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Grammar and spelling.

I hate when people don't spell properly. Or when they have poor grammar. I just hate it when they spell bad. Well I use to be one that spelled badly. What's your take on the bad spelling? Also, I hate it when they say "dude u spell worse than my sister". That just really tics me off.

Topic by Easy Button    |  last reply

Grammar nazi time

I wasn't sure if this would be considered a bug or feedback. "This author has not updated their profile." "Author" is singular, "their" is plural. It should be something like "This author has not updated his/her profile." The devs could probably make that match the account's gender.

Topic by FuyuKitsune    |  last reply

Question about Grammar

I've noticed a lot lately, people using their internet grammar (not just here), and then defending it when they get criticized for it by saying something along the lines of, "wat r u a teacher?" or, "idc im not n scool rite now." So I have two questions about it, one for our adult members who grew up before the internet, and one for our current youth members.For the adults:Did kids tend to use proper grammar outside of school as you were growing up, or did they use the same sort of excuses for poor spelling and grammar? I guess this applies mostly to letters and notes to each other.For the youth:Do your peers use the same abbreviations in written communication outside of school as they do online or in text messages? Also, how predominately to you see internet speak used around you, compared to those who use proper grammar and spelling?Thanks! I look forward to any input you have on the topic.

Topic by Weissensteinburg    |  last reply

Stop bad grammar!

I've been noticing around our community, there are people typing liek ths. WTF is up with that? Nobody understands it, and nobody talks like that in the real world! I mean, really! Nobody would walk up to a friend and say "Dat vid on youtube wus lol rigt?". See how idiotic that sounds?! Now i hope you learn from this, and go type normally.

Topic by NYPA    |  last reply

A Grammar Cop to end all Grammar Cops

The Language of Bad Physics is a blog devoted to complaining about poor language use by physicists, in particular in published papers.  And you guys thought Kiteman and I criticized too much! By the way, check out her 13 October entry, where she rips apart a recent crackpot without even needing to point out the physics absurdities. Minor update:  Gender references corrected.  Thanks, Lithium Rain!

Topic by kelseymh    |  last reply

Why da peeple on Instructabels have sucdh bad spelleng and grammer!!?

Hi,I was just wondering why people on instructables have such bad spelling and grammar, as the title probably would have informed you of.I'm from England and besides from the obvious difference in languages between Standard English and ,erhm, the so called "American English", people just seem to have appalling spelling.By the way I was just spelling badly in the title to try and be ironic, but i guess my efforts were futile.(If you don't know what any of the words mean, LOOK THEM UP).Take a look at these pics i nicked off the InternetP.S. Colour looks so much better spelt with a "u"Spelt, yum yum.If you don't get the above joke look the word"spelt" up on the InternetP.P.S. Try and count, and point out the spelling and grammar mistakes I made on this topic.

Topic by tahirhh    |  last reply

How is this is going to work?

Well, I guess once we have enough members, we will go to every instructable once, and go through all comments to check for the right spelling. Any other things, we should know about?

Topic by mg0930mg    |  last reply

Please check your presentation before publishing it

Whilst it is unlikely that anyone can achieve perfect spelling and grammar, you are showing off your ingenuity for all the world to see, so you surely want to show how good you are? Also make sure your images are clear enough to illustrate whatever the point is.  I've just read two articles this morning, the first about "Metal-dipping" seed pods has crystal-clear images, but the other from American Pistol Crossbow Association offered under-exposed pictures in black-and-brown, captioned like this  "... thwe safty catch is behind the rear sight."  Their spelling, not mine. Come on Folks, let's all aim for a standard of presentation to be proud to show the grandchildren. Geoff

Topic by geoff_p    |  last reply

The word 'Instructable' is a typo

So if you've ever typed the word 'Instructable' into a field of text on this site, you know it has that dotted red line under it that indicates it's a typo. It's a small thing, yes, but it would add a modicum of dignity to the word if it was included into the spellcheck's dictionary. Just my two pixels - feel free to call me out for being nit-picky :)

Topic by LanceMakes    |  last reply

New British Superhero

Wrong-doers beware! There's a new hero patrolling the streets of the Medway area - Grammar Man! I wonder if he's part of the militant wing of the Apostrophe Protection Society? Story and image taken from Daily Mail.

