For our user agree- ment, click here . As the Internet increases the depth and breadth of communication, it damages the language itself. Fractured usage and unfocused prose will drive any English major nuts. And those sideways, smiley-faced things make it even worse. Granted, these new communication forms are intended to be informal and kinetic.
Online life is about toppling all the rules and gaining a certain immediacy.
Additionally, language has become increasingly less restricted in modern times, and society has survived. At the same time, several online sites allow users to maintain adherence to the old rules or stay current with the new ones. Such restraint is rare in the online world. Entering a word on the Merriam-Webster site pops up the spelling, definition and a key to pronunciation symbols on each page. The comprehensive Oxford English Dictionary is online in several places but is licensed only to users with certain affiliations, usually a college or university.