Wednesday, August 10, 2005
Monday, August 08, 2005
Tuesday, August 02, 2005
Saturday, July 09, 2005
Tuesday, July 05, 2005
Sunday, June 26, 2005
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Thursday, May 26, 2005
Monday, May 09, 2005
Friday, April 29, 2005
Monday, April 18, 2005
Saturday, April 16, 2005
Thursday, April 14, 2005
Wednesday, April 13, 2005
Sunday, April 10, 2005
Tuesday, February 08, 2005
Friday, February 04, 2005
Friday, January 21, 2005
BogieLand: Information Design & Information Architecture Company:
"Information anxiety comes from the tsunami of data. People rely on information which value is set by its usability, usefulness, and desirability. Information design improves the creation, sharing, and dissimination of knowledge. To facilitate understanding."
"Information anxiety comes from the tsunami of data. People rely on information which value is set by its usability, usefulness, and desirability. Information design improves the creation, sharing, and dissimination of knowledge. To facilitate understanding."
Design Council | About Design: "Design Council - This section features in-depth information and advice on design issues and disciplines. "
Wednesday, January 19, 2005
Wednesday, January 12, 2005
Friday, December 17, 2004
Sunday, November 21, 2004
Sunday, November 14, 2004
Friday, October 01, 2004
Callum McCarthy, the chairman of the Financial Services Authority, Britain's financial watchdog, has warned that consumer education and clearer documents are needed to make financial competition work. Speaking to the Reuters news agency, he said:
"In Britain, 23 per cent of adults, if presented with the Yellow Pages directory and asked to give from it the name of a plumber, cannot do so; over 20 per cent cannot do simple percentages ie are unlikely to understand either of my last two statements. Yet as a country we are moving a number of the most important financial decisions for health provision, for education, for pensions from institutions to the individual, even when many individuals are poorly equipped to take those decisions. Nor is the position a good one in terms of relevant and comprehensible information being given to customers by providers of financial services: too often the product, already complex, is made still more complex by a specialised and difficult to understand
vocabulary I suspect that not many here this evening will admit to understanding what a reversionary bonus is.
"We are requiring firms to provide basic information in standard form (to make comparison of competing products easier), and requiring fuller and clearer disclosure (of life products, for example). So we expect progress towards clearer, relevant information."
"In Britain, 23 per cent of adults, if presented with the Yellow Pages directory and asked to give from it the name of a plumber, cannot do so; over 20 per cent cannot do simple percentages ie are unlikely to understand either of my last two statements. Yet as a country we are moving a number of the most important financial decisions for health provision, for education, for pensions from institutions to the individual, even when many individuals are poorly equipped to take those decisions. Nor is the position a good one in terms of relevant and comprehensible information being given to customers by providers of financial services: too often the product, already complex, is made still more complex by a specialised and difficult to understand
vocabulary I suspect that not many here this evening will admit to understanding what a reversionary bonus is.
"We are requiring firms to provide basic information in standard form (to make comparison of competing products easier), and requiring fuller and clearer disclosure (of life products, for example). So we expect progress towards clearer, relevant information."
Tuesday, September 28, 2004
Sunday, September 12, 2004
Monday, July 26, 2004
Monday, June 28, 2004
Tough translations
A few weeks ago we reported on a survey by the firm Today Translations (www.todaytranslations.com) revealing the ten legal expressions which were most difficult to translate. This week they produced two similar lists covering general words in English and other languages.
The most difficult non-English word to translate is apparently ilunga, a word from Tshiluba, a language spoken by the Bantu tribe of the southeastern Congo. It means 'a person who is ready to forgive any abuse for the first time; to tolerate it a second time; but never a third time.'
The most difficult word for translating from English is reported as plenipotentiary: 'a special ambassador or envoy, invested with full powers'.
And ironically for us gobbledygook came second in the list. We were quite surprised to see this, as we have seen equivalents in at least four languages, including French (charabia), German (kauderwelsh), Dutch (onzin) and Italian (gergo incomprensible). We'd love to hear any translations of the word into other languages.
A few weeks ago we reported on a survey by the firm Today Translations (www.todaytranslations.com) revealing the ten legal expressions which were most difficult to translate. This week they produced two similar lists covering general words in English and other languages.
The most difficult non-English word to translate is apparently ilunga, a word from Tshiluba, a language spoken by the Bantu tribe of the southeastern Congo. It means 'a person who is ready to forgive any abuse for the first time; to tolerate it a second time; but never a third time.'
