Michael Kjörling

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	538 reputation	bio	website	michael.kjorling.se	visits	member for	1 year, 9 months
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Dec 25	comment	Inventing names for Sci-Fi characters Possibly related: Coming up with names for species in fiction
Dec 24	comment	Learning storywriting for videogames - Handling deep nonlinearities Is this about games which have an ending (defeat the final boss; perhaps typical for the "storyline" style games with or without in-game sub-arcs, but can also be done with "storyspaghetti" games), ones that do not (more of social interaction between players, where the game is more of an enabler than the true objective), or both? Don't get me wrong, I think it's an interesting question in any case, but the answer is probably going to be different based on which style you are talking about.
Dec 21	answered	Text Editors. Suggesting & Tracking Changes to Plain-Text Documents
Dec 20	comment	Using uncommon abbreviations My point is that in many cases, sentences don't need to be run-on lists of abbreviations. Sure, there might very well be the occasional case where it helps readability, clarity and understanding to do it that way, but if you are using abbreviations that way a lot (and this is irrespective of your specific example), then you should consider whether it is really necessary, or if the text can be rewritten in some way that doesn't require use of those terms all the time. Few sentences must stand completely on their own; there is almost always plenty of context.
Dec 19	comment	Using uncommon abbreviations "software that matches the term against a global taxonomy so that the accurate description of even the most uncommon abbreviation is always used" You mean that the authoring software should be RFC 5513 compliant?
Dec 19	comment	Using uncommon abbreviations Strictly speaking, the only two abbreviations that qualify as such in your second example would be FTP and IIS. "ASPX files" specifies which "files" the "FTP" applies to (it expands to "files matching `*.ASPX`"). CRON and LINUX aren't even abbreviations; cron is the name of a class of service, and Linux is a proper name little different from Windows or Ford. And in most cases, such precision is not needed; simply saying "transfer your ASPX files to the web server" will work just as well, if you have established that the web server must be running IIS.
Nov 27	answered	Text referencing protected, trademarked™ and copyrighted© names, what is the correct procedure?
Nov 24	answered	Effective ways to enrich your active vocabulary?
Nov 23	comment	Effective ways to enrich your active vocabulary? @Aerovistae Perhaps I'm missing it, but I don't see any mention of what your intended target audience is in the question. For all we know, you might just as well be writing a children's book.
Nov 23	comment	Effective ways to enrich your active vocabulary? That's my point. It's just not practical to learn every detail - be it the C++ STL, Java class library, or English word. So you turn to documentation, a dictionary, an encyclopedia, a theusaurus, or whatever fits the need. But if in programming you write code which the majority of people can't make heads and tails out of without resorting to documentation, you have failed one of the basic tasks of programming, which is conveying your intent to other humans. If you are using unusual constructs (in writing or programming), there had better be a good reason or you will annoy people.
Nov 23	comment	Effective ways to enrich your active vocabulary? "My intended audience never has been and never will be those who are irritated by new words." So what is your intended audience? What kind of writing are you focusing on? Knowing that might very well help in answering the question, and it certainly can't hurt.
Nov 23	comment	Effective ways to enrich your active vocabulary? Who has said that you "should stop at the limit of a high school vocabulary"? I work in IT (programming), I read plenty of books far from all of which are written in my native tongue, and I use words in professional contexts nearly every day which many high schoolers would have little or no idea what they mean. I'll use a thesaurus if I feel the need. I don't know every word, every meaning, or every synonym. Nor do I know every detail of every technology I use professionally. Recognizing your limitations and turning to reference works when needed IMO is the professional thing to do.
Nov 23	comment	Effective ways to enrich your active vocabulary? In principle I agree with @Tannalein. However, I also don't think using a thesaurus is bad practice; you just have to be careful about which words you choose from it. If you find yourself using the same word multiple times in short order, a thesaurus can help you find alternatives that might enhance the flow of the text (and, as a side effect, "enrich your active vocabulary"). That doesn't mean it's appropriate to use words that a majority of your audience is likely to not know the meaning of, unless you want to make a point (perhaps for example, showing an overbearing nobility character.)
Oct 24	revised	Citing foreign language sources (Swedish) in MLA7 bibliography? Improved formatting, removed tagline
Oct 24	suggested	suggested edit on Citing foreign language sources (Swedish) in MLA7 bibliography?
Oct 22	awarded	Yearling
Oct 14	comment	“I have/am” what are other short ways to not repeat this in a cover letter? +1 for even just the last sentence.
Oct 12	comment	Deciding the setting: real or invented? +1 for research if you use a real place. Someone who reads your book is bound to be familiar with the area, unless it's a really uncommon read (which probably isn't what you want) or you place the story in a really out-of-the-way place (and even then there's no guarantee, particularly these days when even small, generally unknown, niche authors can find an international audience). And if it's an actual place that the reader is familiar with, even small mistakes are going to break suspension of disbelief, and that is going to show through in their response to the book.
Oct 12	comment	ISBN - is it possible to have one and a title before publishing? Your publisher likely has purchased a block of ISBNs already, so they can simply take one out of the lot and use it for the book you are working on. An individual author doesn't have a bunch of unused ISBNs floating around on their desk.
Sep 26	comment	Is it okay to call the reader's target audience stupid? The OP isn't suggesting to insult the reader, but rather is asking about "insulting" the reader's (programmer's) target audience (users).