> -----Original Message----- > From: John Klein [mailto:zarkon at illrepute.org] > Sent: Tuesday, February 18, 2003 13:50 > To: 'Dragaera Mailing List' > Subject: RE: Good books generally (was: Literary Disappointments) > > > On Tue, 18 Feb 2003, Warlord wrote: > > @> As one side of an argument (Steve, *stop* rubbing your hands together > @> like that), I would postulate that if those reading your words receive > @> their meaning as it was intended to be received, then the method of > @> of that communication is inconsequential. > > That's one hell of a big if, particularly if you decide to use punctuation > and grammar in non-standard ways. > > (Ignoring the fact that the style of writing itself transmits > additional data.) > Well, one has to start somewhere, and I consider "ifs" to be a good one. Starting with "one hell of a big if" is what's known in the argument clinic as a home run. It will be hard to top that tomorrow (with apologies to Scott Adams). Communication can be thought of as the putting across of an idea or concept. Good communication is a successful attempt. The better the communication, the clearer the concept is received. Since that is the goal of communication, then the proper use of the *method* of communication, while important, is a secondary objective. W