Author Archives: Paul W

The plainest book ever, on arguably the most important subject in human history

By Paul W | Published: December 10, 2009
David JC MacKay’s ‘Sustainable Energy Without the Hot Air‘ has justly won plaudits for being the first objective, level-headed assessment of our energy problem. MacKay is that wonderful and rare combination, an articulate physicist. His opening chapter, entitled ‘numbers not adjectives’ crisply summarises the book’s argument: do the maths, then look for the solution. Don’t [...]
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Reductio ad absurdum

By Paul W | Published: December 10, 2009
It’s remarkable how little harrumphing is caused by Twitter. Elder digerati such as Stephen Fry and the excellent John Naughton seem utterly captivated by an app that, on the face of it, allows for the high-speed dissemination of inanity on a global scale. Perhaps it’s at least in part because there is something excellent about [...]
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Issue 12, June 2005

By Paul W | Published: June 30, 2005
================================================ THE PLAIN TEXT GAZETTE – Issue 12, June 2005 ================================================ Contents ——– * Editorial * Blogs and business writing * Powerpoint: why? * Words we hate: and another one Editorial ——— It seems that our rant about straplines in the last Plain Text Gazette has had little effect. In the recent UK general election the two main parties had a battle of the straplines (or [...]
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Issue 7, May 2003

By Paul W | Published: May 30, 2003
================================================ THE PLAIN TEXT GAZETTE – Issue 7, May 2003 ================================================ Contents ——– * Editorial * Order, order! The importance of structure in business writing * Words We Hate: the list begins Editorial ——— Welcome to the springtime Plain Text Gazette. In the spirit of the season’s theme of new growth and new beginnings, the Gazette will henceforth be taking a new tack. We’ve exhausted [...]
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Issue 6, March 2003

By Paul W | Published: March 30, 2003
================================================ THE PLAIN TEXT GAZETTE – Issue 6, March 2003 ================================================ Contents ——– * Editorial * When communication doesn’t #6: You’ve got mail! * Shifting sense: a miscellany of words with changed meanings Editorial ——— Welcome to the first Plain Text Gazette of 2003. It’s shaping up to be an interesting year for language. Recent corporate scandals and the unmasking of the ’spin’ culture endemic [...]
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Issue 4, September 2002

By Paul W | Published: September 30, 2002
================================================ THE PLAIN TEXT GAZETTE – Issue 4, September 2002 ================================================ Contents ——– * Editorial * When communication doesn’t #4: The Brochure of Doom * Utilising unnecessary quantities of terms: redundant words Editorial ——— In the last issue we took a look at ‘Case Study Carnage’ to see what happens when a useful business story gets ambushed by lawyers and nervous managers. As we continue our [...]
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Issue 3, May 2002

By Paul W | Published: May 30, 2002
================================================ THE PLAIN TEXT GAZETTE – Issue 3, May 2002 ================================================ Contents ——– * Editorial * When communication doesn’t #3: Case study carnage * More jargon Editorial ——— In the second Plain Text Gazette we railed against ‘Powerpoint Hell’ and offered some principles for effective presentations The response suggested that this subject is close to your hearts. We urge you to bring our training courses to [...]
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Issue 2, December 2001

By Paul W | Published: December 30, 2001
================================================ THE PLAIN TEXT GAZETTE – Issue 2, December 2001 ================================================ Contents ——– * Editorial * When communication doesn’t #2: Powerpoint Hell * More business-speak Editorial ——— In the last issue we used press releases from the fictional company Prolix to look at the perils of technology jargon, and show how its massive overuse can completely obscure a company’s message. If [...]
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Issue 1, September 2001

By Paul W | Published: September 30, 2001
================================================ THE PLAIN TEXT GAZETTE – Issue 1, September 2001 ================================================ Contents ——– * Welcome to the Plain Text Gazette * Editorial * When communication doesn’t #1: duelling press releases * Help us to build the directory of business-speak Welcome to the Plain Text Gazette ——————————— The Plain Text Gazette is an occasional email newsletter edited by Paul Nero and Paul Waddington, [...]
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