The most difficult word for translating from English is reported as plenipotentiary: 'a special ambassador or envoy, invested with full powers'.
And ironically for us gobbledygook came second in the list. We were quite surprised to see this, as we have seen equivalents in at least four languages, including French (charabia), German (kauderwelsh), Dutch (onzin) and Italian (gergo incomprensible). We'd love to hear any translations of the word into other languages.
Sunday, June 20, 2004
We all know far too well how to write everyday English, but few of us know how to write elegant English — English that is expressed with music as well as meaning, style as well as substance. The point of this feature is not to suggest that people should try to emulate these examples of elegant English but to show that the language can be written with grace and polish — qualities that much contemporary writing is bereft of and could benefit from.
We are accustomed to think of ourselves as an emancipated people; we say we are democratic, liberty-loving, free of prejudice and hatred. This is the melting pot, the seal of a great human experiment. Beautiful words, full of noble, idealistic sentiment. Actually we are a vulgar, pushing mob whose passions are easily mobilized by demagogues, newspaper men, religious quacks, agitators and such like. To call this a society of free peoples is blasphemous. What have we to offer the world beside the superabundant loot which we recklessly plunder from the earth under the maniacal delusion that this insane activity represents progress and enlightenment? The land of opportunity has become the land of senseless sweat and struggle. The goal of all of our striving has long been forgotten. We no longer wish to succor the oppressed and homeless; there is no room in this great, empty land for those who, like our forefathers before us, now seek a place of refuge. Millions of men and women are, or were until very recently, on relief, condemned like guinea pigs to a life of forced idleness. The world meanwhile looks to us with a desperation such as it has never known before. Where is the democratic spirit? Where are the leaders? — Henry Miller, Good News! God Is Love!
http://www.vocabula.com/index.asp
We are accustomed to think of ourselves as an emancipated people; we say we are democratic, liberty-loving, free of prejudice and hatred. This is the melting pot, the seal of a great human experiment. Beautiful words, full of noble, idealistic sentiment. Actually we are a vulgar, pushing mob whose passions are easily mobilized by demagogues, newspaper men, religious quacks, agitators and such like. To call this a society of free peoples is blasphemous. What have we to offer the world beside the superabundant loot which we recklessly plunder from the earth under the maniacal delusion that this insane activity represents progress and enlightenment? The land of opportunity has become the land of senseless sweat and struggle. The goal of all of our striving has long been forgotten. We no longer wish to succor the oppressed and homeless; there is no room in this great, empty land for those who, like our forefathers before us, now seek a place of refuge. Millions of men and women are, or were until very recently, on relief, condemned like guinea pigs to a life of forced idleness. The world meanwhile looks to us with a desperation such as it has never known before. Where is the democratic spirit? Where are the leaders? — Henry Miller, Good News! God Is Love!
http://www.vocabula.com/index.asp
Monday, June 14, 2004
Saturday, June 12, 2004
Home Page:
"Capsal Hi-Impact Communication Presenters of Business Writing and Communication Skills in Plain Language"
"Capsal Hi-Impact Communication Presenters of Business Writing and Communication Skills in Plain Language"
Friday, June 11, 2004
Rules for writing good
1. Verbs has to agree with their subjects.
2. Prepositions are not words to end sentences with.
3. And don't start a sentence with a conjunction.
4. It is wrong to ever split an infinitive.
5. Avoid clichés like the plague. (They're old hat)
6. Also, always avoid annoying alliteration.
7. Be more or less specific.
8. Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are (usually) unnecessary.
9. Also too, never, ever use repetitive redundancies.
10. No sentence fragments.
11. Contractions aren't necessary and shouldn't be used.
12. Foreign words and phrases are not apropos.
13. Do not be redundant; do not use more words than necessary; it's highly superfluous.
14. One should NEVER generalize.
15. Comparisons are as bad as clichés.
16. Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc.
17. One-word sentences? Eliminate.
18. Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake.
19. The passive voice is to be ignored.
20. Eliminate commas, that are, not necessary. Parenthetical words however should be enclosed in commas.
21. Never use a big word when a diminutive one would suffice.
22. Use words correctly, irregardless of how others use them.
23. Understatement is always the absolute best way to put forth earth-shaking ideas.
24. Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "I hate quotations. Tell me what you know."
