Well, thank goodness for Jayant and Rajat, who have created Scrabulous look-a-like Wordscraper. While not as "scrabble-like" as Scrabble, Wordscraper is a versatile and fun alternative. Time-wasters everywhere can breathe easily once again!
A friend of mine recently e-mailed me this article about typo vigilantes being arrested for defacing an old sign at the Grand Canyon. Though I'm not quite as bold as these two men, I am with them in spirit. I'm sure a close look at the sign would make any grammarian shudder with anger/grief.
August 25, 2008
July 31, 2008
More Scrabulous-related disappointment
In an attempt to play on the Facebook Scrabble application, I foolishly persuaded myself to believe I might be able to enjoy myself. It seems that whenever I click on the "public games" section" and type in my search criteria, which I leave completely open, there is no match. Either no one wants to play this Scrabulous wannabe (that's right, I said it!), or this is just another of Facebook Scrabble's technical problems. And what's more, Facebook Scrabble makes grammatical errors! When I search for public games, this is the answer I get: "There is no match for your search criterias [sic], try again."
In conclusion, Facebook Scrabulous is not only tehnically difficult, but also grammatically stupid.
In conclusion, Facebook Scrabulous is not only tehnically difficult, but also grammatically stupid.
Scrabulous update
Some more unfortunate news: Rajant and Jayat Agarwalla must have been tired of the lawsuit, so they deleted Scrabulous from Facebook altogether, even outside the U.S. and Canada! The only way to play Scrabulous anymore is through the Web site. Desperate for some Scrabulous action, I logged onto Scrabulous.com last night, hoping I could recapture some of its magic from the Facebook version. I couldn't stand it.
In addition to being timed, Scrabulous must also not have liked my computer and/or browser. Several times, I tried to submit words to no avail. The clock kept ticking, but words I knew existed would not be added to my total. I couldn't even finish one game because of technical difficulties! A couple of the people I talked to had played Scrabulous on Facebook, and they were missing it as much as I was. Until Scrabble either brings Scrabulous back or makes a working model of the game on Facebook, there are going to be some very angry customers.
In addition to being timed, Scrabulous must also not have liked my computer and/or browser. Several times, I tried to submit words to no avail. The clock kept ticking, but words I knew existed would not be added to my total. I couldn't even finish one game because of technical difficulties! A couple of the people I talked to had played Scrabulous on Facebook, and they were missing it as much as I was. Until Scrabble either brings Scrabulous back or makes a working model of the game on Facebook, there are going to be some very angry customers.
July 30, 2008
Fare thee well...for now, at least
Imagine my surprise when I logged onto Facebook yesterday, clicked on my favorite application, and saw, "Scrabulous is disabled for U.S. and Canadian users until further notice." I had no knowledge of the fights between the owners of Scrabulous and Hasbro (which owns the rights to Scrabble within the U.S. and Canada), let alone that Hasbro had filed a lawsuit. I also didn't know how many people really cared about the Scrabble imitator. I've read several articles from many different news outlets and blogs worldwide. It is a comfort to know that I'm not alone in my misery, because, after all, misery does love company. But times like these make me want to shout, "Can't we all just get along?"
Yes, the Scrabulous Web site is functioning just fine. (But it's not the same as playing it on Facebook!) And Facebook's Scrabulous application still works everywhere else in the world. Mattel owns the rights to Scrabble outside the two countries, and it is not involved in the legal action. I say, "Good for you, Mattel! Maybe I'll buy some Barbies!" That doesn't make me feel much better, though. As of two days ago, I was engaging in a game of Scrabulous with an acquaintance in England, and now he can't even finish his game!
In only a couple of days, groups dedicated to saving our beloved Facebook application have grown intensely in popularity, including Save Scrabulous (though there are many groups with this name), Give us Scrabulous or Give us Death! [sic], Please, God, I Have So Little: Don't Take Scrabulous, Too and even If Hasbro Kills Scrabulous, I will die! There are also petitions, many of which launched when the troubles began early this year. In an effort to "fill the void," Scrabble has launched a beta Facebook application that is pretty and flashy, but extremely slow and technically riddled with problems. I've tried to start a game, but I get a "Sorry, we aren't working right now" message almost every time I try to use the application. Its "official launch" is scheduled for mid-August, but let's hope Hasbro has come to an agreement with the Agarwallas before then.
*EDIT* I'd like to correct the statement about Mattel not taking part in the Scrabulous lawsuits. Apparently, the company has made a lawsuit in India. No Barbies for me!
Yes, the Scrabulous Web site is functioning just fine. (But it's not the same as playing it on Facebook!) And Facebook's Scrabulous application still works everywhere else in the world. Mattel owns the rights to Scrabble outside the two countries, and it is not involved in the legal action. I say, "Good for you, Mattel! Maybe I'll buy some Barbies!" That doesn't make me feel much better, though. As of two days ago, I was engaging in a game of Scrabulous with an acquaintance in England, and now he can't even finish his game!
