On the plane now. A quote from the safety lecture: “We never anticipate a change in cabin pressure, but in case we do…” Well, I would hope you anticipate a change in pressure as a possibility. In fact, you DID anticipate it, which is why you’re providing us with oxygen masks. Anticipation is the hallmark of good safety. The word you’re looking for is expect. We don’t expect a cabin pressure change. And while we’re at it, what is a cabin pressure change, anyway? Is there…

George Carlin wasn’t wrong when he used to complain about the tortured language used during air travel. I just heard part of an announcement over the loudspeaker here in Phoenix: “…For your convenience, please use the adjacent parking facility.” For your convenience, please use? What the hell does that mean? At least put a subject in there. “An adjacent parking lot is available for your convenience.” That’s still a lie, but at least it’s a sentence. How about “No Parking here. Park over there” Plain. Simple. Direct.…

I just discovered a new blog called ignorethecode.net. Not only is it well-written and interesting, from a tech point of view. It also presents a brilliant solution to an-age old problem with web sites that allow comments. We’ve all encountered the grammar police from time to time, whether we write our own blogs or just spend time in the forums. It never fails that at least one person will feel it is his or her duty to let the author and other commenters know that several words were…