Dan Aykroyd Louie
Moderator: Sonja
Dan Aykroyd Louie
Word 2 has a hyphen, plus the part pre-hyphen has an extra letter (which gives it the common spelling).
Re: Dan Aykroyd Louie
I usually don't bother mentioning the hyphen if, upon finding the answer, it's there in plain sight.
But I did remove the Y my (book) source had. Sorry!
But I did remove the Y my (book) source had. Sorry!
Paul
Re: Dan Aykroyd Louie
I don't think I would have mentioned the hyphen myself except the other problem was there, too.
Re: Dan Aykroyd Louie
I would think that any answer that has something other than letters/numbers and spaces should be revealed, IMO.
Re: Dan Aykroyd Louie
As long as the question is phrased such that the answer is pinned, those shouldn't matter. If there's only one possible answer, it'll be found with all non-alpha-numeric in plain sight.
Let's say there's some list of ... 447 Ruling Slibinoes of Lower Mendoxia. Only one of them has a hyphen in his name, (Pau-cle of Pedantium, perhaps?) but you found something neat to ask about him, unique to him and him alone. It'll take some research, but it's gettable with a little work.
Now, if you give the "hyphen alert," there's no work involved. All the researcher needs is a list of the names (*koff*wiki*koff*), and search that list for dashes. When you find only the one, you have your answer.
Clearly, that's an extreme situation. But I just don't see the need to point out the existence of unusual characters where they naturally would be found. (Who wrote Paul Clifford?) It's only the non-standard instances that need to be brought to our attention, IMO. For instance, "What two MLB Teams...?" (All one word, team names only, alpha, separate by dash). By making it one hyphenated word, you can't just pound the 30 teams until you find them one at a time, you have to actually research it. Unless you want to try all 812 combos.
Anyway-- just MHO. YMMV.
Let's say there's some list of ... 447 Ruling Slibinoes of Lower Mendoxia. Only one of them has a hyphen in his name, (Pau-cle of Pedantium, perhaps?) but you found something neat to ask about him, unique to him and him alone. It'll take some research, but it's gettable with a little work.
Now, if you give the "hyphen alert," there's no work involved. All the researcher needs is a list of the names (*koff*wiki*koff*), and search that list for dashes. When you find only the one, you have your answer.
Clearly, that's an extreme situation. But I just don't see the need to point out the existence of unusual characters where they naturally would be found. (Who wrote Paul Clifford?) It's only the non-standard instances that need to be brought to our attention, IMO. For instance, "What two MLB Teams...?" (All one word, team names only, alpha, separate by dash). By making it one hyphenated word, you can't just pound the 30 teams until you find them one at a time, you have to actually research it. Unless you want to try all 812 combos.
Anyway-- just MHO. YMMV.
Paul
Re: Dan Aykroyd Louie
I've had a few times where I gave up on a question I had been planning because giving a hyphen warning would give away the answer. There have also been many examples where the answer should technically have a hyphen but I leave it out (because warning for it would make the question too easy). So I'm sympathetic to both sides of the issue. I think as long as we know going in that an answer MIGHT POSSIBLY have a hyphen without our being warned for it (because we're having this discussion), it's not an unfair situation.
Re: Dan Aykroyd Louie
Phil once wrote a post about this very same thing. I just tried to find it but remember that we lost a couple of years' worth of posts some time back.
Anyway, I seem to remember that he said that if it's an obvious hyphen he doesn't warn for it.
Anyway, I seem to remember that he said that if it's an obvious hyphen he doesn't warn for it.