Topic by Kiteman  

Grammatically incorrect!

Hello Instructable community/team-I recently recieved a email message saying that a user has subscribed to me..."Congratulations!Member (xxxx) has subscribed to you! Visit their member page here: (link)"With the key word being their. It should be his/her.

Topic by Padlock    |  last reply

Is the word "neat" old fashioned?

I'm about to write an English press release for my product CameraClip. English is not my first language. I would like to use the word "neat' to emphasize that the product is small, smart and cheap. Is "neat" an old fashioned word in this context? If so, what alternatives could I use? Hope to hear from you all.

Topic by bertus52x11    |  last reply

A logo (mascot?) for all the grammar police out there!

I ran across this on the "I Can Haz Cheezburger" Web site.   It looks sort of like something Caitlinsdad might draw, but surely we'd have seen it here first!  I especially like the notations on the ordnance :-)

Topic by kelseymh    |  last reply

I can't understand Spanish grammar (and pronouns)

Given my native language's partial use of the Spanish language, it should have been easy enough (not counting the time it takes to expand my vocabulary), but no. All I'm aware of is that should you use some type of adjective, in Spanish, it would be the reverse of how we'd use it in English. I took that to heart, but as I find more and more of those common Spanish phrases, it seems that I'm missing something. Oh, and from the same phrases, it seems that the Spanish language also doesn't have too many fixed pronouns (e.g. "que" may be used as a subjective pronoun, or as a question "que?" or "what?"). I can't find a way to get over that. I just need some sort of direction to get over these issues. In the case that you didn't understand anything I said, that's because I'm listening to Eye of the Tiger :P

Question by nutsandbolts_64    |  last reply

Non-questions with question marks

Is anyone else annoyed by the prevalence of non-questions with question marks after them in the Answers section? Is this a manifestation of the proliferation of "upspeak"? Perhaps a new rule should be instituted requiring all questions TO BE IN THE FORM OF A QUESTION, not a statement with a question mark after it. Here are some aggravating examples: "My LED matrix isn't working?" "I though I saw a instructable on making a silverware divider out of plastic?" "DIY step up switching regulator?" "Reflective Silk Screening?" "Atx Power Supply?"

Topic by aeray    |  last reply

Join Us (You know you want to)

Feel free to join a society with the aim of collectively correcting Instructables users' spelling mistakes.But, please, correct spellings constructively.Be nice about it.:DGrammar Police

Topic by bumpus    |  last reply

Should the phrase &quot;all new&quot; be hyphenated? Answered

Google hasn't been able to provide a definitive answer yet.  I've seen it hyphenated many times, but by the rules I can seem to find on the subject, they suggest that it probably shouldn't be.  Any grammar whizzes here who can help me out?  The sentence I'm looking at is along the lines of "go look at our all(-?)new website".

Question by yokozuna    |  last reply

Alright, you iBle-obians are a smart and experienced bunch...

The other day, in English class, something occurred to me:raze (v) : to demolish; to level to the ground; to scrape as if with a razorRaze. Always loved that word.Okay, Instructalobians, what is the term for a word that sounds like the opposite of its meaning? As far as I know, such a category of words does not exist.If no one knows, then I shall name it after Instructables. :DAlso, first person to post another word like "raze" gets a prize. An actual, material prize that I will mail to you. Seriously. It's pretty cool. Go for it. Stop reading this. Now. I mean it, cut it out now. Okay, you know what, if you read this sentence, you are disqualified. Aww, that's too bad, it was a really cool prize................Are you still here? Geeze.PS- this is what the alphabet would look like if Q and R were eliminated.Pic is not related, just awesome.

Topic by Takeshi_Kovacs    |  last reply

&quot;member's&quot; should be &quot;members'&quot; in Grammar Police description

Please edit the Grammar Police profile accordingly. Thank you for your attention to this matter.Ah, irony.

Topic by kelseymh    |  last reply

Is it really that hard?

I meen serusly ppl is it tht hrd 2 use good grmmr i see ppl on this site evry day an evry day i c ppl saeing "ZOMFG CANZ i HAVE SUM PLZ!?!?!11ELEVEN?" i dnt c wuts so hrd bout grmmr if u jus go 2 skool not skip clas and lern somthin u may lern grmmr thats wen u make sens wen u tipe an tlk so let review go 2 skool lern sumthin an use good grmr and luk smrt lol u gies r gud at makin urslf luk liek a ttal noob

Topic by Rock Soldier    |  last reply

Do you have proofreaders?

