# Tiny errors that drive you insane **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 29, 2016, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557 "2016-02-29T19:58:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![ZPG\_Zealot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e47c2d/32.png) [@ZPG\_Zealot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZPG_Zealot)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/61 "2016-03-01T18:45:01Z")
> [@Flyer](#): > > I thought that’s what they more or less were. > > The idea that a beret is useful or practical in any sense whatsoever is utterly laughable. It keeps your head warm on a cold day and looks better (and more professional) than a ski cap How is that not useful or practical? ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/62 "2016-03-01T19:01:39Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > Yeah, that looks dorky, regardless the branch. > > Um, except in the case of the Canadian military! Then it’s sexy and tough and not the least bit stupid looking! 😉 That’s RIGHT!! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/63 "2016-03-01T19:02:17Z")
It’s and its. Their, they’re and there. It’s “Chief Justice of the United States.” It’s “the Court of St. James’s.” And you can’t be more or less unique - no modifiers. You’re unique, or you’re not. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/64 "2016-03-01T19:24:24Z")
Squealing tire noises when cars accelerate on a gravel surface. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/65 "2016-03-01T19:44:54Z")
The keyboard that I downloaded onto my phone makes typewriter noises when I press the keys. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/66 "2016-03-01T20:06:50Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > It’s “the Court of St. James’s.” Wow! A double possessive?!? :eek: I’ve never heard this!\* The logical question is, “The court of St. James’s what?” :dubious: 😕 \*I’m not puzzled by the _-'s_, just that it’s used in combination with _of_. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/67 "2016-03-01T20:15:22Z")
> [@ivylass](#): > > Should he have identified himself as US Navy Captain? I know the ranks don’t equal up (Navy Captain = Army Colonel) so I wonder how they keep the distinctions straight and give the proper respect across the services. That would have helped, I think. But such insubordination is bound to bring some wrath down upon your head in any case. ---
**Author:** ![Abner\_Ravenwood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c4cdca/32.png) [@Abner\_Ravenwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abner_Ravenwood)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/68 "2016-03-01T21:31:53Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Yeah, it’s no big deal, just a personal nerve tic. Sockets are for light fixtures, receptacles or ‘outlets’ are for walls. Is it okay to call the outlets [holes](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2bsRaBH-Os)? ---
**Author:** ![Chihuahua](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dec6dc/32.png) [@Chihuahua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chihuahua)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/69 "2016-03-01T21:59:47Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > The thing that really bugs me is that dreadful “day for night” effect, where they shoot the scene in daylight with a blue filter to simulate nighttime. Even in the hands of a skilled director, it always looks bad – in the night scenes of _Mad Max: Fury Road,_ the characters were CASTING SHADOWS, fer Cripes’ sake! It is completely possible for the moon to cast shadows at night. I have been in places, under a clear sky with a full moon, where the nighttime really did have that kind of blue look. The problem is most people are always near a light source so they never let their eyes adjust to the point where they can see the difference. As for the uniforms, there’s a few things that piss me off: 1. TV characters who wear the Mandarin collar in the raised position. 2. The guy on “Helix” who wears his uniform with a popped collar. 3. People who have no idea how a firearm operates, and clearly do the wrong thing (like first episode of “Walking Dead,” where the actor thought the slide release was the safety). FWIW, I think a properly shaped beret can look great, as does the new ASU. Of course, I also think the Napoleonic Wars represented the height of uniform perfection, so you should probably take it with a grain of salt. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/70 "2016-03-01T22:04:30Z")
Mispronunciations of any word. In this Internet Age, it is totally inexcusable. Criminal Mind’s resident genius Spencer Reid pronounced Samhain “Sam-han.” Google it, you idiot, and find out it’s correctly pronounced Sow-een. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/71 "2016-03-01T22:43:55Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Mispronunciations of any word. In this Internet Age, it is totally inexcusable. . . . Totally disagree. There are alternative pronunciations for many, many words in the English language, as well as goofy regionalisms. (e.g., the citizenry of the town of Monticello, in Utah, are viciously adamant that the pronunciation is “Monti-SELL-oh.” Do it wrong, and you will get snapped at with astonishing vituperation.) ---
