Re: 2.2 Announcement comma - Please no comma before 'and'
Noirin Plunkett <firebird <at> nerdchic.net>
2005-12-01 07:33:24 GMT
On Wed, Nov 30, 2005 at 11:07:27PM -0000, Chris and/or Diana Johns wrote:
> With regard to Noirin Plunkett's suggestion for consistency (unless it was
> 'tongue in cheek'), I'd suggest that consistency would be better achieved by
> getting Harvard to take out any 'Harvard commas' that precede the word 'and'
> in other instances similar to the example given, which was:
No, it was in earnest. Whether or not to use the commas is a decision
for the author. However, the document should be internally consistent.
This was the one example I noted without the Oxford comma, and I always
feel it's best to go with the majority, in questions of style.
> If 'Harvard' won't agree, then possibly a better way to avoid the
> inconsistency, if that's so important, would be to spread the sentiments
> expressed over two sentences, viz.
> "
> We consider this release to be the best version of Apache available.
> We therefore encourage users of all prior versions to upgrade.
> "
That would also be fine
> But I'd much prefer 'Harvard' to have written English in the first place.
You'll note that the Harvard comma is also regularly referred to as the
Oxford comma. It's not confined to the New World, by any means. It's a
style issue, and I don't think there's any right or wrong answer.
Noirin
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