It's becoming increasingly clear that too many computer users are solely relying on spell checking software as their only means of proofing their work. The unwritten rules are that anything not related to business gets sent the way it is typed without the benefit of editing as opposed to a message meant for a business contact or being turned into a teacher should be put through spell checking software. People then assume the message is good to go.
I find that spell checking software is great at catching typos such as transposed letters, but that's about it. It will not save you from typing (or rather mistyping) homophones. [You remember those from English class, right? They're sets of words that sound the same, but are spelled differently and have different meanings such as "they're," "there," and "their."] Spell checking won't save you when your mistyped word happens to be another real world. Another potential pitfall is letting the spell checker automatically correct as you type. It may "correct" your typing error, but change the word to something else entirely. If "ewe" don't believe me, read on.
Would you want the following message being sent to your customers?
To Out Values Customer;
We got your e-male about yore missing shipment and are sew sorry for ant incontinence we may have caused. Where not shore how your order got miss placed hair? But were looking into it. Wheel chip it write out fro you too day fro our wear house. Thanks for undertaking!
Spell checking software approves. Try it in yours and you'll be shocked. Spell checking software is a good start, but it's not the final answer. Software is not sophisticated enough yet to replace manual proofreading and editing.
A proofreader would know the appropriate corrections called for in the situation.
To Our Valued Customer:
We received your e-mail about your missing shipment and are so sorry for any inconvenience we may have caused. We're not sure how your order got misplaced here, but we're looking into it. We'll ship it right out for you today from our warehouse. Thanks for understanding.
Would you want to turn this into your instructor?
Is it jest a myth that hour frost precedent shopped dawn a cheery tree? Scholars have rebated this store four ages, but to day wheel come to a definitive concussion.
A proofreader would know the appropriate corrections called for in the situation.
Is it just a myth that our first president chopped down a cherry tree? Scholars have debated this story for ages, but today we'll come to a definitive conclusion.
Don't be shy, run it through your spell checker and see what happens. Go ahead. I'll wait. I hope these examples have convinced you that spell check is only the first step in the editing process.