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/72 "2016-03-01T22:47:13Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > I think that is because some jurisdictions require it because of the rash of upskirt and downblouse pics so that it would be impossible to quietly take those pics. Nice guess, but that’s not it. A lot of cameras (at least low-to-medium end) have a “discreet” mode where the camera is totally silent. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/73 "2016-03-01T23:02:07Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Mispronunciations of any word. In this Internet Age, it is totally inexcusable. > > Criminal Mind’s resident genius Spencer Reid pronounced Samhain “Sam-han.” Google it, you idiot, and find out it’s correctly pronounced Sow-een. He has a didactic memory for print, not sound! ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/74 "2016-03-01T23:55:51Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > Hmmm…so in my golden years I will either have to pretend to be an EX Green Barret or convert to Judaism? > > Not sure I can pull of the former…but sure as hell not giving up ham… You could be a Parisian beatnique. If you can muster the gaul. ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2016, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/75 "2016-03-02T00:03:10Z")
On TV/Movies - People who are supposed to intlligent and knowledgeable saying their IQs, like in Scorpion, like it was printed in their foreheads by a deity and it’s unchangeable and magical. - Blinking (and bleeping) screens/letters to show that a computer has finished an activity. - Lack of mouse/track use. - Not knowing how manual shifting works. - Getting second language actors to play deep-in-the-middle-of-nowhere native speakers ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2016, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/76 "2016-03-02T00:57:41Z")
> [@](#): > > Quoth **Elendil’s Heir** : > > And you can’t be more or less unique - no modifiers. You’re unique, or you’re not. What use is an adjective that applies equally to every single macroscopic object in the entire Universe? “Unique” is _only_ useful as a comparative, like “big” or “fast”. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2016, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/77 "2016-03-02T01:01:11Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > It’s and its. > > Their, they’re and there. > > It’s “Chief Justice of the United States.” > > It’s “the Court of St. James’s.” > > And you can’t be more or less unique - no modifiers. You’re unique, or you’re not. On the same note it’s attorneys-general, not attorney-generals. Lets not get started on crap like “PIN number” or “ATM machine”. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2016, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/78 "2016-03-02T01:06:13Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > Totally disagree. There are alternative pronunciations for many, many words in the English language, as well as goofy regionalisms. (e.g., the citizenry of the town of Monticello, in Utah, are viciously adamant that the pronunciation is “Monti-SELL-oh.” Do it wrong, and you will get snapped at with astonishing vituperation.) Same in Frisco. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2016, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/79 "2016-03-02T01:08:55Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Cooking: “saute” does not mean to gently cook vegetables on low temperature. That’s called “sweating”. Saute means to fry something quickly in fat. And etymologically speaking, saute means “to jump or skip,” so if you’re not jerking your wrist upwards and making the food jump in the air, it’s cheating. Or if you’re uncoordinated like me, at least giving a vigorous stir. > [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](#): > > I’m not mad it’s always a red-tailed hawk. I’m mad every freaking time they show an eagle, hawk, or falcon, they screech. > Most digital cameras, apparently still make the sound of a film camera with an autowinder. [The coconut effect](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheCoconutEffect). > [@gigi](#): > > When East Coast highways are referred to as “The ##”. It’s not just the east coast. The northern 2/3 of California does not use “the.” It’s a function of movies being made in Hollywood. > [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Mispronunciations of any word. In this Internet Age, it is totally inexcusable. In media, or in general? I hate when someone has the wherewithal to look up an easy to Google thing, but asks for the definition etc. Like the Samhain Wikipedia article uses both IPA and phonetic, but if it only had the former I’d understand a screw up, but not if you ask me what the capital of Ethiopia is when you’re in front of a computer. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2016, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/80 "2016-03-02T03:10:50Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > The keyboard that I downloaded onto my phone makes typewriter noises when I press the keys. That’s cute. > [@Chronos](#): > > What use is an adjective that applies equally to every single macroscopic object in the entire Universe? “Unique” is _only_ useful as a comparative, like “big” or “fast”. Big and fast are not comparative, and no, something cannot be partially unique; unique is an absolute. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557.md?page=5)