Paper Dictionaries

[SamScribble]

I recently heard a bloke on the radio lamenting the demise of the paper dictionary. ‘School kids don’t use them anymore,’ he said. ‘In fact, I’m not sure who does. A friend of mine tried to trade a couple of dictionaries in at a second-hand bookshop, and they told him to take them away.’

The bloke on the radio also said that, apparently, the producers of The Oxford English Dictionary have not yet decided if they will actually print their next edition. They may decide to make it available online only. Given that the last edition (1989) was 20 volumes, I can understand why they are thinking that way.

I have a whole shelf of paper dictionaries. And I have a seriously-thumbed edition of The Concise Oxford Dictionary sitting on the left hand side of my desk at all times. I refer to it at least two or three times a day. I also have a two volume paper version of The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary. Those two volumes are consulted perhaps once a week. Chambers, Collins, Webster’s, and a now-slightly-aged Funk & Wagnall are also called upon from time to time.

Who among you takes comfort in your paper dictionary?

 

[NotWise]

I recently heard a bloke on the radio lamenting the demise of the paper dictionary. ‘School kids don’t use them anymore,’ he said. ‘In fact, I’m not sure who does. A friend of mine tried to trade a couple of dictionaries in at a second-hand bookshop, and they told him to take them away.’

The bloke on the radio also said that, apparently, the producers of The Oxford English Dictionary have not yet decided if they will actually print their next edition. They may decide to make it available online only. Given that the last edition (1989) was 20 volumes, I can understand why they are thinking that way.

I have a whole shelf of paper dictionaries. And I have a seriously-thumbed edition of The Concise Oxford Dictionary sitting on the left hand side of my desk at all times. I refer to it at least two or three times a day. I also have a two volume paper version of The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary. Those two volumes are consulted perhaps once a week. Chambers, Collins, Webster’s, and a now-slightly-aged Funk & Wagnall are also called upon from time to time.

Who among you takes comfort in your paper dictionary?

I don't, unless you count nostalgia.

I can remember when I was in my teens leafing through a dictionary that sat on a pedestal at the end of a narrow aisle in the public library. There was a window over it and that familiar aroma of old books all around. The full Oxford Dictionary was on a lower shelf to the right. It (I don't remember how many volumes--many, maybe 15?) had rather plain, gray bindings.

The words and their histories intrigued me. I would start with the huge open volume. If that didn't satisfy me then I would dig into the Oxford. I often dug into the Oxford. Who knew that words had such history? I didn't.

Now I can type "define existenctialism" into my browser. It corrects my spelling and gives me a definition. Or thirty definitions. The page is not a limiting factor.

Just the same, I will never forget standing at the end of that narrow aisle with the warm sunlight falling on my arms as I paged through that huge, old volume. I will never forget pulling out the Oxford and being enthralled by page after page of history.

But then,that's just nostalgia.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Still check my Concise Oxford from time to time. I can find the word flicking pages faster than I can click type type type click click online. 'Specially during power failures...

 

[FknNemesis]

They're really nice to have. I have several in several languages and the Dutch ones I grew up with benefit prime estate on one of the most prominent bookshelves at mine.

But they've become just that.

Something would be amiss if I didn't spot them on any given day and I would still buy an Encyclopædia Britannica to be on the shelf next to the Winkler Prins but mainly out of nostalgia and... because I can.


Nothing beats the fast access the digital world offers with everything just a keystroke or a long hold and tap away.

 

[Handley_Page]

The only reason I use the on-line stuff is because, all too often, American Slang is used.
Hardly unusual, when the Browsers are from US firms.
And no, I cannot call to mind alll the sources; I have to dig real deep to find things. The online "Miriam Webster" is a bit too cursive for my taste.

But I have an concise Oxford in my PC, a Longmans in my briefcase, a Collins on the shelf in the Living Room (ideal for Scrabble), and a two-volume shorter Oxford.

 

[ThisNameIsntTakenYet]

I do have a few paper dictionaries, both in Dutch and English and a few for translation from and to Dutch for some popular languages like English, German and French. I had to buy them when I went to high school and they have been collecting dust on the shelves ever since. Rarely use them, an online dictionary or translation service is a lot faster and has lots of different results that aren't available in regular dictionaries (slang for example, which was mentioned already). I'm a huge fan of the online version of the Oxford Dictionary at www.oxforddictionaries.com though.

 

[oggbashan]

I use a modern Concise Oxford frequently. I have an old one-volume Shorter Oxford as a stand below my screem, together with volume one A-Cornpatch of the Oxford Dictionary of American English - the only volume I have of that set.

I have a modern 2-volume Oxford Shorter with several Oxford Dictionaries of Quotations.

Downstairs I have the photographically reduced complete Oxford Dictionary and full academic dictionaries of French, German, Italian and Spanish with smaller dictionaries for other European languages.

My most used dictionaries after the Concise Oxford are the Dictionary of Historical Slang and my collection of 50 or so Baby Name books.

 

[NaokoSmith]

I have a number of paper dictionaries, including an old Compact Oxford Dictionary in two volumes with tiny writing and a drawer that has its own magnifying glass for reading the words with. I used to love poring through it and finding the derivation of words as well as their meaning, although now I admit that I just look online.

