Hi, Anton!  Recently you wrote in a message to Ardith Hinton:

AH>  I didn't see any line on my screen which ran over 72
AH>  characters here, although my software can handle up to 80.

AS>  Ironically, this very paragrph of yours is written as a 
AS>  single line 472 characters wrong... er, long :-) 

     
            Omigosh!  That does seem rather excessive... [wry grin].

            It wasn't initially.  Although I can go rambling off into the wild blue yonder as I'm typing, my message editor saves lines according to whatever limits I've set... on my screen.  I took your query to mean you were wondering if your lines were too long.  Not being a techie, I wasn't sure how many you'd be able to handle.  And some of my Russian correspondents who use news readers have indicated they prefer lines twice the length generally used in Fidonet... but Alexander & I agree that 60-80 is within most people's comfort range.  :-)



AS>  Now that I made this slip, it reminds of a Buddy Guy album 
AS>  titled "74 years young," which I did not care for, but his 
AS>  guitar work on Big Mama Thornton's "Hound dog" is top notch! 


            Ah.  I see/hear what you mean.



AS>  Yes, that was the original "Hound dog" that Elvis 
AS>  Presley turned into a joke, 


            I was aware that not all of his work was original...



AS>  posing with a hound dog for the promotion poster. 


            ... but unlike some of my contemporaries, I didn't have a crush on him & generally paid little attention to these things.  I do remember that one of my classmates was called into the principal's office & told not to wear the gigantic I LOVE ELVIS button her father had brought back from Hawaii while she remained on school premises.  This gal seemed to enjoy pushing limits....  :-Q



AS>  Here's my friend's take on it:

AS>  https://soundcloud.com/anton-shepelev/hound-dog-blues-
AS>  version-cover 


            Interesting... thank you.

            Bearing in mind the topic of the E_T echo, the contraction "ain't" is an informal variation probably best avoided by those who are writing exams. OTOH it is acceptable if you're singing the blues or replying to a question in Fidonet with a jocular comment like "Ain't nobody here but us chickens".  :-))



AH>  I'm not at all concerned about lines which are shorter than
AH>  what you intended because I think that makes them easier for 
AH>  less fluent speakers of English to interpret. 

    
            BTW... certain Fidonetters who are blind or visually impaired tend to use software which limits them to 40 lines.  I can cope with that because I read newspapers & magazines, and I do want to hear what they have to say.  :-)



AH>  If the lines are longer than what you intended, or if other 
AH>  people's software omits words such as "not" when a line is 
AH>  quoted & requoted, I consider that to be a more serious issue.

AS>  Indeed. Considerate treatment of message text is one of the key
AS>  requirements in GNKSA -- Good Netkeeping Seal of Approval.


            Glad you feel that way.  Like various rules of etiquette, it has a number of practical applications nowadays although times have changed....  :-)




--- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+