Have trouble reading instructions because of  terrible spelling and poor grammar. 

Question by accompanist    |  last reply


This is posted in Help: AuthorsWhat exactly is this category for? Help with spelling and grammar? Writing styles?Or is it for people looking for other authors to collaborate with?

Topic by Kiteman    |  last reply



Question by chaitu471    |  last reply

Does anyone else notice the majority of these questions are submitted with poor grammar, spelling, and punctuation? Answered

Also, most of them by young people it seems. Maybe Instructables need to start a mentoring program. I'm also surprised that half of these could be solved by taking 10 seconds doing a Google search.

Question by NikonDork    |  last reply

Which components to order? Answered

Hey Guys, As many of you may know I just started electronics (reason for annoying question) and I was ordering stuff online and I couldn't choose. (Crappy grammar in previous sentence) So I  was wondering if you guys could help me by telling me what components I would need fo some average projects like LED's, resistors, transistors etc. I would really appreciate it if you could help. Thanks in advance -Prickly Potato (Oh and once again sorry for the grammar I don't know whats wrong with me atm)

Question by The Prickly Potato    |  last reply

Is this a glitch? Answered

Hello from the UK! I commented on some guy's comment, he spelt immense wrong and you know how I am with grammar and stuff... Anywhores, I posted it and it commented on two different people's comments!!!??? Just look at the screenshot! Thansk, Flannel UK

Question by NatNoBrains    |  last reply

Would you pay 1800GBP to pass the test?

Back in the day - more than thirty years ago - all British children had to sit and pass the "eleven plus" examination.A set of multiple-choice questions, it determined your entire future, because only by passing could you get to a grammar school, and hence to university.Although the 11+ has passed away, there are still 164 grammar schools that can only be entered by passing an exam, and it has recently been revealed that some parents spend as much as 1800GBP to train their children to pass the test.Could you pass?Follow this link to take a short version of the test - the timer is running, you have ten minutes to answer 15 questions.

Topic by Kiteman    |  last reply


The is a copyer on youtube and he makes guns and doesent give him credit here is the link to his channel: . He has copyed bakenbitz and thedunkis. Im tired so my grammar is crap so sorry about that.

Topic by Millawi Legend    |  last reply

BP. They had to drill a hole to make the oil come out right? Answered

Why can't they build a weight and tie some explosives to it and sink it into the hole they drilled? Would the hole not collapse upon it's self and seal up? Sorry about the grammar.

Question by gummypaul    |  last reply


Guys learn english and proper grammar for example ok are you RETARDED the thing on the end less time makin sure its not out of the barrel Disgraceful ;( hey here's a tip for instructables make yours on microsoft word and spell check or something and copy and paste on to the place where you fifst make your instructable.

Topic by assasin    |  last reply

Is anyone else disturbed from Replay?

I always get so upset when I listen to Replay by Iyaz. I mean he has bad grammar, " Hoping you would give me a chance, who would of ever KNEW that we would ever be more than friends."   Blargh.

Topic by happyjo    |  last reply

Skills every instructabler should know

These are the skills I think every instructabler should know. Proper English grammar and spelling Survival skills Using common tools (drill, dermal, soldering,etc.) Basic rope and knot skills Being resourceful Programing in a programing language Basic Camera skills Have a social life

Topic by starwing123    |  last reply

Gigantic Halloween Spider Web

Is it strange to ask for feedback about an Instructable before it's published? It's my first one and I'd like to know what people think. Here's the link: free to get nitpicky about details like grammar, spelling, content, style... anything really. Thanks!

Topic by nolte919    |  last reply

cnc: how to built it

Hi, dude! i found this: do someone build it? if yes, it works?,  same questions for the driver do someone build it?, if yes it works? does that driver works with a 4 wire motor like this? thanks a lot P.S. sorry for the grammar i'm not English.