25. If you've heard it once, you've heard it a thousand times: Resist hyperbole; not one writer in a million can use it correctly.
26. Puns are for children, not groan readers.
27. Go around the barn at high noon to avoid colloquialisms.
28. Even if a mixed metaphor sings, it should be derailed.
29. Who needs rhetorical questions?
30. Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.
1. Verbs has to agree with their subjects.
2. Prepositions are not words to end sentences with.
3. And don't start a sentence with a conjunction.
4. It is wrong to ever split an infinitive.
5. Avoid clichés like the plague. (They're old hat)
6. Also, always avoid annoying alliteration.
7. Be more or less specific.
8. Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are (usually) unnecessary.
9. Also too, never, ever use repetitive redundancies.
10. No sentence fragments.
11. Contractions aren't necessary and shouldn't be used.
12. Foreign words and phrases are not apropos.
13. Do not be redundant; do not use more words than necessary; it's highly superfluous.
14. One should NEVER generalize.
15. Comparisons are as bad as clichés.
16. Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc.
17. One-word sentences? Eliminate.
18. Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake.
19. The passive voice is to be ignored.
20. Eliminate commas, that are, not necessary. Parenthetical words however should be enclosed in commas.
21. Never use a big word when a diminutive one would suffice.
22. Use words correctly, irregardless of how others use them.
23. Understatement is always the absolute best way to put forth earth-shaking ideas.
24. Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "I hate quotations. Tell me what you know."
25. If you've heard it once, you've heard it a thousand times: Resist hyperbole; not one writer in a million can use it correctly.
26. Puns are for children, not groan readers.
27. Go around the barn at high noon to avoid colloquialisms.
28. Even if a mixed metaphor sings, it should be derailed.
29. Who needs rhetorical questions?
30. Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.
Wednesday, June 09, 2004
Wednesday, April 28, 2004
Sunday, April 25, 2004
Friday, March 26, 2004
Wednesday, March 24, 2004
Plain English Campaign: Press office: Our latest press release: "At the end of the day... we're fed up with clichés"
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | 'With all due respect, it's not exactly rocket science'
As the Plain English Campaign publishes a list of the language's most annoying phrases, Mark Oliver wonders what might have happened had one of history's great orators used them. So imagine that you are huddling in an air raid shelter, listening to the wireless as Winston Churchill begins to speak
As the Plain English Campaign publishes a list of the language's most annoying phrases, Mark Oliver wonders what might have happened had one of history's great orators used them. So imagine that you are huddling in an air raid shelter, listening to the wireless as Winston Churchill begins to speak
Sunday, December 14, 2003
Edward Tufte: Books - Essay: The Cognitive Style of Powerpoint:
"Alas, slideware often reduces the analytical quality of presentations. In particular, the popular PowerPoint templates (ready-made designs) usually weaken verbal and spatial reasoning, and almost always corrupt statistical analysis. What is the problem with PowerPoint? And how can we improve our presentations? "
"Alas, slideware often reduces the analytical quality of presentations. In particular, the popular PowerPoint templates (ready-made designs) usually weaken verbal and spatial reasoning, and almost always corrupt statistical analysis. What is the problem with PowerPoint? And how can we improve our presentations? "
Wednesday, December 10, 2003
SocietyGuardian.co.uk | Society Guardian | Bureaucratic jargon:
"To write effectively, we need to know three things: why we are writing it; what we want to happen as a result of our writing; and who we are writing for. If the target audience includes the public then this means using shorter sentences (average about 15-20 words), shorter words and avoiding jargon. So don't write in plain English henceforth - write in plain English from now on."
"To write effectively, we need to know three things: why we are writing it; what we want to happen as a result of our writing; and who we are writing for. If the target audience includes the public then this means using shorter sentences (average about 15-20 words), shorter words and avoiding jargon. So don't write in plain English henceforth - write in plain English from now on."
SocietyGuardian.co.uk | Society | English Kiss: Keep It Short and Simple
There is no shortage of helpful advice to authors. My book, The Plain English Guide (OUP, 1995) distils it into 20 guidelines. To summarise them:
· Use appropriate language - not too pompous, not too colloquial.
· Write sentences of reasonable length - 15-20 words on average.
· Favour active-voice verbs.
· Don't smother verbs beneath noun phrases: so 'We prepared...' not 'The preparation was undertaken by us...'
· Use personal reference words.
· Use a main heading. In long letters, use subheadings too.
