Phone 07 4743 1221 E mail kfainges@bigpond.net.au
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Last Edited 11 April
2006.
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Proofing
Business Computing Tips By K&K Fainges kfainges@bigpond.net.au Now regular readers would know my proofing is not perfect. But there are proofing methods out there to help. The most obvious is the spelling and grammar checker. It is not infallible though. For example, 'I sea you are out their' contains two errors, neither of which the spell checker would pick up. The most infallible way of proofing your work is to get a fresh eye to read it. That might mean waiting a day or two and reading it again yourself, or getting a friend to proof it for you. Perhaps offer to proof their work in return. Many of us need to print out something to see the errors. Don't ask me why it works, but it does. Try to get used to reading it on the screen though. After all, you could save a tree. The most effective way I've found of proofing though is the old Kindie proofing technique. Run your finger over the words and read them one at a time - out loud. It sounds silly, but it forces you to read what is actually there, not what you think you typed. And a lot of punctuation errors can be caught by reading out loud. The general guide is to breath for a comma and wait one beat for a colon or semi-colon. If your voice changes, it's often a new thought, so a full stop is needed. If your voice goes up, a question mark. If you sound really amazed or forceful, an exclamation mark. ********************************************************************* JUST FOR FUN AN OWED TO THE SPELL CHEQUER I have a spelling checker, Eye ran this poem threw it, A checker is a bless sing, Each frays come posed up on my screen Bee fore a veiling checker's Butt now bee cause my spelling Now spelling does knot phase me, To rite with care is quite a feet Sow ewe can sea why aye dew prays ********************************************************************* Karen Fainges holds a Bachelor of Business, and a Grad. Cert of Vocational and Educational Training. All this is nice but it's the 14 years of having to make sales or starve that makes her think she has really learnt what does and doesn't work. A tutor for all ages, she specialises in helping people get started on the long road to technology. "It has to be practical, it has to be cheap, and it has to work." |