Topic by addi125  

Story of a spelling mistake

Body { background: rgb(245,245,245); } *.container { width: 500.0px; text-align: center; margin: auto; } *.copyright { margin-top: 50.0px; font-size: 12.0px; text-transform: uppercase; } *.copyright a { text-decoration: none; padding: 5.0px; background: rgb(192,57,43); color: rgb(255,255,255); } *.copyright a:hover { background: transparent; color: rgb(192,57,43); } *.button { height: 50.0px; line-height: 50.0px; padding-right: 30.0px; padding-left: 30.0px; background-color: rgb(41,127,184); color: rgb(255,255,255); text-decoration: none; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 1.0px; margin-bottom: 15.0px; } * { } * { } * { } * { } * { } * { } *.button span { left: 0; width: 50.0px; } * { } * { } * { } * { } *.button:hover span, * span { background-color: rgb(0,102,26); } *.button:active { margin-top: 2.0px; margin-bottom: 13.0px; } * { } * { } * { } * { background: rgb(255,127,0); } *.button.purple { background: rgb(142,68,173); } *.button.turquoise { background: rgb(26,188,156); } * { background: rgb(231,76,60); } ul.a { list-style-type: circle; } ul.b { list-style-type: square; } ol.c { list-style-type: upper-roman; } ol.d { list-style-type: lower-alpha; } Hello all, today I have a tale of why you should proofread your Instructables... Or just laugh at the annoyed faces of grammar pendants as you watch Steven fry shame them.  Now recently I made an instructable, it was named and "Breathe new life into an old computer" and being the grammar illiterate person I am, combined with the fact the article was written out of pure boredom, I misspelled the article title in two different places. Instead of "Breathe new life into an old computer" I wrote "Breath of new life into a old computer". The reason is, after writing the article, I felt the original title of "A breath of new life into a old computer" didn't really sound good. So I axed the A and called it a day (Rhyme not intended). It was late and without another thought I hit publish and eagerly awaited its appearance on the new ibles page. Nothing happened for 20 minutes, so I went to bed without a second thought. Maybe the database server just crashed or something :P The next day, after a long day of school, I eagerly sit down at my computer and watch youtube... After enjoying at least a few hours of Pwediepie screaming at disfigured goats and Linus (attempting) to colour a $500 motherboard I decide to check my Instructables page. A few clicks to my current Instructables page and WOAH. I see the featured banner draped proudly across the front of my project. My eyes dart down, desperately looking for a view counter and then they find it, "10 thousand views!" I cry. My mouse cursor automatically clicks, my world in slow motion, I scroll down... 3 comments greet me. I just sit there, mouth wide open. A crazy thought slams right into my face, my mouse cursor waddles over to the corner of the screen and suddenly the homepage sits there, my project stands in its little box, like an expensive toy, on display for all to see. My mind is racing, In disbelief. I look around, a hidden camera maybe, I shout upstairs to my brother "good prank". But all I hear is a surprised moan, "what?!" he shouts.  It took me a few hours for anything, whether it be ME being featured, or the chicken I had for dinner, to sink in. But eventually it did and I took a some rotting fleshes advice, Keep Calm and Carrion. The last thing on my mind at this point was spell checking, no one in the comments had pointed anything out, and well... I couldn't see anything wrong. It's like that thing when you're looking for something in that horrific mess you call a fridge, after spending what seems like hours looking at every little detail you still can't find the butter. Then your girl friend, Wife or Mum comes along and after giving you a lecture on tidiness they find that one thing you're looking for instantly... Anyway, I decide in the spirit of things I will go and enjoy some facebook, I take a trip to the Instructables facebook page and see my article, AWESOME! I open up the comments section and... Correcting my grammar Correcting more of my grammar I'm not an English professor Correcting my grammar Correcting my grammar Someone who doesn't understand that: 1. I am not American, 2. Americans are smart and awesome people Correcting my grammar Someone who uses such bad grammar that I can't even figure out what they are saying   Now at the sight of this I quickly ran back to my article and changed the picture and title, on facebook... It doesn't update. I have learned my lesson, proofread and double check your article, before you post!  What can you take away from this? What I have learnt:  Theres no 'Be Nice' policy on the internet Proofread your work! Admins are humans and might not pick up on a spelling mistake Write every ible like its the best one you have ever made, because you never know, your ible might be featured down the road and you will just wish that you double checked that title and fixed that little spelling mistake. Also dont ever use facebook because :( it dosnt update live :P lol The Facebook Post My Instructables

