Re: Today's exercise in misunderstanding English

[Christopher Bolster <christopher -dot- bolster -at- gmail -dot- com>]

What's wrong with the noun 'update'?  Seems counterintuitive to replace the
simple and clear with the awkward.

Chris Bolster

On 24/04/09 1:22 AM, "Latella, Vincent" <VINCENT -dot- LATELLA -at- saic -dot- com> wrote:

> "'Updation' is in Webster's "New Millenium" dictionary.  I have been
> seeing it in various software release notes for at least 10 years now.
> 
> Gene Kim-Eng"
> 
> 
> With all due respect, Gene, the fact that it appears in *a* dictionary
> does not exactly give that word (or any word) automatic credibility.
> 
> (I don't know whether or not you were suggesting that, but before we see
> "updation" popping up all over the place, please bear with me for a
> moment.) 
> 
> First off, because of the rise of free internet dictionaries, the idea
> of a "respected" dictionary or "dictionary of record" is a little less
> solid since dictionary publishers are trying desperately to draw
> attention to themselves through PR movies like adding controversial or
> neologisms (*cough*updation*cough*) to their dictionaries.
>  
> Moreover, saying it comes from Webster's isn't an iron-clad seal of
> approval either; when Webster published his dictionary back in the day,
> it was pre-copyright, so tons of other people started publishing
> Webster's dictionaries and now ANYONE can use that name. That's why
> there are so many variations on the Webster name.
>  
> SO... where does that leave us?  Library reference personnel and
> publishers will sometimes say that the dictionary of record is Webster's
> New World dictionary (and I believe that's also the New York Times'
> dictionary of record). Merriam-Webster's is also widely used by media.
> Also widely respected is the American Heritage Dictionary. For any of
> these, I would recommend the "college / collegiate" edition, none of
> this "millennium" or "student" stuff.
> 
> If anybody has a recently printed copy of any of the dictionaries I just
> mentioned, I'd be interested in hearing weather or not "updation"
> appears in it.  I just looked "updation" up in the online version of
> Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, and it does *not* appear.  For
> the Anglophiles among us, I also searched in the Oxford English
> Dictionary, and again - *no dice.*
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