I tweeted on this specifically recently, as well as the general problem of spell-check, but then came this example.
We all know the word “podcast,” right? Well, some spell-checking software doesn’t. The one in question suggests “produces” for “podcast.” That’s innocent enough. But what if there are multiple podcasts? Well, then, it’s a different story:
In social media, I think, spell-check remains an issue, and potentially a serious one. Obviously, we’re not held to the same editing standards while tweeting or Facebooking. But browsers have much better spell-check abilities nowadays, and many smartphones have auto-correct functions enabled, which is even worse.
The last thing we want in the social-media world, where nuance and context is challenging enough, is to have unfortunate typos that we aren’t even responsible for.
At the least, make sure you don’t have auto-correct on. Better to acknowledge you need to become a better typist than to say, “The technology failed me! Oh, and I’m a new-tech expert!”
James daSilva 