Editor's Corner

Good morning to you all.

On Monday, I discussed two commonly confused words: envy and jealousy. Today I’m going to discuss two words that are more common in the business world but that are equally confused: anxious and eager.

Of these two words, anxious has a more negative connotation. Merriam-Webster explains that this word means “afraid or nervous especially about what may happen : feeling anxiety.” I feel anxious during a movie when I hear the creepy music that means something scary or violent is about to happen. I also feel anxious when someone says, “I have bad news.” And most people feel anxious before giving a presentation.

In contrast, the word eager has a positive connotation. According to Merriam-Webster, to be eager is to be “very excited and interested : feeling a strong and impatient desire to do something.” I feel eager when I’m getting ready to go on vacation. And I am eager to spend more time with my son before he joins the US Coast Guard.

So, although a lot of people are using these words interchangeably, I would never tell a client that I was anxious about an upcoming event, meeting, or presentation. I would put a positive spin on the situation and let the client know that I am eager to get started.

And on the other hand, I would never tell my sister that I am eager to take another trip to Las Vegas with her. She’s crazy wild. Anyway, I think Las Vegas banned her.

Donna Bradley Burcher | Technical Editor, Adv. | Symitar®

8985 Balboa Ave. | San Diego, CA 92123 | Ph. 619.278.0432 | Ext: 765432

Guten tag!

After last week’s “Inspiring Initialisms” email, one of our readers had a burning question about using a or an with numbers. Specifically, he asked whether it is correct to write “starts with a 1” or “starts with an 1.”

As we learned last week, a comes before words that begin with a consonant sound, while an comes before words that begin with a vowel sound. However, even after saying it out loud I was a little unsure what the number 1 sounds like, so I checked my handy-dandy online Merriam-Webster dictionary. (And if you’re giggling about the sound of the number 1, shame on you!)

Aha! By the power vested in Merriam-Webster, we pronounce the number 1 as ˈwən, which starts with the consonant w. So, according to the rule, you should write “a 1” because the number 1 starts with a consonant sound. You would still use a if you spelled out the number 1, because the word one is also pronounced ˈwən.

According to the 16th edition of the Chicago Manual of Style, section 5.72, the tricky y, h, and w sounds count as a consonant sound:

A comes before words with a consonant sound, including /y/, /h/, and /w/, no matter how the word is spelled {a eulogy} {a historic occasion} {a Ouachita tribe member}. An comes before words with a vowel sound {an LSAT exam room} {an X-Files episode} {an hour ago}.

In section 7.44, the authors further clarify that the same word can have a or an in front of it, depending on how the word is pronounced:

In the last two examples, 007 would be pronounced oh oh seven and double oh seven, respectively.

an 007 field (in a library catalog) [LB – An is in front because this 007 starts with the vowel sound
o in oh.]

a 007-style agent [LB –
A is in front because this 007 starts with the consonant sound d
in double.]

Now I’m craving some of the appropriately named A.1. sauce. Mmm.

Thanks,

Laura Bowers | Technical Writer | Symitar®

8985 Balboa Ave. l San Diego, CA 92123-1507

619.542.6935 l or Ext. 766935

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Hello! I’m back to tell you about the rest of the plain English standards from the JHA Style Guide for Technical Communication and Training. Here we go!

· Write as specifically as possible

o Incorrect: If you accept the default of 0 at this prompt, the specfile will not omit any open accounts based on the value in the Warning Code.

o Correct: If you accept the default of 0 at this prompt, the specfile will not omit any open accounts based on the value in the Warning Code field in the Account record.

· Break up noun clusters that have more than three nouns

o Incorrect: JHA is developing an interdepartmental employee relations improvement plan.

o Correct: JHA is developing a plan to improve relations among employees in different departments.

· Always start a paragraph with a topic sentence [JS] The first sentence in the paragraph should tell the reader what the rest of the paragraph is about.

· If anything in a paragraph does not support the topic sentence, create a new paragraph for the new information

· If you begin a command with a dependent clause, separate it from the main clause with a comma

o Incorrect: On the Tools menu select Options.

o Correct: On the Tools menu, select Options.

· Begin a caution with a simple and clear command

o Incorrect: Once locked, the Forecast cannot be unlocked.

o Correct: Make sure you have made all the needed changes to the Forecast. Once locked, the Forecast cannot be unlocked.

