Tech/maintenance SHWoodwind Updates

[Targa]

Noo...'a number' implies several...a number of choices, as opposed to 'a' choice.

Anyway, the judges' decision is final (though I might take another look at it when the gin's worn off).

'There is a number of choices' or 'There are numbers of choices'.

 

[rhysonsax]

There is a number of fixes
Or
There are a number of fixes
?

In speech, most people would say "there are a number of ..." but, pedantically, they would be wrong.

"There are several fixes" should fix it.

Rhys

 

[Stephen Howard]

W.H.O should have a '.' after the 'O' although I usually see it written as 'WHO'.
I could quibble as to some places where '-' is used but the strict rules I was taught are probably outdated.

I could barely bring myself to type WHO...so they're lucky they got any full stops at all.

I give no quarter when it comes to dashes - they're strictly conversational. Just my style, innit. And it may change. Maybe 😉

 

[Stephen Howard]

In speech, most people would say "there are a number of ..." but, pedantically, they would be wrong.

"There are several fixes" should fix it.

Rhys

Well, that're another fine messes you've gotten me into....

 

[Targa]

I could barely bring myself to type WHO...so they're lucky they got any full stops at all.

I give no quarter when it comes to dashes - they're strictly conversational. Just my style, innit. And it may change. Maybe 😉

If your punctuation is strictly conversational then may I take it you are devotee of the late humourist Victor Borge?
Victor Borge Educating Greg on Phonetic Punctuation! - YouTube

 

[mizmar]

In speech, most people would say "there are a number of ..." but, pedantically, they would be wrong.

"There are several fixes" should fix it.

Rhys

Pedantically, the noun decides. Fixes.

there are a number of cats, and they are the work of the devil.
vs
There is a number of the cat and it is 666, the work of the devil.

There Is vs. There Are: How to Choose?

The choice between the phrases there is and there are at the beginning of a…

www.grammarly.com

 

[h4yn0nnym0u5e]

I could barely bring myself to type WHO...so they're lucky they got any full stops at all.

At that, you're doing better than the Bbc, who give WHO their capital letters, but refuse to do the same for NASA or ESA. So they don't get theirs from me...

I shall consult my English graduate crony in the New Year on The Fixes Discussion... the way I read it, the fixes are plural, so they exist. The number is at best nebulous, though it is presumably at least three, so whether the number itself actually exists is a matter for debate. So Steve and I prefer to attach the verb to the fixes rather than the number. You could also mentally replace "a number of" with "several" or "a lot of", in which case it's immediately evident (to me) that "exist" is correct. I think.

 

[Stephen Howard]

If your punctuation is strictly conversational then may I take it you are devotee of the late humourist Victor Borge?
Victor Borge Educating Greg on Phonetic Punctuation! - YouTube

Him, and so many others.

 

[stitch]

The number is at best nebulous, though it is presumably at least three,

Not necessarily; it could be one, in which case your argument falls down.

So Steve and I prefer to attach the verb to the fixes rather than the number.

You may prefer that ... doesn't make it grammatically correct.

You could also mentally replace "a number of" with "several" or "a lot of",

You could; but they're not nouns, so the verb would then agree with the plural noun 'fixes', rather than the singular noun 'number'.

 

[rhysonsax]

Pedantically, the noun decides. Fixes.

there are a number of cats, and they are the work of the devil.
vs
There is a number of the cat and it is 666, the work of the devil.

There Is vs. There Are: How to Choose?

The choice between the phrases there is and there are at the beginning of a…

www.grammarly.com

"Number" is a noun and a singular one at that !

The website you linked to (to which you linked) doesn't actually say that either one is always correct, but rather says "Sentences that begin with There is/are a number of… are almost always wordier than they need to be." so I can agree with that.

Rhys

 

[Stephen Howard]

"Number" is a noun and a singular one at that !

The website you linked to (to which you linked) doesn't actually say that either one is always correct, but rather says "Sentences that begin with There is/are a number of… are almost always wordier than they need to be." so I can agree with that.

Rhys

I'm nothing if not wordier!!

 

[Jimmymack]

Best to just use many, you'll keep out of trouble then.

 

[h4yn0nnym0u5e]

Not necessarily; it could be one, in which case your argument falls down.

Fairly sure it's unlikely to be one, as then Steve would have said "there exists one fix".

You may prefer that ... doesn't make it grammatically correct.

True. Which I why I said we prefer it, rather than declaring it the only correct option.

The link @mizmar gave us suggests that either option is acceptable, but it did jar on me when I read it, hence drawing it to Steve's attention for consideration. The advice "you’ll have to make a choice. Use is if you want to emphasize the group; use are if you want to emphasize the individual members" seemed apposite, and the fixes seemed to merit the emphasis, rather than the number.

You could; but they're not nouns, so the verb would then agree with the plural noun 'fixes', rather than the singular noun 'number'.

Doing that just helped me to justify my preference to myself, while leaving the sense intact. "Several" is a pronoun, "a word that takes the place of a noun"; and "lot" is a noun.

Are we having fun yet?

 

[rhysonsax]

Are we having fun yet?

Just as long as this isn't the most fun I have on NYE, then I'll be happy.

Rhys

 

[stitch]

and "lot" is a noun.

Um yeah ... I know 😳... that sloe gin works pretty fast, and I'd only had one!

Rhys is explaining it much better than I am, but look at it this way:
there ARE lots of fixes - lots is plural, hence ARE;
there IS a lot of fixes - a lot is singular, hence IS.

Same with a number. It's singular.

 

[Stephen Howard]

Time for another update - and this time it's a review of the gorgeous King Super 20 Silversonic alto. This one's a Series IV - the last of the Cleveland-built models. Tough little sods to work on, but well worth putting the time and effort in to get the very best out of them.

King Super 20 Silversonic (Series IV) alto saxophone review

A workbench review of the King Super 20 Silversonic (Series IV) alto sax

www.shwoodwind.co.uk

 

[GCinCT]

Time for another update - and this time it's a review of the gorgeous King Super 20 Silversonic alto. This one's a Series IV - the last of the Cleveland-built models. Tough little sods to work on, but well worth putting the time and effort in to get the very best out of them.

King Super 20 Silversonic (Series IV) alto saxophone review

A workbench review of the King Super 20 Silversonic (Series IV) alto sax

www.shwoodwind.co.uk

View attachment 17676

As per usual, excellent review. I learn so much from them. I was particularly interested in this one, as my main horn is a Super 20 alto, albeit an earlier one, the series I.

 

[Stephen Howard]

Got a note from the client with the Super 20. Spent the weekend comparing it with her Conn 6m (a nice one, in good order with rolled toneholes etc.) and asked me, hopefully jokingly, if I could turn it into a lampstand.

 

[h4yn0nnym0u5e]

Got a note from the client with the Super 20. Spent the weekend comparing it with her Conn 6m (a nice one, in good order with rolled toneholes etc.) and asked me, hopefully jokingly, if I could turn it into a lampstand.

Don't worry Steve, tell her I can turn it into a lampstand for her, plus I'll re-engrave it Jollysun before I send it back. And maybe change some keywork. She'd hardly recognise it, in fact...

 

[Stephen Howard]

Don't worry Steve, tell her I can turn it into a lampstand for her, plus I'll re-engrave it Jollysun before I send it back. And maybe change some keywork. She'd hardly recognise it, in fact...

And all for a very reasonable price, too!