Tonight, while responding to a thread on MobileRead, I found myself logged out and facing our official login prompt. Normally, I ignore everything but the two blank fields, but this time, I actually stopped to read the explanatory text. Imagine my dismay at encountering this:
Quote:
Hello you there!
Were you trying to post to MobileRead? This is wonderful, since we love to hear your voice! However, either you forgot to log in, or you are still not registered in our community. Don't be shy - to register here takes less than 30 seconds and then you are a full and respected member!
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Where to begin?
"Hello
you there" for "hello, there"; "we['d] love to
hear your voice" on an internet forum, which is visual by definition; "
were you trying" for an action that is still taking place in the present; "
this is wonderful" instead of "that [what the other person's doing] is wonderful" or the less stilted version, "that's great"; "you are
still not registered" to a person who might be visiting for the first time; registering
in, as opposed to
with, a given community; the idea that registering makes you not only a full member but also a "
respected" one; etc., etc.
Shouldn't the login prompt be revised to make the community, which is dedicated to tech-savvy literacy, look a wee Hank better to outsiders?
Suggested fair copy:
Quote:
Hello there!
You seem to be trying to post to MobileRead. If so, that's great, since we'd love to hear from you. However, there's a teensy problem: Either you've forgotten to log in or you're not yet registered as a member.
If you're not a member of our forums yet, there's no need to be shy. It takes about thirty seconds to register, after which you'll have full membership privileges, including the ability to post.
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