· Do not leave out articles

o Incorrect: ODP system has set minimum for all methods.

o Correct: The ODP system has a set minimum for all methods.

Jackie Solano | Technical Editor | Symitar®

8985 Balboa Ave. | San Diego, CA 92123 | Ph. 619.542.6711 | Extension: 766711

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Good morning!

I was looking through a list of common grammar mistakes this morning, and I stumbled on two commonly misunderstood and misused words: envy and jealousy.

According to a column called 20 Common Grammar Mistakes That (Almost) Every Makes by Jon Gingerich: “The word ‘envy’ implies a longing for someone else’s good fortunes. ‘Jealousy’ is far more nefarious. It’s a fear of rivalry, often present in sexual situations. ‘Envy’ is when you covet your friend’s good looks. ‘Jealousy’ is what happens when your significant other swoons over your good-looking friend.”

So it turns out that I am envious (not jealous) that Kara is enjoying an exciting vacation in the United Kingdom.

Jealousy is what happens to my husband whenever I mention one of my ex-boyfriends (at every family get-together). I don’t have an actual photo of my husband to share, but this is what his jealous face looks like:

Donna Bradley Burcher | Technical Editor, Adv. | Symitar®

8985 Balboa Ave. | San Diego, CA 92123 | Ph. 619.278.0432 | Ext: 765432

Today I am going to talk about JHA’s standards for technical communication. If you do not work for JHA, you will not be able to access the following link. Don’t panic, I’m including the standards in this email.

The JHA Style Guide for Technical Communication and Training has a section dedicated to plain English and plain English standards. The following information is taken from that marvelous document.

Plain English is a clear and concise style of writing that is written in the proper tone with the reader in mind.

Plain English is:

· Faster to write

· Faster to read

· Easier to understand

Plain English is not:

· Childish writing

· Amateur writing

· A means of reducing the length or changing the meaning of your material

· A means of banning words

· A rigid set of words with grammar rules

Not only does writing in plain English help to standardize our company’s documentation, it improves the readability of our documentation.

Since it’s Friday, I’ll leave you with a few plain English standards from the JHA Style Guide for Technical Communication and Training that JHA employees should follow when writing documentation. I’ll fill you in on the rest of plain English standards next week.

· Keep your sentences as short as possible

· Prefer the active voice over the passive voice

· Always use the active imperative in instructions; this includes instructional portions of paragraphs as well as steps

o Incorrect: The parameter should be set to No.

o Correct: Set this parameter to No.

· Avoid nominalizations

o Incorrect: Begin report generation.

o Correct: Generate the report.

· Use positive language when possible

o Incorrect: Do not delete any letter that may still be in use.

o Correct: Keep the letters that you may still use.

· Use lists when appropriate

o Incorrect: The four Dashboard tabs are Financial Analysis, Operations Analysis, Performance Analysis, and Risk Analysis.

o Correct: The four Dashboard tabs are:

§ Financial Analysis

§ Operations Analysis

§ Performance Analysis

§ Risk Analysis

· Do not use different words to describe or refer to the same thing

o Incorrect: Number indicates the number of the option and defines where the setting appears on the menu.

o Correct: Number indicates the number of the option and defines where the option appears on the menu.

Jackie Solano | Technical Editor | Symitar®

8985 Balboa Ave. | San Diego, CA 92123 | Ph. 619.542.6711 | Extension: 766711

NOTICE: This electronic mail message and any files transmitted with it are intended
exclusively for the individual or entity to which it is addressed. The message,
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Any unauthorized review, use, printing, saving, copying, disclosure or distribution
is strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, please
immediately advise the sender by reply email and delete all copies.

And now, in an exciting back-to-back email special, I’d like to apologize for any confusion caused by the subject line of the “Inspiring Initialisms” email I just sent. Yes, that was the Editor’s Corner! OK, you caught me, this is my first time contributing and I goofed. But it was fun, right?! Initialisms? Grammar stuff? Good times. Let’s do it again.

Also, kudos to our readers who pointed out that RAM is not an initialism because we pronounce the whole word (ram) instead of each letter separately. Great catch!

