that there's more space between the sentences than between words, or after the dot after "g".This sentence will use gratuitous abbreviations etc. to illustrate the difference.

There is no distinction between the two types of period in typography other than that, I think.

Wikipedia knows all: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Full_stop

 

[drkitten]

I'm just curious to know if there is a symbol or mark (accessible on my keyboard) similar to a period that I can use to indicate the end of a declarative sentence, seperate from the dot used in URLs or abbreviations?

Yes! There are several marks that you can use to indicate the end of a sentence; the problem is a lot of them look rather silly, yes?

 

[Jeff Corey]

The English language is an old one and I can't possibly be the first or only person to take an interest in making the period unique from it's relatives. [/B]

It's?

 

[Soapy Sam]

Ah! The apostrophisation of "its" problem.

Take three semi colons and call me in the morning.

 

[CFLarsen]

You can only use the period once every 28 days (circa).























Oh, come on! You knew it had to happen!!

 

[Beckett]

Thanks, Mendor! I hadn't considered double-spacing. I attempted it in this post but as I previewed it I discovered that the double-spacing didn't work. (I'm guessing because the HTML is on?) Is there a simple way to double-space after sentences when writing here in the forums?

You seem to have done just fine to me my problem is commas.

Abdul Alhazred, you must have a stronger dislike for reading user license agreements than I do!

It's?

Whoops! You caught me. I meant to show it in its possessive form, not as a contraction.

Yes! There are several marks that you can use to indicate the end of a sentence; the problem is a lot of them look rather silly, yes?

I absolutely can not come up with a witty response to this at the moment¬ So, you're unfortunately left with this¥ My apologies¦

 

[Beckett]

Ah! The apostrophisation of "its" problem.

I probably make many grammatical errors, but this shouldn't have been one of them. I do know better, I swear!

Take three semi colons and call me in the morning.

Isn't this a high dosage? Are you licensed to practice grammar?

You can only use the period once every 28 days (circa).

I absolutely can not come up with a witty response to this at the moment¬ So, you're unfortunately left with this¥ My apologies¦

 

[Beckett]

D'oh! I forgot to thank everyone for their responses! Thank you, all, for your responses!

Carry on.

 

[epepke]

Thanks, Mendor! I hadn't considered double-spacing. I attempted it in this post but as I previewed it I discovered that the double-spacing didn't work. (I'm guessing because the HTML is on?) Is there a simple way to double-space after sentences when writing here in the forums?

Back in the day of typewriters, people used to use double spaces after periods. I still do. Most people think it's silly, though. However, in HTML, no distinction is made between different kinds of whitespace, although in VB, carriage returns are treated differently.

You can, if you want, use the (I hope this works) &nbsp; token to mean a non-breaking space. This is a space that isn't broken along paragraphs. Some browsers don't like strings of &nbsp;, so alternate it with real spaces.

This canget really silly if&nbsp you &nbsp do&nbsp it&nbsp a lot.

 

[Jeff Corey]

Isn't this a high dosage? Are you licensed to practice grammar?

It looks like a high colonic to me.

 

[Mendor]

Thanks, Mendor! I hadn't considered double-spacing. I attempted it in this post but as I previewed it I discovered that the double-spacing didn't work. (I'm guessing because the HTML is on?) Is there a simple way to double-space after sentences when writing here in the forums?

In short -- no. sorry.

epepke is right - nbsp is the best you can do, I think; a string of normal spaces are all collapsed into one space otherwise.

 

[Psi Baba]

In short -- no. sorry.

epepke is right - nbsp is the best you can do, I think; a string of normal spaces are all collapsed into one space otherwise.

That's true. One way around the capital letter after an abbreviation problem is to simply not use periods for abbreviations. Most abbreviations (Dr, etc, ie, bs) are well-known and the period is superfluous. Not only that, MS Word can't tell the difference and always want to capitalize any word that follows an abbreviation, just because of the period. That's annoying. The conflict I encounter most often is when typing a url or e-mail address as the last word of a sentence, such www.yahoo.com. I often worry that people who are not too internet savvy may think that the last dot is part of the url and type it into their web browser that way. I usually end up leaving the period off, then starting a whole new line for my next sentence. Awkward, yes, but I haven't devised a better solution.

