Roger Woodruff: "I do not know why my apostrophes turned into question marks on the post." Ah, it must be because your computer has been updated with Microsoft Mindreader, which is Bill Gates's new attempt to replace all human action with computer action. (Microsoft Word, for instance, tries to have the computer make all the decisions about how and what to write, saving one the inconvenience of actually thinking about anything.) Mindreader knows that deep down inside you are uncertain about whether to use an apostrophe in each case, and so it substitutes a question mark to indicate your lack of confidence. Just wait until Mindreader 2.0 comes out -- it will try to insert all your random thoughts about sex and food, as well as reflections of your various neuroses.


Burt Guttman
The Evergreen State College
Olympia, WA 98505 guttmanb at evergreen.edu <mailto:guttmanb at evergreen.edu>
Home: 7334 Holmes Island Road S. E., Olympia, 98503