Thanks,
Laura Bowers | Technical Writer | Symitar®
8985 Balboa Ave. l San Diego, CA 92123-1507
619.542.6935 l or Ext. 766935

Have you ever wondered whether you should write a or an before FBI? Do you dangle your fingers over the keys indecisively when you need to order a LED… or is it an LED? Today’s word wisdom will educate, inform, and inspire you to use your favorite initialisms with ease. This delightful discussion is taken from the article “Indefinite Article With Initialisms” on Daily Writing Tips.
An initialism is a group of initial letters, each pronounced separately, used as an abbreviation of a name. [LB – At Symitar, we often use initialisms like ATM, AIX, and RAM.]
The following examples were found on major news sites or on sites offering professional services or advice:

• Pieces of the bag recovered have been sent to a FBI lab for forensic testing.
• The 404 or Not Found error message is a HTTP standard response code. [LB – And please, don’t say the page 404’ed.
  404 is a number, not a verb, and adding the apostrophe just makes it worse.]
• Step-by-step tutorial on how to add a LED to a USB thumb drive.

The problem lies in an incomplete understanding of the rule for the use of a and an. Many speakers retain the rule as “Use an before words that begin with a vowel and a before words that begin with a consonant.”
The complete rule is “Use an before words that begin with a vowel sound and a before words that begin with a consonant sound.”
The 26 letters of the alphabet are sound symbols, but the symbols have names. [LB – That’s right, each of the 26 letters of the alphabet is represented by a specific name.] And several of the consonant letters have names that begin with vowel sounds:

• F [ef]
• H [aitch]
• L [el]
• M [em]
• N [en]
• S [es]
• R [ar] [LB – Be careful with this one; your coworkers might think you are growling!]

Here’s the correct way to write the words and initialisms given in boldface above:

• Pieces of the bag recovered have been sent to an FBI lab for forensic testing.
• The 404 or Not Found error message is an HTTP standard response code.
• Step-by-step tutorial on how to add an LED to a USB thumb drive. [LB – Shine bright, little initialism!]

In deciding whether to write a or an in front of an initialism, say the name of the first letter. If the letter name begins with a vowel sound, use an.
Whew! Glad we got that straightened out. Now go forth and confidently place a or an before your favorite initialisms.
Thanks,
Laura Bowers | Technical Writer | Symitar®
8985 Balboa Ave. l San Diego, CA 92123-1507
619.542.6935 l or Ext. 766935

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Hi Folks,

JHA has adopted a new editing tool, Acrolinx®, which is helping your editors ensure that all our documentation is written with one consistent voice. This tool, and the consistency it demands, fits right in with JHA’s goal to operate as One Company.

Today, I thought I’d talk about one of the issues we see quite a lot, so that you can look for it in your own writing. Acrolinx flags sentences that begin with the words this/that/these/those when these words are not followed by a noun. (Your kindly human editors would also always mark these sentences for revision, but we’re very happy to have Acrolinx back us up!).

For instance, the following sentence would be flagged: “This appears because the prompt was not set properly.”

The problem with that sentence is that the word this is not followed by a noun, which often leads to confusion. To fix the sentence, you just need to add the missing noun: “This error message appears because the prompt was not set properly.”

That’s it for today. Don’t forget to have fun!

For my baseball fans:

“You gotta have fun. Regardless of how you look at it, we’re playing a game. It’s a business, it’s our job, but I don’t think you can do well unless you’re having fun.” ~Derek Jeter

Donna Bradley Burcher | Technical Editor, Adv. | Symitar®

8985 Balboa Ave. | San Diego, CA 92123 | Ph. 619.278.0432 | Extension: 765432

NOTICE: This electronic mail message and any files transmitted with it are intended
exclusively for the individual or entity to which it is addressed. The message,
together with any attachment, may contain confidential and/or privileged information.
Any unauthorized review, use, printing, saving, copying, disclosure or distribution
is strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, please
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Hello! I send emails to Symitar writers and writers in other JHA companies twice a week. The emails are called Nifty Nuggets, and they and provide writing tips in bite-sized portions. I’ll be sharing some nuggets of information with you while I guest-host the Editor’s Corner.

Today’s topic is about clear writing. Clear writing makes it easier for readers to understand the information and processes in technical documentation. Here are some tips from an article called “20 Strategies for Writing in Plain Language” from Daily Writing Tips:

· Identify and understand your readers and their needs: Who are they, and what is their likely reading level? What do they already know about the subject, and what do you want them to know? What do you need to write to convey this information? [JS – You need to know your audience so you can write effectively.]

· Write short sentences; keep the subject, verb, and object close. Place words carefully, and avoid double negatives. [JS – Lengthy sentences make writing difficult to read and understand. Readers should not lose their breath when reading sentences aloud. Trim sentence length by breaking long sentences into two or more separate sentences.]