· Use vertical lists to split up complex information.
· Use a top-heavy triangle structure, giving the big news early in each section. Alternatively, use chronological order if this will help the reader.
· Use tables, charts and graphs to help the reader understand.
· Reread your letter before it goes out. Revise it. Then revise it again. You don't have time, but you have to make it.
· If you've an important writing job to do, arrange your environment to suit you. This might mean booking a writing room in the office, or working at home.
Finally, remember the words of Lord Denning, the leading judge, in the 1980s: "It is better to be clear and brief than to go drivelling on."
· Martin Cutts is research director of Plain Language Commission
There is no shortage of helpful advice to authors. My book, The Plain English Guide (OUP, 1995) distils it into 20 guidelines. To summarise them:
· Use appropriate language - not too pompous, not too colloquial.
· Write sentences of reasonable length - 15-20 words on average.
· Favour active-voice verbs.
· Don't smother verbs beneath noun phrases: so 'We prepared...' not 'The preparation was undertaken by us...'
· Use personal reference words.
· Use a main heading. In long letters, use subheadings too.
· Use vertical lists to split up complex information.
· Use a top-heavy triangle structure, giving the big news early in each section. Alternatively, use chronological order if this will help the reader.
· Use tables, charts and graphs to help the reader understand.
· Reread your letter before it goes out. Revise it. Then revise it again. You don't have time, but you have to make it.
· If you've an important writing job to do, arrange your environment to suit you. This might mean booking a writing room in the office, or working at home.
Finally, remember the words of Lord Denning, the leading judge, in the 1980s: "It is better to be clear and brief than to go drivelling on."
· Martin Cutts is research director of Plain Language Commission
Saturday, December 06, 2003
The Abbey National Group | Press Releases
Three quarters (74 per cent) of Britons believe that businesses deliberately use jargon to confuse and deceive consumers. More than half (56 per cent) think that jargon is used as a cover by people who don’t know what they’re talking about, yet nearly a third (31 per cent) admit to using it themselves to impress their own customers and clients, according to new research
Three quarters (74 per cent) of Britons believe that businesses deliberately use jargon to confuse and deceive consumers. More than half (56 per cent) think that jargon is used as a cover by people who don’t know what they’re talking about, yet nearly a third (31 per cent) admit to using it themselves to impress their own customers and clients, according to new research
Friday, December 05, 2003
Monday, December 01, 2003
Sunday, November 30, 2003
Saturday, November 29, 2003
Friday, November 28, 2003
Sunday, November 09, 2003
From Prof Joe Kimble's analysis of research _
Pay attention to document design — the typeface, length of line, white space, and so on.
Use short sections, or subdivide longer ones.
Use lots of headings. In public documents, try putting the main headings in the form of a question.
Group related ideas together, and order the parts in a logical sequence.
At the beginning of most documents, have an executive summary (for memos and judicial opinions) or a purpose statement (for legislation) or a table of contents (for manuals and long contracts).
Don't hesitate to use examples, tables, and charts.
Eliminate unnecessary words and details.
Break up long sentences.
Don't put too much information before or between the main subject, verb, and object.
Prefer the active voice.
Put the the central action in verbs, not in abstract nouns.
Use a vertical list — at the end of the sentence — for multiple conditions, consequences, or rules.
Try to address the reader as "you" in public documents.
Give shall the boot; use must instead.
Use familiar words — the ones that are simple and direct and human.
Pay attention to document design — the typeface, length of line, white space, and so on.
Use short sections, or subdivide longer ones.
Use lots of headings. In public documents, try putting the main headings in the form of a question.
Group related ideas together, and order the parts in a logical sequence.
At the beginning of most documents, have an executive summary (for memos and judicial opinions) or a purpose statement (for legislation) or a table of contents (for manuals and long contracts).
Don't hesitate to use examples, tables, and charts.
Eliminate unnecessary words and details.
Break up long sentences.
Don't put too much information before or between the main subject, verb, and object.
Prefer the active voice.
Put the the central action in verbs, not in abstract nouns.
Use a vertical list — at the end of the sentence — for multiple conditions, consequences, or rules.
Try to address the reader as "you" in public documents.
Give shall the boot; use must instead.
Use familiar words — the ones that are simple and direct and human.
