-------- MANTEX NEWSLETTER --------
Number 84 - September 2003 - ISSN 1470-1863
Writing + Language + Literary Studies
0----- 'Mother Tongue' - English language explained
Bill Bryson is now a best-selling travel
writer - but this is his excellent account of
English language and its peculiarities.
He explains the complex history in a very
entertaining manner; he shows why the spelling
system is so difficult; and he looks at why
English comes to be spoken in so many different
ways.
He's against any sorts of pompous rule-makers,
and he takes great delight in showing how they
have almost always failed.
He celebrates the ability of English to coin new
terms, and to absorb words from other languages -
something which has given us a bigger vocabulary
than any other language in the world.
If you are at all interested in English or
languages in general, I guarantee this book will
amuse you and provide you with lots of thought
provoking ideas. Full review at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/bryson.htm
0----- Pub Quiz - Question #1
What is the German equivalent of the English surname Taylor?
0----- 'Write in Style: a guide to good English'
Richard Palmer has pulled off quite an achievement -
producing a book on writing skills which is funny.
He does this by poking fun at absurdities and by
showing examples of bad writing from well-known sources.
All aspects of good style are covered - from simple
punctuation, through clauses and sentences, to writing
for clarity and effectiveness.
He also covers the basics of writing for academic
purposes - the essay, the report, reviews, the precis,
and the summary.
If you want a guided tour through the difficulties
of writing good English, here is help at hand.
Full review and details at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/palmer-2.htm
0----- Pub Quiz - Question #2
What is the name for a young goose?
0----- "Writers' + Artists' Yearbook" - latest edition
The latest and much-expanded edition of this
best-selling reference book has just appeared.
It's an encyclopedia of what writers, journalists,
and media workers need for contacts with publishers,
agents, and anyone else in the communication industries.
The latest edition is a whopping 100 pages bigger than
usual, and it contains extra articles on e-publishing,
adaptation, and ghostwriting - as well as how to do your
tax returns after you land that Hollywood contract.
If you want to publish your writing, locate outlets,
mug up on copyright, or see the best-seller lists for
last year - it's all here. And Amazon are currently
offering at 30% off . A bargain. Details at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/black.htm
There's a rival publication called "The Writer's Handbook"
which appears at the same time. The main difference
is that the Handbook puts more emphasis on journalism and
the broadcast media. See the difference at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/turner.htm
0----- Pub Quiz - Question #3
Who composed the music for the ballet 'The Wooden Prince'?
0----- 'XHTML - Example by Example' - new-ish book
Dave Raggett is a programmer and guru of the 3WC -
the body that sets Web standards. This is his account
of how to use XHTML and style sheets to produce sites
which will stay in date as the old HTML standards disappear.
The 'by example' in the title means what it says. All the
techniques he discusses are illustrated with practical
applications and the relevant code.
He also tells you where to get all the f*r*e*e software you
will need - including the famous HTML Tidy program which
he designed himself. This will automatically convert existing
HTML pages into XHTML. It even changes your tags into lower
case, adds double quote marks, and indents your code into
'pretty' format. Full details and review at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/raggett.htm
0----- Pub Quiz - Question #4
Who is the private eye in 'The Maltese Falcon'?
0----- Virginia Woolf - Yet again
There's no let-up in the demand for anything
connected with Virginia Woolf. Her reputation
as a novelist has continued rising - along with
her status as a founder of modern feminism.
We've created a new section in our f*r*e*e TUTORIALS
which deals with her NON-FICTION works, such as
"A Room of One's Own", her diaries, her letters,
and the formidable "Three Guineas". Go to -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/ou/a319/woolf-00.htm
0----- Pub Quiz - Question #5
In which country was Le Corbusier born?
0----- George Orwell - New study materials
George Orwell is celebrated as one of the great
writers of plain English prose. He went out of his
way to produce a style that is clear of pretention
and superfluous decoration.
His books include novels, documentary reports, and
essays on politics, language, and mass communications.
Best known for 'Animal Farm' and 'Nineteen Eighty-Four',
his essays and books such as 'Homage to Catalonia' may
well prove of more enduring influence. Judge for yourself
in our guidance notes on his life and work at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/ou/a319/orwell-0.htm
0----- Pub Quiz - Question #6
Which straits separate Chile and Tierra del Fuego?
0----- Photographic Libraries
Photographic Libraries is a portal for all sorts
of image libraries. It includes still and moving
images, stars and celebrities, clipart collections,
photojournalism, maps and cartography, prints and posters.
When I trawled through the listings, I even found
animated cartoons and multiple pictures of the
M6 in Staffordshire :-)
Photographic Libraries is a not-for-profit organisation
who do not allow banner advertisements on the P.L. website.
The links are carefully chosen and monitored to assist
visual communications students researching Archive
Collections, historic images, and commercial sections
for portfolios with the commercial workplace.
http://www.photographiclibraries.com
0----- Pub Quiz Question #7
What is the collarbone also called?
0----- Thomas Hardy - For Sale - the complete works
John Robinson in Washington is offering for sale the
complete works of Thomas Hardy in a special edition.
"There are 24 volumes, bound in dark green leather,
gilt on top and bottom edges of the page, with irregular
front edge of the page. They are like new. I believe it
is a complete set of Hardy's novels, and I suspect that
book-o-philes who are also Hardy afficionados will be
aware of the Wessex Edition of Hardy's novels."
If you are interested, contact John directly at -
jfr@olywa.net
0----- Pub Quiz Question #8
Of what whole number is 7.74596 the square root?