· Write short paragraphs consisting of one topic, each starting with a topic sentence and linked to other paragraphs with transitional words and phrases such as next or “once you have submitted your application.” [JS – Transitions connect your paragraphs into logically coherent information. Whether they are single words, quick phrases, or full sentences, transitions help readers understand how the information works together. Transitions make
your writing clear and understandable for the reader.]

· Write to the reader, using second-person pronouns rather than third-person pronouns: “You must provide written proof”; “We will respond within seven business days.” This approach encourages you to write in active voice. Define the pronouns so that readers are clear about the categories of people or other entities—audience, information providers, and third parties — referred to as you, we, and they. [JS – Sometimes passive voice is acceptable; however, try to write in active voice as much as possible. Using active voice makes your writing clearer because
you identify the subject performing the action.]

· Don’t shy away from technical terms your audience knows, but avoid jargon. [JS – Avoid using jargon in your writing unless it is appropriate for the audience and no other words fit the situation.]

· Omit unnecessary words: Watch for verbose phrases. [JS – Avoid redundancies and wordy phrases in your writing because they distract, confuse, and bore readers. Make your writing more concise and less time-consuming for the
reader by getting to the point in as few words as possible.]

Jackie Solano | Technical Editor | Symitar®

8985 Balboa Ave. | San Diego, CA 92123 | Ph. 619.542.6711 | Extension: 766711

NOTICE: This electronic mail message and any files transmitted with it are intended
exclusively for the individual or entity to which it is addressed. The message,
together with any attachment, may contain confidential and/or privileged information.
Any unauthorized review, use, printing, saving, copying, disclosure or distribution
is strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, please
immediately advise the sender by reply email and delete all copies.

Good morning and happy Monday. Let’s get this week started!

On Friday, we talked about synonyms, antonyms, and homonyms. And I threatened that we would carry on today with an explanation of why homonyms can be hard to wrap your head around. It’s because there are so many similar but different terms that categorize the group of words we refer to as homonyms. Today I’m going to discuss homophones, homographs, and heteronyms. No one expects you to memorize this information (except maybe your fifth grade teacher), but it will illustrate how complicated the English language is. We have so many different ways to spell the same sounds and different ways to pronounce words that are spelled alike. I feel a need to apologize to all of you English language learners!

Okay, think all the way back to Friday and remember that homonyms are words that have different meanings, but they have the same pronunciation. Homonyms may or may not be spelled the same. I gave these examples:

· bark (the noise a dog makes / the exterior covering of a tree) [dbb – This word is pronounced the same way for both meanings.]

· pair / pare / pear (two / trim / fruit) [dbb – This group of words also fits into the homophone
grouping below, which is where the confusion begins!]

Homophones are listed below. These words have the same pronunciation, but they always have different spellings and different meanings. Some common examples are:

· pair / pare / pear

· accept / except

· coarse / course

· vein / vain / vane

And then there are homographs, which are words that are always spelled the same, but they have different meanings, and they may or may not have the same pronunciation. [dbb – Thank goodness for examples because this is getting confusing; and we expect fifth graders to memorize this!]:

· lie (untruth) / lie (lie down) [dbb – These first two bullets show words that have different meanings, but they have the same pronunciation and the same spelling.]

· bolt (to run) / bolt (a metal bar) / bolt (a roll of cloth)

· tear (moisture from your eye / tear (rip) [dbb – The next three bullets show words that are spelled the same but they have different pronunciations. These words also fit into the
heteronyms grouping below. Oh, those poor fifth graders.]

· bass (fish) / bass (the lowest male singing voice)

· desert (dry climate) / desert (leave alone)

And, finally, there are heteronyms, which are words that have different meanings and a different pronunciation, but they are always spelled the same:

· tear (rip) / tear (moisture from your eye)

· bass (fish) / bass (the lowest male singing voice)

· desert (dry climate) / desert (leave alone)

· dove (bird) / dove (past tense of dive)

· invalid (not valid) / invalid (one suffering from a disability)

Okay, I’m going to have to take a nap now. This English language has worn me out. Have a great day!

Donna Bradley Burcher | Technical Editor, Adv. | Symitar®

8985 Balboa Ave. | San Diego, CA 92123 | Ph. 619.278.0432 | Ext: 765432