Twitter
EmailWired News: It’s Just the ‘internet’ Now
Aug 16
Wired News: It’s Just the ‘internet’ Now
Effective with this sentence, Wired News will no longer capitalize the “I” in internet. [...]
But in the case of internet, web and net, a change in our house style was necessary to put into perspective what the internet is: another medium for delivering and receiving information. That it transformed human communication is beyond dispute. But no more so than moveable type did in its day. Or the radio. Or television.
It may seem small and petty to some. Most probably won’t even notice it. I, however, am a fan of language. This kind of stuff fascinates me.
The article also contains a link the 2000 story about inserting a hyphen in “e-mail.”
Aug 17, 2004 @ 18:27:43
I’m sorry, Augie. It’s rude to nitpick someone’s proofreading, but this was funny.
“I, however, am a fan of langauge.”
Aug 17, 2004 @ 20:02:40
I have no idea what you’re talking about. Why, I just fixed it so nobody will ever see that again. ;-)
Aug 17, 2004 @ 23:14:48
My mistake … :D
Aug 18, 2004 @ 16:26:26
I worked in the marketing for two software companies a couple of years ago and I can say that such issues were huge. Writing and editing press releases or marketing copy, I was always on the lookout for what was the accepted rules for tech spellings.
Personally, I always felt it boorish that the internet world referred to itself with a capital “I”. Automotive companies don’t sell Cars. soft drink companies don’t sell Soda. Footwear companies don’t sell Shoes. But for some reason, web companies thought their industry was the Internet. Now, that’s what I call hubris.
Aug 18, 2004 @ 16:28:03
I should have edited my own copy. Yeesh!
Aug 19, 2004 @ 02:18:16
Was there ever a point where it was “I have Cable” rather than “I have cable” or vice versa?
Aug 19, 2004 @ 04:08:10
I’m going to keep using the capital I. There’s only one Internet, therefore it’s a proper noun and has to be capitalised. Same with the Web.
Aug 19, 2004 @ 07:38:24
Is there only one “internet”? And if so, does that merit capitalization?
Our solar system has one sun, but we don’t capitalize it. Our planet has one sattelite, but we don’t refer to it as the Moon. Our bodies have one blood-pumping organ, but it’s not the Heart. Singularity does not, in and of itself, merit capitalization.
Aug 19, 2004 @ 09:05:22
Huh? You are meant to capitalize the Sun. It’s a proper noun. Same as the Moon. You don’t capitalize a sun or a moon, of course.
The heart example is pretty silly. There are lots of hearts out there.
One of the central ways of determining whether a noun is a proper noun or not is its uniqueness.
I note at least partial support here: http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/noun
Aug 19, 2004 @ 11:02:22
I was actually taught in school that the planet we’re on is “earth.” Screw ‘em — I go with “Earth” when we’re discussing the planet.
Aug 19, 2004 @ 18:39:41
My point was that being a singularity (either in the big picture or the small) does not in and of itself merit capitalization.
The sun is a singularity in our solar system, but it is not a word that is listed as needed to be capitalized. Here’s an entry at dictionary.com.: ” To expose to the sun’s rays, as for warming, drying, or tanning.”
My inclusion of “heart” was to point out that while the heart is a critical noun in every human’s body, just as a solar system’s sun is a critical celestial body within that system, it is not a noun that is capitalized in regular use. If you find a critical mass of evidence that says otherwise, feel free to present it.
Now, if you want to refer to the sun as “Sol” it should probably be capitalized. Just as if you want to refer to the huge body of water off the eastern coast of America as the “Atlantic Ocean” you would capitalize it, but if you referred to it as the “ocean” you would not capitalize it.
The internet is a communication tool, one of many communication tools. Going by precedent, we should not capitalize it, just as we don’t capitalize television, book, radio, advertising, cable, pamphlet, comic book, chat room, website or any other communication tool.
This conversation reminds me of one I’ve had with a co-worker of mine. He’s a guy in his early twenties. He insists the Internet is one of the top three inventions/discoveries of all time. Forget penicillin, fire, the wheel, the combustible engine, electricity, the microwave oven, or whatever. Or should I say Penicillin, Fire, Wheel, Combustible Engine, Electricity, the Microwave Oven or Whatever.
I guess if you narrow the point of reference small enough, some things should be capitalized. In the big picture, it takes more to deserve capitalization.
Aug 19, 2004 @ 19:13:19
Once again, you’re confusing the argument by referring to things that exist in plurality. Do you literally not get that the Internet is the only thing of its kind and that there are a lot of wheels?
I’ve consulted a few style guides and they seem pretty evenly split on whether the Sun should be capitalized or not, and, if so, in what context.
On the crux of the argument, the Internet: http://davidakin.blogware.com/blog/_archives/2004/8/16/124894.html seems pretty clear to me.
I am most assuredly not suggesting that the Internet is the most important invention ever. Please adjust your preconceptions.
Aug 19, 2004 @ 20:58:57
The internet is not “the only thing of its kind.” The internet is a communication tool. There are many communication tools. Each has differentiators, but they all serve to communicate. None of the others is regularly capitalized, that I know of.
But, it’s cool with me if people want to capitalize the word internet. It’s no skin off my teeth. People do wrong things all the time.
Cheers,
Earl
Aug 19, 2004 @ 21:13:56
Well, I have at least offered some support for my position. The best you can seem to manage is argumentation from personal incredulity, which, of course, is not a particularly effective strategy.
Do you think Fidonet or Freenet should not be capitalized?
Aug 20, 2004 @ 08:59:12
Names of specific websites can be capitalized. Just as titles of books, movies, songs are capitalized. Just as a person’s name is capitalized, but human, man, woman, and child are not.
And I have offered support. Check dictionaries and you’ll see too. Check style usage guides. Review the regular usage of the language over the last century and you’ll see.
Or, just capitalize it because . . . well, I really don’t know why other than the hubris of internet companies.