0----- Books on Language - reviews
We've created a new set of reviews featuring books on
language and related studies - from lexicography and
language history, to semiotics, Shakespeare's bawdy,
qrammar, and reference. Have a look at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/biblios/art-lang.htm
0----- Pub Quiz Question #9
What in Portugal is a 'fado'?
0----- Welcome to the New Term! If you're wondering what
happened to the August newsletter - there wasn't one.
That's why this issue is bigger than usual.
0----- Pub Quiz Question #10
What is a pedestrian crossing called in the USA?
0----- 'Studying at a Distance' - new book
Distance learning is increasingly popular, because
many people do not have time to attend classes. They
want to be able to study when it suits them - at night
or at weekend.
But to study alone you need extra skills. Christine
Talbot's new book tells you what these extra skills are -
and how to develop them. It covers all the basics, from
planning your time, taking notes, and essay-writing skills,
through to the new techniques required for online
learning.
She finishes with guidance on the biggest piece of
work most people have to undertake - the research
project. This is covered from drumming up ideas for
a proposal, through to production and submission of
the finished article.
If you are planning to join the Open University,
do an online course, or even a traditional correspondence
course, this book will help you prepare for the undertaking.
Full details and review at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/talbot.htm
0----- Pub Quiz Question #11
Of which country was King Zog monarch 1928-39?
0----- Anti-Spam Measures - the Language Shift
The fight against spam has led to software
programs which scan messages for words associated
with unsolicited email. Words such as 's*p*a*m' itself,
and even 'ad_ver_tisement'.
This has driven writers to use tricks such as the
one I have just used - inserting asterisks or other
typographic devices.
Newsletter editor Tara Calishan has been driven to
creative devices such as mis-spelling words - as in
"Anti-Spaham Tools" and splitting up words as in
"This is an Ad Vert". I also saw the term 's*bscribe'
in someone's email recently.
Expect to see more of this in future. Meanwhile,
Tara's best-selling "Google Hacks" is reviewed at
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/calish-2.htm
0----- Pub Quiz Question #12
Which island was once called Van Diemen's Land?
0----- 'E-Volve-or-die.com' - eCommerce manual
If you want a glimpse into the new strategies
required for doing business electronically,
Mitchell Levy is your man.
His emphases are on 'The customer comes first'
and 'Be prepared for constant change'. Both of
these issues require flexibility and constant
vigilance in business methods.
Two really surprising elements are the need to
form partnerships in order to survive, and even
the need to sell out when the time is right -
then move on to something else.
His book is aimed at biggish businesses, but
there are plenty of lessons for small and medium
sized enterprises - that's SMEs in the jargon.
Full details and review at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/levy.htm
0----- Pub Quiz Question #13
Hg is the chemical symbol for which element?
0----- Mysteriously Changing Titles
Have you noticed how the titles of some books get
changed by misquotation and a sort of 'common
consent'. It's rather like famous movie misquotations,
such as 'Play it again, Sam' ("Casablanca") and 'Come
up and see me some time' ("She Done Him Wrong").
Here are a few to start us off. Real title in brackets.
Email any further suggestions.
'The Portrait of Dorian Grey -- ['The Picture of Dorian Grey']
'Alice in Wonderland' -- ['Alice's Adventures in Wonderland']
'The Wings of a Dove' -- ['The Wings of the Dove']
'A Winter's Tale' -- ['The Winters Tale']
'Far from the Maddening Crowd' -- ['Far from the Madding Crowd']
0----- Pub Quiz Question #14
What musical instrument is also called a sweet potato?
0----- Happy Birthday to the Web!
Yes - amazingly it is only ten years since the World
Wide Web became generally available. Since then, it has
revolutionised Information Technology and now become
literally a household name.
James Gilles and Robert Calliau give an account of
Internet history and the development of the Web which
takes in all the major technical innovationss and the
personalities responsible for them.
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/cailliau.htm
If you want a more personal account of the same events,
including why he invented it, try 'Spinning the Web' by
Tim Berners-Lee. His book is reviewed at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/lee.htm
0----- Quotable quotes
"I don't want to achieve immortality through my work,
I want to achieve it through not dying."
Woody Allen
0----- PUB QUIZ - ANSWERS
#1
What is the German equivalent of the English surname Taylor?
ANSWER: Schneider
#2
What is the name for a young goose?
ANSWER: Gosling
#3
Who composed the music for the ballet 'The Wooden Prince'?
ANSWER: Bela Bartok
#4
Who is the private eye in 'The Maltese Falcon'?
ANSWER: Sam Spade
#5
In which country was Le Corbusier born?
ANSWER: Switzerland
#6
Which straits separate Chile and Tierra del Fuego?
ANSWER: Straits of Magellan
#7
What is the collarbone also called?
ANSWER: The clavicle
#8
Of what whole number is 7.74596 the square root?
ANSWER: 60
#9
What in Portugal is a 'fado'?
ANSWER: A melancholy folk song
#10
What is a pedestrian crossing in the USA?
ANSWER: A crosswalk
#11
Of which country was King Zog monarch 1928-39?
ANSWER: Albania
#12
Which island was once called Van Diemen's Land?
ANSWER: Tasmania
#13
Hg is the chemical symbol for which element?
ANSWER: Mercury
#14
What musical instrument is also called a sweet potato?
ANSWER: An ocarina
0----- COMING SOON
'Design for the Real World'
'Twentieth Century Classics'
'Design Through Digital Interaction'
'Creative Content for the Web'
'Designing Web Graphics'
'Los Logos' [design]
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News-84-September-2003
ISSN 1470-1863
The British Library