Impact Information: Your One-Stop Source for Plain Language Services:
Bill DuBay's Plain Language Services has a really neat resources/links page
Saturday, November 08, 2003
Professional Editorial Standards
"ADOPTED by the association's membership in 1991 and revised in 1999, these Standards list the skills and knowledge needed for editing in English-language media in Canada. The full text of Professional Editorial Standards is reproduced below. Copyright © 1999 by the Editors' Association of Canada/Association canadienne des réviseurs. All rights reserved. "
Wednesday, November 05, 2003
Accelerated Reader ATOS Summary: "Guiding students to appropriate-level books is now much easier and more accurate than ever before, thanks to the ATOS Readability Formula for Books. ATOS eliminates many of the problems educators have always had with existing readability formulas. ATOS is the first formula to include statistics from actual student book-reading (over 30,000 students, reading almost 1,000,000 books), not just data based on short test passages."
Sunday, November 02, 2003
Clear drafting in Sweden - a pdf file (4 pp)
In the very heart of the Swedish legislative process there are five linguists who encourage the government officials to use a plain language approach in their drafting.
Acts and ordinances, bills and commission reports must be clear and user-friendly. These texts have an impact on decision-making at all levels of society. A democracy must ensure openness and clarity within the public administration and guarantee that documents are
written in a way that meets the readers’ needs.
In addition to the linguists there is also a special committee in the Ministry of Justice, The Plain Swedish Group, which encourages Swedish authorities to start plain language projects.
In the very heart of the Swedish legislative process there are five linguists who encourage the government officials to use a plain language approach in their drafting.
Acts and ordinances, bills and commission reports must be clear and user-friendly. These texts have an impact on decision-making at all levels of society. A democracy must ensure openness and clarity within the public administration and guarantee that documents are
written in a way that meets the readers’ needs.
In addition to the linguists there is also a special committee in the Ministry of Justice, The Plain Swedish Group, which encourages Swedish authorities to start plain language projects.
The Plain Swedish Group
It is a legal requirement that the authorities must endeavour to express themselves in a way that is easy to understand. Clear and intelligible information promotes democracy, saves money and increases people’s confidence in the authorities.
Therefore, in 1993, the Swedish government set up the Plain Swedish Group in order to promote clear and simple language in official documents and to encourage government agencies all over Sweden to start plain language projects.
Writing911.com
Through our Writing for the Real World Series, we give you the no-nonsense, easy-to-understand tips and tools you need to quickly improve the way you write at work.
Through our Writing for the Real World Series, we give you the no-nonsense, easy-to-understand tips and tools you need to quickly improve the way you write at work.
Saturday, November 01, 2003
Plain Language Australia
Plain language involves making sure that documents are written in the most direct and clear way so that readers can easily understand and use the information. It removes jargon and unnecessary official, legal or bureaucratic wording. It replaces lengthy, complex sentences with concise ones. It pays attention to design and layout of documents to make them as accessible as possible. Plain language is a vital tool for clear communication.
Plain language involves making sure that documents are written in the most direct and clear way so that readers can easily understand and use the information. It removes jargon and unnecessary official, legal or bureaucratic wording. It replaces lengthy, complex sentences with concise ones. It pays attention to design and layout of documents to make them as accessible as possible. Plain language is a vital tool for clear communication.
Thursday, September 04, 2003
Tuesday, August 12, 2003
Wednesday, July 16, 2003
Tuesday, July 15, 2003
Tuesday, July 08, 2003
Monday, July 07, 2003
Thursday, June 19, 2003
Friday, May 30, 2003
Thursday, May 29, 2003
Cheryl Stephens on Plain Language -- Plain Language Association International
good stuff - pkain and authoritative
good stuff - pkain and authoritative
Sunday, May 25, 2003
Friday, May 23, 2003
Wednesday, May 14, 2003
"The inflated style is itself a kind of euphemism. A mass of Latin words falls upon the facts like soft snow, blurring the outlines and covering up all the details. The great enemy of clear language is insincerity. When there is a gap between one's real and one's declared aims, one turns as it were instinctively to long words and exhausted idioms, like a cuttlefish squirting out ink. In our age there is no such thing as 'keeping out of politics'. All issues are political issues, and politics itself is a mass of lies, evasions, folly, hatred, and schizophrenia. When the general atmosphere is bad, language must suffer."
George Orwell from "Politics and the English Language", about four pages from the end.
George Orwell from "Politics and the English Language", about four pages from the end.
Tuesday, May 13, 2003
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