OST164 TEXT EDITING APPLICATIONS

Chapter 1 - Keyboarding ErrorsPages 1-38

Proofreading is the examination of a document to find errors that should be corrected.

Proofreading tasks range form simple to complex – from checking to see that nothing was omitted to checking for consistency in format.

FOUR APPROACHES TO PROOFREADING Verification proofreading – involves comparing the

final copy with a previous draft to make sure that the material has been keyboarded correctly. This is the easiest form of proofreading.

Partnership proofreading – involves two people – the document preparer reads aloud form the draft as a second person verifies the final copy. Although time-consuming, the partnership approach is often the best method for proofreading statistical and technical documents.

Proofreading on the computer screen – must adjust to viewing material on the computer screen - must be adept at using various software tools that can assist you in detecting errors in written copy.

Proofreading without an original document – most challenging form of proofreading – you must check the content word for word.

MOST COMMON KEYBOARDING ERRORS

Misstrokes – striking the wrong key.Please complete the sales tax from. (form)

Omissions – accidentally omitting keystrokes or words.

Write the check as soon possible. (omitted “as”)

Repetitions – adding unneeded keystrokes.Look on the the Web site. (“the” repeated)

Spell checkers

•A spell checker usually will not detect errors in misused but correctly spelled words such as from and form because both of these words are in the software dictionary.•A spell check will detect unfamiliar proper nouns. If you use certain names frequently, you should add them to your software dictionary.

PROOFREADING NAMES

Always verify a person’s name. Misspelling a person’s name can be embarrassing for you and offensive to the person.

Check the spelling of each part of a person’s name individually.

Verify possible alternative spellings of names such as Stephen or Steven, Katherine or Catherine.

When using courtesy titles, make sure the appropriate one is used: Mr. - Ms. – Miss - Mrs. - or Dr.

PROOFREADING ADDRESSES Striking the incorrect key can misdirect your mail and cause a

delay in delivery. Make sure the last line of an address includes only the city,

state, and ZIP code. - Two-letter state abbreviations should be all caps with no periods or spaces between the letters.

- Leave one space between the state abbreviations and the ZIP code. Madison, WI 53715

- A ZIP code may have a four-code number to designate specific addresses within a delivery area. Madison, WI 53715-2395

For international addresses, make sure the country name appears by itself on the last line of the address.

Foster ToursSuite 28 Market Square4218 Market Avenue, Makati City 1273PHILLIPPINES

PROOFREADING TELEPHONE NUMBERS

An error in recording or transcribing a telephone number can be costly. A search for the correct number can be time-consuming and fruitless.

There are several acceptable formats for telephone numbers:

Hyphenated 803-555-3219Parentheses (803) 555-3219

Periods added 803.555.3219

International telephone numbers may have a sequence of three or four numbers: an international access code + a country code + a city code + a local number.

PROOFREADING OTHER NUMBERS Numbers are used frequently in writing dates, ages,

decimal fractions, dollar amounts, times of day, and weights and measures.

Spell checkers will not find typographical errors in numbers.

Check all numbers as a separate proofreading step.

Make sure the numbers make sense.

Check to be sure that all parts of the numbers are aligned.

When proofreading several columns, read down each column, not across from left to right.

Make sure the numbers have the appropriate number of digits.

PROOFREADING FOR OMISSIONS

You must read for more than sense – you must read for accuracy.

I do not want to attend the conference in San Diego.I do want to attend the conference in San Diego.

Enclosed is my check for $95 for one year’s subscription.Enclosed is my check for $995 for one year’s subscription.

The revision symbol used to insert omitted copy is the caret ( ). To insert a character: net = neat

To insert a word: in morning = in the morning

a

the

PROOFREADING FOR REPETITIONS

The spell-check feature of most word processing software highlights repetitions of letters that result in misspelled words.

The revision symbol used to insert omitted copy is the caret ( ).

Delete a letter: thought = though

Delete a word: wrote two two checks

Sometimes when words are repeated, it is correct; and sometimes, it may be incorrect.Correct: I am sure that, that is what I need now.Incorrect: He went to to the store. Note the comma

that separates the repeated words.

TRANSPOSITIONS Some word processing software has an automatic

correction feature. If that feature is turned on, a word like “teh” would

automatically be changed to “the”. When you proofread, you can spot transpositions by

reading “word for word” and “letter for letter.” A spell check will not detect transpositions that spell

actual words.trail – trial lost – lots quiet – quite

Spell checkers will detect most transpositions in words, they will not detect transpositions in numbers.

The revision symbol for transposing copy ( ) indicates that items should change places. teh next holiday most the of staff

PROOFREADING MARKS FOR SPACING

To add a space, use the ( ) and ( #) symbol. # atthe

To delete a space, use the symbol.

at the

To leave only one space instead of two spaces, use the symbol.

ba nk

( )

( )

))

PROOFREADING FOR CORRECT SPACING

There is NO space before:

Punctuation Mark Example

A period Jay went to the store.A question mark What is Tad’s last name?

An exclamation point Jessica’s speak was awesome!

A colon They are: medical, legal, and retail.

A semicolon Ken is 42; Joe is 52,

A closing quotation mark The article “Vanish” was great.

A closing bracket/parenthesis All employees (over 65) will get one.

A hyphen He is a high-ranking official.

PROOFREADING FOR CORRECT SPACING

There is NO space after:

Punctuation Mark Example

A period, question mark, or exclamation point when followed by another punctuation mark.

The contract should read “on or before April 1.”

An opening bracket/parenthesis

All employees (except first-year employees) receive two weeks’ paid vacation.

A opening quotation markLiz asked, “Who is chairing this event?”

A closing bracket/parenthesis when followed by another punctuation mark.

Mike Elmore gave the talk (don’t you know him?).

An asterisk in a footnote. *Based on current census data.

PROOFREADING FOR CORRECT SPACINGThere is NO space before or after:

Punctuation Mark Example

An apostrophe with a word. It’s our responsibility to provide quality patient care.

A decimal point within a number.

Grant Memorial handles 67.5 percent of all trauma cases.

A dash (or hyphens representing a dash) within a sentence.

Contact Andy Chou-he’s our attorney-and get his opinion.

A colon expressing time.

A colon expressing a ratio.

His flight will arrive at 12:45 p.m.

Our product was favored by 3:1 as reported in the daily news.

A diagonal. Raymond is the owner/manager.

A comma within a number. We received 1,105 responses.

PROOFREADING FOR CORRECT SPACING

There is NO space between:

There is ONE space between:

Punctuation Mark Example

A punctuation mark and closing quotation marks, except for a closing single quotation mark.

“I propose we expand our product line,” Randy said.

Two hyphens used as a dash. Most baseball players—including rookies—are well paid.

Punctuation Mark Example

Single and double quotations marks.

Lyle said, “What we need is someone who can attract important clients-a ‘rainmaker.’ ”

PROOFREADING FOR CORRECT SPACING

There is ONE space before:

There is ONE space after:

Punctuation Mark Example

An opening bracket or parenthesis within a sentence.

Barry Setzer (he’s our manager) made the decision.

An opening quotation mark with a sentence.

Chelsea asked, “Who will conduct the research?”

Punctuation Mark Example

An abbreviation ending in a period within a sentence.

All orders were shipped C.O.D. unless otherwise noted.

A period, question mark, or exclamation mark at the end of a sentence.

We won the contract. Now the challenge begins.

NOTE The book says 1 or 2 spaces – but it is always 1 space.

CORRECTION: PAGE 27 - #9 (A-G)

In this section, it states that you can have one or two spaces. Always put ONE.