Originally Posted by
basil
Although an earlier post was referring to "spelling", and not "grammar", it's probably a bad idea to ignore either one. It's a stretch in expectation to want to be taken seriously when one's posts are full of misspellings, poorly structured sentences, lower case caps, etc. Spell check can take care of a lot (but not all) spelling issues, and posted errors are a sign the writer doesn't give a shit and can't be bothered with doing something correctly. Grammar, sentence structure, punctuation, and other issues require more of the writer's diligence and attention, and maybe even the effort to use a (online - it's that fucking easy) reference.
In the absence of voice inflection, facial expression, etc., of conventional communication, we all glean what clues we can that will give us some insight into the nature of the membership here. Instances of apathy, laziness, inattentiveness, and ignorance are catalogued away by readers, consciously or otherwise, and can accumulate and serve to give an overall impression of an individual as being a potential dilettante asshat fucking troll; not always, but the shoe often fits . . .
There are many exceptions of course, with leeway given usually to senior membership - folks for whom apathy, ignorance, etc., have been long ago ruled out. For good or bad, newbs don't get to enjoy that luxury until they are no longer newbs.
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