LET'S COMMUNICATE 
Agriculture Communication Newsletter 
November 2001, No. 71

CONTENTS

WRITE THE RIGHT WORD 
4-H CLOVER BUILDS IDENTITY
WEB ADDRESS IN E-MAIL
GET REALPLAYER TO WATCH STREAMING

WRITE THE RIGHT WORD

"A code arrives; language; lingo; slang; behold the proverbs of a people, a nation." --Carl Sandburg

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Some members of the Trained Professional Watch Posse reported sightings recently. These included the common (but inexcusable from a Trained Professional) using "site" for "sight" and, in a photo caption, reference to a beachcomber using a "mental" detector. Probably wasn't finding much. Another contributor spotted two miscreants, including a "heard" of bison. The other was a description of someone watching the Harry Potter movie "...perched on the edge of her seat for the movie's CLIMATIC scene." Unless said scene had something to do with the weather, the word was probably CLIMACTIC, as in coming to a climax.

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If you get a chuckle out of exposed errors from the professional media, you might enjoy the Web site of someone who calls himself the Human Spellcheck ( http://humanspellcheck.com/ ). The bungles tend toward typographical errors, but some are mildly amusing.

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Or, if you are serious about improving your writing and would like to find some helpful resources, you can find over 100 Web sites devoted to grammar, punctuation and general writing on refdesk.com's Grammar, Usage and Style list at http://www.refdesk.com/factgram.html. These vary from sites with common errors in English, commonly confused words and basic grammar guides to more specialized sites like the Chicago Manual of Style's FAQ. Also included is a list of over a dozen sites specifically on proposal writing. The refdesk.com home page ( http://www.refdesk.com/ ) is an amazing source of links to information of all kinds. It's definitely worth bookmarking.

4-H CLOVER BUILDS IDENTITY

In a nationwide survey commissioned by the National 4-H Council, 82% of the general population had heard of 4-H while only 20% had heard of land-grant universities and 23% of the Extension Service.

Copernicus Marketing Consulting and Research, which conducted the survey, encourages Extension staff and volunteers to use the 4-H clover emblem on all printed materials, displays, audiovisuals and other materials to build that brand identity even more. NDSU Extension staff may request the clover on business cards,letterhead and enclosures.

A stronger 4-H brand identity will improve the organization's image, enhance volunteer management and broaden membership, according to Copernicus. The 4-H name and emblem should be associated with all Extension youth development programs.

Contact Agnes Vernon at avernon@ndsuext.nodak.edu   for an electronic copy of the official 4-H clover or with questions.

Becky Koch and Agnes Vernon

WEB ADDRESS IN E-MAIL

When including a Web address in an e-mail message, include the http:// . Only with this complete URL can recipients with most software automatically click on the link. See if there's a difference with your message: www.ag.ndsu.nodak.edu http://www.ag.ndsu.nodak.edu

Also, when punctuation is needed after a URL, leave a space first so the period or comma doesn't become part of the URL.

Beck Koch

GET REALPLAYER TO WATCH STREAMING

To watch or listen to a streamed file offered on a Web page you need to have the correct RealPlayer software. For streaming to work at all, the computer you are using must have a video display card and a sound card with speakers (most computers have these basic components).

To download or upgrade to RealPlayer 8 Basic (the most resent free version) go to: http://www.real.com. Click on "RealPlayer" near the top of the page, then click on "RealPlayer 8 Basic - is our free player." Before filling out the form and following the instructions for download, look under "Important notes" and click on "Minimum requirements for RealPlayer 8 Basic." Good luck and hope to see you streaming!

Bruce Sundeen