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scratchbuilt - ?


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And I used the dictionary in my post because the dictionary is the "referee" as far as correct usage, spelling and grammar. If we didn't have an accepted "official" source, and no rules for grammar, spelling, etc. at all, we'd all be speaking and writing our own version of English, and odds are most of us wouldn't understand each other.

And of course, all linguists agree that Engilsh hasn't changed at all since it was first spoken, in its perfectly developed form, and so a dictionary that was valid 200 years ago is still 100% correct in every way today, because it's not how people actually use the language that shapes it over time, but it's an arbitrary, never-changing, rigid standard in a book.

Actually, I'm inside a dog, and it's just too dark to read the damned dictionary anyway. :P

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And of course, all linguists agree that Engilsh hasn't changed at all since it was first spoken, in its perfectly developed form, and so a dictionary that was valid 200 years ago is still 100% correct in every way today, because it's not how people actually use the language that shapes it over time, but it's an arbitrary, never-changing, rigid standard in a book.

Actually, I'm inside a dog, and it's just too dark to read the damned dictionary anyway. :P

Who said language doesn't change over time? Obviously it does, and obviously dictionaries are constantly edited to add new words and remove obsolete ones. But the dictionary is still the recognized source for correct spelling and usage. And by the way, I didn't use a 200-year old dictionary, I used dictionary.com, which I'm pretty sure didn't exist 200 years ago. :rolleyes:

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The only point I'm trying to make is that if enough people, for long enough, use 'build' as a noun to mean 'something being built', it most likely will become accepted usage and make it into the book of rules. In the recent past, several verbs have taken on usage as nouns, and nouns have added verb usages to their definitions (in the less abridged dictionaries, anyway). I agree that precision in language use IS important, and writing within the accepted framework of today's language is essential for clear communication, but if enough people accept a particular usage, it BECOMES the accepted usage.

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I think Ace was speaking 'tongue-in-cheek,' which is an ironic or mildly sarcastic version of 'speaker-inside-dog.' :P

]"I supplied all the Parts ..."

And, sorry, Michael, but if you supplied "all the parts" to the builder, he is NOT scratchbuilding a model for you. He might be assembling one. He might scratchbuild other portions of it. But if you ~ or anyone else ~ provides "all the parts" he cannot scratchbuilt it. Period.

"Scratchbuilding" is mutually exclusive of any form of 'out of box' or kitbashing or assembling of parts.

B)

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And in the very same post you used the word "build" as a noun which is also incorrect. I'm just sayin' :D/>

But of course you're not alone in this. The incorrect usage of build has become so common as to be almost acceptable. Drives me crazy though. I have hundreds of completed models and several ongoing projects, but nary a "build" in the bunch!

............Remember when coffee was strictly a noun ? l've never "coffeed" with anyone. Terminology is constantly changing. l assume you don't use scissors & glue to cut & paste on a computer? l also am bothered at times by the misuse of scratch built. But how literally are we to take this ? Do l need to be a chemist to make my own plastic, or a metallurgist to smelt or forge my own metal parts ? It would be nice if scratch built stayed the way it is now: fabricating your own parts from existing materials, but l fear this special word will continue to evolve just as our beloved hobby has. Sometimes you gotta take the good with the bad. Bart.
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............Remember when coffee was strictly a noun ? l've never "coffeed" with anyone. Terminology is constantly changing. l assume you don't use scissors & glue to cut & paste on a computer? l also am bothered at times by the misuse of scratch built. But how literally are we to take this ? Do l need to be a chemist to make my own plastic, or a metallurgist to smelt or forge my own metal parts ? It would be nice if scratch built stayed the way it is now: fabricating your own parts from existing materials, but l fear this special word will continue to evolve just as our beloved hobby has. Sometimes you gotta take the good with the bad. Bart.

You make a good point about cut & paste on the computer, but since the term and the actions of Scratch-Building is still the same as it was decades ago, I don’t think letting it evolve into an inaccurately used term should be considered acceptable.

For example, this is a scratch-built brass hood, even though I used store bought solder.

DSC01340.jpg

DSC01342.jpg

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