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Subject:Re: "May" vs. "Can" From:Karen Kay <karenk -at- NETCOM -dot- COM> Date:Sat, 12 Aug 1995 15:16:30 -0700
Callie said:
> In article <23BED3A1758 -at- ris -dot- risinc -dot- com>, Sue Heim <SUE -at- ris -dot- risinc -dot- com> wrote:
> >How do you feel about using "may" or "can" in docs and marketing
> >collaterals. For example, I really don't like the following sentence
> >(this is from a brochure of ours):
> >
> >"Author reprint request cards may be generated, and references can be
> >output in a variety of formats."
> You are right. "May" has the overtone of optional or iffy, while "can" has
> the overtone of "this is a possible action".
Gee, using the same reasoning, I think the original sentence is fine.
(Actually, I don't think there's enough context to tell whether
generation of author reprint cards is an option or you're talking
about it as a feature.)