Topic by EvolvedAwesome    |  last reply

why does "do you want to save this file?" keeps on popping whenever I'm opening twitter in psp

It always appear whenever I enter address in internet browser or even in internet search. How can I disable it? I can't go through with my destination site because of it. Even if I already saved it, it keeps on popping. Please help and thanks in advance. *sorry for my wrong grammar too lllOTL*

Question by amiyane    |  last reply

First RC Plane? Answered

Hey guys I was wondering if anyone of you could help me select which project I should make (my first RC plane) Here are the requirements:- 1. Must be easy. 2. Its body should be DIY and made of wood 3. It should be under $100 4. The instructions should be really clear Sorry I didnt have time to make a well written question neither did I have time to correct my grammar 

Question by SA-DIY    |  last reply

How did some groups get URLs different from their titles?

I have run across a few groups so far ( Kids in Science and Engineering, Grammar Police, and some others) where the Instructables directory name in their URL (i.e., www.../groups/XYZ) is not simply a slightly-mangled version of the title (space -> _, etc.).I'm curious how this was done. Did an earlier version of the Instructables interface allow creators to specify both a title and a "shortname"? Or did the Staff intervene manually in special cases?

Topic by kelseymh    |  last reply

REAL Semi-Automatic True-Trigger Guns.

If we Really Want to Create a Semi-Automatic True Trigger Knex Gun, We Need To Share Our Ideas. I Propose That We Create A Collaboration Or Forum In Which We Can Discuss The Creation Of Semi-Automatic Guns. Let Me Give You An Example: If Someone Creates A good Firing Mech, But is Having Trouble With the Handle, He Could Ask, and Recieve Help From A fellow Member. P.S (Srry For The Bad Grammar and Punctuation.) P.P.S (I Would Post Pics But The Instructables Uploading System is Unfriendly to me.)

Topic by killa696    |  last reply

New K'nex Idea

So i was on KI chat and ooda and mepain and stuff were talking about making a gun called the fustercluck and with a drill on it and he was talking about rotatiing turrrets and then i had an idea to making 2 turrets on a swivel so when the first turret is empty the second one will tweist wround and start working. The gun is a tr by the way. here is a shitty pic: i has bad grammar at half 11.

Topic by Millawi Legend    |  last reply

Spelling 101

Okay, I'm going to cut straight to the chase here, people NEED to use spell check on their Instructables I've seen a butt load of crappy ones that I can't even understand, let alone read (not mentioning any names *cough* Knex *cough*). Okay so here's some helpful hints.1.MICROSOFT WORDI mean holy crap is this elementary copy and paste it from Instructable into word then hit spell check, I know it doesn't really work for grammar but its better than nothing.2. Dictionary Tooltip If you have Firefox which you should, this is just a spell checker that works in Firefox.

Topic by TheCheese9921    |  last reply

survival weapons

I would love to see a good spear for fishing and a sheild I have not seen many sheilds. If my message body is bad don't judge me i don't really know what to say this is my first time posting something like this and excuse my bad grammar please. Also I'm new here thats why I have not posted any instructables yet.  

Topic by crypticweasle    |  last reply

Specific error in trying to post image notes

When I try to post notes on pictures in Chrome on Mac, I just get the perpetual spinning wheel. Notes were working for me in Firefox, but today when I tried to add a note, I got this error over and over: error 400 -- invalid json: { top: 0.22568093385214008, left: 0.692, width: 0.24, height: 0.14591439688715954, text:Mmm. Note the focus, the concentration... the enjoyment. } I tried putting the note in different areas of the picture, but nothing helped. Maybe it's comma related. Aaargh, this grammar thing is killing me. I'll report back shortly.

Topic by susanrm    |  last reply

What sail is best for this raft?