In only a couple of days, groups dedicated to saving our beloved Facebook application have grown intensely in popularity, including Save Scrabulous (though there are many groups with this name), Give us Scrabulous or Give us Death! [sic], Please, God, I Have So Little: Don't Take Scrabulous, Too and even If Hasbro Kills Scrabulous, I will die! There are also petitions, many of which launched when the troubles began early this year. In an effort to "fill the void," Scrabble has launched a beta Facebook application that is pretty and flashy, but extremely slow and technically riddled with problems. I've tried to start a game, but I get a "Sorry, we aren't working right now" message almost every time I try to use the application. Its "official launch" is scheduled for mid-August, but let's hope Hasbro has come to an agreement with the Agarwallas before then.
*EDIT* I'd like to correct the statement about Mattel not taking part in the Scrabulous lawsuits. Apparently, the company has made a lawsuit in India. No Barbies for me!
July 28, 2008
Step Brothers (sic)
Like Lynne Truss and many other members of the grammar police, the movie "Two Weeks Notice" created an uproar with its missing apostrophe. And I suspect that the widespread release of the Will Ferrell/John C. Reilly comedy "Step Brothers" will soon create an uproar of its own. How sad is it that a major production company can't be error-free in a movie title? I haven't seen the movie, but I am aware of its plot. (Read more on Wikipedia.) I am unaware of how this horrible injustice could have been anything other than a mistake. But I wonder how everyone involved in this movie's production could stand to look so ignorant. At any rate, I am sure Ms. Truss is losing some sleep over this one.
Touching tribute to Tim
Maybe it's because I'm finally an adult, but rarely until the past year or so have I seriously been touched by the death of someone I didn't know. I am unable to empathize with grief to which I do not feel connected. That being said, the fact that I was really depressed over the death of Tim Russert was a surprise for me.
I suppose it has to do with his link to the beginning of a my life as an aspiring journalist. I first "met" Tim Russert in August 2005 during "Meet the Press." My first journalism instructor had everyone in class watch the Sunday TV news show to learn about current events; we were also required to write reports about what we had seen. "Meet the Press" was (and still is) one of the only TV news shows I respect because of its hard-hitting and non-sensational nature, and I hope that the next permanent host does as good of a job as Russert did.
Unlike a lot of TV "journalists," Russert wasn't afraid to ask the hard questions; in fact, he was the opposite. He enjoyed making ill-prepared politicians squirm when they weren't quite sure how to answer. He never backed away when someone in the hotseat didn't give a direct asnwer; he pushed until he got a straight explanation or made it known that he wasn't being fooled.
I'm not going to say I followed Russert diligently, watching the show every week and catching every TV appearance he made. But even though I didn't idolize Russert, I really admired everything he did for journalism and for me. Because of him, I know that not all TV "journalists" are hacks, and I know that it's possible for them to be respected for the right reasons.
I am mentioning this more than a month after his death because of a newspaper article I happened to read. I tend to be suspicious of people's motives when it comes to martyring others and profiting off of loss (e.g., Sept. 11). But I really think the efforts to keep Tim Russert's memory alive have been pure and clean, and I am amazed that America treated his death with so much respect. However, I wonder if it will ever happen again. For how long will our country have the ability to care for a famous journalist the way we care for other celebrities? Will this country ever know another Tim Russert?
I suppose it has to do with his link to the beginning of a my life as an aspiring journalist. I first "met" Tim Russert in August 2005 during "Meet the Press." My first journalism instructor had everyone in class watch the Sunday TV news show to learn about current events; we were also required to write reports about what we had seen. "Meet the Press" was (and still is) one of the only TV news shows I respect because of its hard-hitting and non-sensational nature, and I hope that the next permanent host does as good of a job as Russert did.
Unlike a lot of TV "journalists," Russert wasn't afraid to ask the hard questions; in fact, he was the opposite. He enjoyed making ill-prepared politicians squirm when they weren't quite sure how to answer. He never backed away when someone in the hotseat didn't give a direct asnwer; he pushed until he got a straight explanation or made it known that he wasn't being fooled.
I'm not going to say I followed Russert diligently, watching the show every week and catching every TV appearance he made. But even though I didn't idolize Russert, I really admired everything he did for journalism and for me. Because of him, I know that not all TV "journalists" are hacks, and I know that it's possible for them to be respected for the right reasons.
I am mentioning this more than a month after his death because of a newspaper article I happened to read. I tend to be suspicious of people's motives when it comes to martyring others and profiting off of loss (e.g., Sept. 11). But I really think the efforts to keep Tim Russert's memory alive have been pure and clean, and I am amazed that America treated his death with so much respect. However, I wonder if it will ever happen again. For how long will our country have the ability to care for a famous journalist the way we care for other celebrities? Will this country ever know another Tim Russert?
July 22, 2008
Collection
I've begun collecting photos for my "grammatical tragedies of downtown St. Petersburg" entry(/ies?). So far, most of the signage I've seen has been relatively error-free. I expected a lot worse than what I've gotten, to tell you the truth. Most of the errors so far haven't been too glaring (no hyphens in compounds adjectives, for example).
Yes, I know, nobody's perfect. Even I have grappled with grammatical issues. But if I am going to spend money on signs that are going to be visible to a lot of people, I'd like to make sure they are correct.
Yes, I know, nobody's perfect. Even I have grappled with grammatical issues. But if I am going to spend money on signs that are going to be visible to a lot of people, I'd like to make sure they are correct.
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