[MPlayer-DOCS] CVS: main/DOCS/man/en mplayer.1,1.658,1.659

[The Wanderer]

Torinthiel wrote:

> On Wed, Aug 18, 2004 at 05:01:12PM -0400, The Wanderer wrote:
> 
>>> -encodes with an optimal Huffman table based upon pass 1 statistics.
>>> +Encodes with an optimal Huffman table based upon pass 1 statistics.
>> 
>> "pass-1 statistics", or alternately "statistics from the first
>> pass"
> 
> Why? I don't see reason here.

Because "pass 1" is being used as an adjective to modify "statistics",
rather than "1" modifying "statistics" and "pass" modifying either "1"
or "1 statistics". Without connecting the two terms, instead of leaving
them separated by a space, it is technically (even if, due to context,
not actually) ambiguous which is meant, and so not in proper form.

Or something like that. I'm feeling tired...

>>> -Be careful, too large values can cause disasterous things.
>>> +Be careful, too large values can cause disastrous things.
>> 
>> Ordinarily I might not mention this, but since I'm here anyway:
>> that should probably be "too-large".
> 
> And even less here. In fact here my entire english self protests (not
> that I'm sure it's correct).

In this case, the potential for confusion is slightly less abstract; is
"values" being modified by "too large", or "large values" being modified
by "too"?

That's probably not the whole of the matter, though, because the phrase
"overly large values" doesn't ring the same warning bells in me... I'd
have to examine this more closely than I have done, and possibly more
closely than I'm capable of doing, to figure out what's really going on.

-- 
       The Wanderer

Warning: Simply because I argue an issue does not mean I agree with any
side of it.

A government exists to serve its citizens, not to control them.