I'm been thinking about building myself a raft. the tricky part is that the raft shuld have a sail. I have made a drawing of the raft using Google SketchUp. what is not shown in the drawing are some barrels and ballast. the raft shall be 23 feet long and 16 feet wide and have a small house on it 8.2 feet long and 13 feet wide. its this big becouse we are four who are going to use it. Now, the question. how should I build the sail? i added the drawing so you can take a look if you like. sorry about the grammar and/or spelling

Topic by Ungerbla    |  last reply

fake nixie tube clock

I was wondering is I could use the same system of using a 7 segment display to wire up a digital clock using el wire since nixie tubes are so much more expensive and limited to small size, or if i should wire it so that it is like a singular l.e.d.  and where could i get smaller metal chicken wire fencing to further increase the nixie tube effect. Sorry for the bad grammar when I get an idea I tend to lack the proper way to describe it even though I can see it plain as day in my head

Topic by general-Insano    |  last reply

Notes on Specific Laws - the First Law

First Law On the Instructables website, the use of correct spelling and grammar shall be a constant criterion. Note: Edited Law There are several reasons for using correct English in all of our work on this site, but the most important ones are: It shows that you have taken time over your project, put some effort in and are proud of it. Like a smooth finish is the sign of a careful craftsman, a well-formed sentence is a sign of an Instructable that is worth trying. Clarity - the use of poor grammar or spelling can completely mangle or disguise the meaning of a piece of work, causing problems and wasting time as readers seek clarification. Inclusiveness - Whilst it may be cool to use the most current street slang or message-board abbreviations, there are those (myself included) who do not move in the internet circles where these terms originate. Excluding part of the membership by making the slang impenetrable also cuts you off from a deep well of information and advice. Time - slang dates, and changes rapidly. For instance, the word "gay" originally meant "carefree", then "happy", then "homosexual". Now, to the pupils at my school, it means "annoying" or "sad". Imagine what your latest slang could mean to future generations of readers. The web is a multi-lingual place. It would be conceited of us to assume that all readers speak English as their first, or even their second languages. There are a growing number of members and casual readers that rely on translation software to read this site. Translation software cannot deal with poor spelling or new abbreviations, and will render our words as gibberish.

Topic by Kiteman    |  last reply

How to get your Instructable on the front page

I've seen the same Instructables on the front page way too many times. So in this topic we discuss what properties an Instructable should have in order to get on the front page. It probably should have: - Good spelling/Grammar - Accurate instructions - Plenty of photos - Good photo quality - A subject people will want to look at (I.E. dont expect "How to skin a pig" to be on the front page) - You must provide the graphic (Instructables will not make it for you; Make sure it has the right dimensions, choose a good photo, the right font, etc.) Can we get a site authority in here? :P

Topic by 1up    |  last reply

Coming Soon- Sandwich Contest!

In around 2 weeks, I will be holding a sandwich contest! Much like Mikeasaurus's Dinosaur Contest, my sandwich contest will have real prizes, as well as digital patches. Only new Instructables may be entered in the contest, so wait until it is announced to post your Instructable. Enter your entries into the Sandwich Contest group when the contest opens. Everyone who joins the sandwich group that doesn't have an entry will be in a drawing to become a judge.  5 judges will be chosen. The judging criteria is: Appearance Originality Creative use of Ingredients Quality of Instructable Spelling Grammar Picture quality Good Luck! Let the sandwich making begin!

Topic by kcls    |  last reply

Will this work (BASIC ELECTRONICS)? Answered

Hi guys, recently I thought that what if i make an rc car that charges while I use it outside in the sun, that way I can use it as much as I want (outside in the sun) and I wont need to charge it. I have attached a picture showing the wiring, but I have a few questions. Q1. Will it work?? Q2. If it does than what will happen when im not using it and the solar panel uses the light in my room and overcharges the battery resulting in it catching on fire? Q3. Would it be better if i replace the car battery with rechargable cells? Help with be greatly appreciated :) Oh and don't mind my grammar, its not very good hehe UPDATE changed diagram, will this work?

Question by The Prickly Potato    |  last reply

What kind of board/setup would i need to control lighting power and add timers??

Im quite new to electronics bought a bunch of capacitors/resistors/diodes etc like a year ago with 2 picaxe 08m kits and a breadboard and never touched them since i bought them. Was wondering what kind of board i would need that could control lighting duration with a timer for my indoor "tomato plants" From my current knowledge im pretty sure an arduino board would be best. Help would greatly appreciated and a link to some tutorials about electronics would be very helpful too. Sorry for my grammar I'm not a native English speaker.

Question by MahFlower    |  last reply