Sidenote: I just tried a few web addresses with a dot at the end. Yahoo and Google handle the problem fine, but one that I typed in gave this. I've NEVER seen a 403.6 error before. Weird.

HTTP Error 403.6
"Forbidden: IP address Not Known"
LEGAL NOTICE

*** UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS PROHIBITED -- DEVICE 28574 ***

Your activities may be logged for security purposes. Access to this device is permitted only with the express authorization of its owner, with specific reference to the device identity above, and only if you are CURRENTLY an employee, contractor or affiliate of the owner. Unless you are sure that you have specific authorization to access this device as specifically identified above, then your access to this device is NOT AUTHORIZED.
Use of this device is exclusively for the benefit of its owner, and may not be used for any other purpose. By remaining connected to this device, you represent that you have authorization to do so, and that you AGREE to all terms of use. Otherwise, you must DISCONNECT NOW. Unauthorized access will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

 

[pupdog]

I read in a word-processing manual that, if you learned to double space between sentences, you should stop because the software automatically adjusts spacing.

But I hate how MicroSoft tries to embarass me, changing all my "pH"s into "Ph"s.

 

[zakur]

But I hate how MicroSoft tries to embarass me, changing all my "pH"s into "Ph"s.

Easily fixed in your Tools-->AutoCorrect menu.

 

[Iconoclast]

One way around the capital letter after an abbreviation problem is to simply not use periods for abbreviations. Most abbreviations (Dr, etc, ie, bs) are well-known and the period is superfluous.

My understanding -- and it's along time since I learnt basic English, so I may be misremembering -- is that a full stop is required after an abbreviation if the last letter of the abbreviation is NOT the last letter of the word being abbreviated.

So, Pty Ltd (Proprietry Limited) should have no full stops, but Co. (for Company) should.

 

[zeno]

Howdy

Beckett:

A Panda walks into a cafe. He orders a sandwich, eats it, then draws a gun and fires two shots in the air.

"Why?" asks the confused waiter, as the Panda makes towards the exit. The Panda produces a badly puntuated wildlife manual and tosses it over his shoulder.

"I'm a Panda," he says, at the door. "Look it up."

The waiter turns to the relevant entry and, sure enough, finds an explanation.

"Panda. Large black-and-white bear-like mammal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves."

From "Eats, Shoots & Leaves," by Lynne Truss. I'm up to page 27. Its and it's has already been delineated. I forgot what she said.

 

[Kimpatsu]

Re: Re: Question about the period (grammar related)

You seem to have done just fine to me my problem is commas.

That's because there are 17 different uses of the comma, two of which are mutually exclusive. This is owing to the fact that (take that, Strunk and White! ) usea of the comma has grown up over time, and the comma has thus been employed for different functions in different ages.
As to the period (or "full stop", as we Brits call it), the confusion arises because of the stupid American habit of placing it inside quotes regardless. Consider:
Sophia asked Lord Fellamar if he was "out of his senses".
Sophia asked Lord Fellamar if he was "out of his senses."
Surely, the former is correct, as it ends the sentence--which starts with "Sophia", not with "out", as "out of his senses." is clearly not a sentence.
Fore more, read pages 152 to 155 of Lynn Truss's Eats, Shoots, and Leaves.

 

[Kimpatsu]

Re: Howdy

Beckett:

A Panda walks into a cafe. He orders a sandwich, eats it, then draws a gun and fires two shots in the air.

"Why?" asks the confused waiter, as the Panda makes towards the exit. The Panda produces a badly puntuated wildlife manual and tosses it over his shoulder.

"I'm a Panda," he says, at the door. "Look it up."

The waiter turns to the relevant entry and, sure enough, finds an explanation.

"Panda. Large black-and-white bear-like mammal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves."

From "Eats, Shoots & Leaves," by Lynne Truss. I'm up to page 27. Its and it's has already been delineated. I forgot what she said.

"Its" is possessive; "it's" (with an apostrophe) means, "it is".
The worst error in the joke that informs the book title is that pandas aren't "bear-like"; they're related to raccoons. So, 10/10 for punctuation, 0/10 and see me for taxonomy.