Posted by Jonathan Labaree on September 20, 2002 at 15:15:24 from 207.5.198.231 user JLabaree.
In Reply to: Re: Ed's magic search engine-vanilla? posted by Peter H on September 19, 2002 at 15:25:56:
“Please, can I ask everyone, whether computer buffs or sailors, not to use too much jargon on Tarboard!” - Peter H
Peter, forgive me, but I feel compelled to take issue with this plea. Clearly, it is in our collective interest to make ourselves as clear as possible to our fellow Tarboardians. It is also very important to make sure anyone who wants to participate feels welcome and comfortable on the board. But I think it’s unrealistic to expect a complete avoidance of nautical terminology, especially on a board whose topic is a series of books with boats and sailing as a central theme. Certainly, any term AR uses ought to be fair game since, presumably, a reader has gone to the effort of looking up unknown words in a dictionary if sufficiently perplexed (and curious). Most good dictionaries include a great majority of nautical terms.
Unlike most of my teachers and professors, who all seemed to share a belief that use of a dictionary is the only true path to righteousness, I don’t mind in the slightest when someone asks the meaning of a word. But I don’t understand complaints about a word that is in a standard dictionary. Just as examples, I find jibboom, bobstay, and vanilla (as in “bland”) in my basic American Heritage Dictionary. Granted, few dictionaries will uncover the elusive “mouse a sisterhook”, but Patrick O’Brian (if I have the reference correctly) used the term in one of his books precisely because it is esoteric.
Again, I think all questions are good and none should be stifled – there is absolutely nothing wrong in asking the meaning of a word. I readily admit my vocabulary (not to mention spelling and typing) is not anywhere near what it should be, as I’ve proved already on this board. I consider that to be my fault, however, not the fault of the person who uses a word correctly. I consider a new word an opportunity, not an obstacle.
Perhaps we should all seek a comfortable middle ground. If we sailors find ourselves using arcane nautical expressions, we ought to make the effort to define them. But, if we use a pretty standard term, the less nautical among us should either feel free to ask its definition or seek it in a dictionary.
- Jonathan