My pet peeve (not usually distinguishable in the email format) is the use of
the straight "typewriter" apostrophe rather than the curly proper apostrophe
in logos, movie posters, and on trade signs, such as for "Knucklehead's
Sports Bar" and such (a similar misuse of straight quote marks is also seen,
for instance in this message <g>). I would expect, when one is spending
thousands or milions of dollars on a promotional campaign, one would employ
a designer that understands basic typographic conventions; but frequently
that is not the case.
The thing about this is that it is not a matter of determining when to use
each version -- the straight version is NEVER correct, unless one is
actually using a typewriter, which only has the one key for mechanical
reasons. Why the computer keyboard retains the typewriter key mapping is one
of those inexplicable historical carryovers that defies all logic.
--
Max Heim
'66 MGB GHN3L76149
If you're near Mountain View, CA,
it's the primer red one with chrome wires
P.S. I should point out that the straight versions are also incorrect even
used as abbreviations for "inches" and "feet" -- those characters reside
elsewhere on the computer keyboard (though damned if I can remember where --
I have to look it up each time), and in the typographers job case.
on 4/14/10 7:20 AM, Ric Johnson at ricjohnsondm@msn.com wrote:
> Regarding "it's" and "they're" one just has to take a moment to recall what is
> being contracted; "it is" and "they are". The more on topic spelling error
> that always bugs me is "marquee" (the awning or sign over the entrance of a
> theater, or theatre for those across the pond) being used instead of "marque"
> (a brand or manufacturer). Premier vs. premiere is also often confused.
>
> Ric Johnson
> Des Moines, Iowa
> '71 MGB, '74 MGB-GT, '75 MGB
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