This is my favourite paper dictionary though. I actually want an old Latin book to cut up and use as decoupage on my library chair, but can't bear to do that to this one even though it would be most appropriate as I bought the chair with money my aunt - who used to be a Latin teacher - kindly sent me. Even though it's falling apart, the book is complete and it's so clearly been thoroughly used by careless schoolboys or zealous parsons, I want to keep using it. I do look things up in it occasionally!

 

[oggbashan]

My main Latin Dictionary is a large format Lewis and Shortt.

My favourite Latin book is early 19th Century. It is a much thumbed and ink stained pocket size volume of extracts from the Vulgate Bible edited for and used by Eton schoolboys.

 

[FknNemesis]

Hardly unusual, when the Browsers are from US firms.

A good browser is supposed to use the system language.

One of the things I enjoyed most when switching from Windows to Mac around a decade ago was the built-in dictionary. Which luckily is expandable.

The online "Miriam Webster" is ...

... becoming worse every week. I ditched my self-configured [m]+[tab]+[query] = search M-W: [query] I think 3 or 4 years ago now. Seems it went downhill when the iOS apps were expanded with word games. Although I still have the app just because of the games.

 

[NaokoSmith]

My favourite Latin book is early 19th Century. It is a much thumbed and ink stained pocket size volume of extracts from the Vulgate Bible edited for and used by Eton schoolboys.

It sounds charming! Have you got photos?

 

[HandsInTheDark]

I couldn't get away from paper dictionaries fast enough. Having spell check built into every application I use has been life changing, and if I had to flip through a bunch of paper to check word spelling, I probably wouldn't write fiction. In the rare cases I want to dig into a word's history, there's usually enough information online to satisfy curiosity.

I've occasionally toyed with buying a subscription to the OED, but so far the $300/year is just too much for something I'd want so rarely.

I'm not in love with words. I'm in love with what I can make words do.

 

[lovecraft68]

I still use a paper dictionary and for the same reason I still read paperbacks and actual comic books and graphic novels. Its what I grew up with and I like to hold a book and I don't want to be like the millennials who are literally helpless without their phone of computer.

I guess I like to 'work' for things still. It keeps the mind sharp and be dependent on the net. I want to be able to think not be a parrot who asks his phone everything.

Its always been said humans use a fraction of their brain. People born after 1995 or so are using a fraction of that fraction. Not their fault, they're not taught any differently.

 

[oggbashan]

A good browser is supposed to use the system language.

One of the things I enjoyed most when switching from Windows to Mac around a decade ago was the built-in dictionary. Which luckily is expandable.

...

Many years ago I used to have a French language notebook that used DOS. It had dBase, SuperCalc and WordStar as plug in chips. It was that old!

For DOS and the applications the operating commands were in French. But if something went seriously wrong the French error messages defaulted to English.

Even worse was the secretarial word processing system used by the typists and secretaries. The software company was taken over by a Norwegian company. Soon afterwards they installed an upgraded version.

I knew I was in deep shit when the error messages were in Norwegian.

My first owned PC was an IBM XT with mono screen and 10mb hard drive. I was using WordStar. As I upgraded to AT and beyond I used WordStar 2000+. That had a built in dictionary that could be customised. My 'custom' additions were twice the size of the original dictionary.

 

[NOIRTRASH]

We did our part when we invented the dictionary, my ancestor was Samuel Johnson's uncle, and a book maker like Sam's daddy, Michael. But I digress.

I cant read print so digital print is how I must go.

But Allah help us if WiFi goes away.

 

[eric60red]

Dicktioneries

I would not be without one in spite of spell check and Grammarly. I have an Oxford Dictionary by my right hand all the time and a Franklin wordmaster in case the spelling is incorrect, or I can't remember the word.

 

[Penuche]

I probably have more paper dictionaries than most people on here, just because the bus trip to the nearest liberary to check the foreign language ones in the reference section is a timeconsuming nuisance.

Favourites for learning from are the illustrated DK paperbacks.

For some strange reason, Polish-English and the other way around takes 2 wristbreaking hardback volumes while the French and German equivalents only need one.

BTW they're not only used for reference, they make useful doorstops, hot pan rests, anvils (yes, really), pressing weights, and improvised steps.

 

[ThisNameIsntTakenYet]

BTW they're not only used for reference, they make useful doorstops, hot pan rests, anvils (yes, really), pressing weights, and improvised steps.

It was more or less normal until you mentioned anvils XD
Something made of flammable paper wouldn't be my first choice to use to bend red-hot iron. Even a pan rest sounds a bit weird to me. Oh well, who am I to judge what people do with their books in the comfort of their own homes.

 

[HandsInTheDark]

My first owned PC was an IBM XT with mono screen and 10mb hard drive. I was using WordStar. As I upgraded to AT and beyond I used WordStar 2000+.

You had a PC? We had to carry our bits to the kitchen blender by hand. Pulse was for number crunching and Puree was for word processing. You had to scrape the data out with a spoon, and hand-correct the parity errors.

Somewhat more seriously, my first system was a Z-80 CP/M based system sold by DEC. It predated the PC. 8" floppies and had text editing best described as rudimentary. I wrote tools in BASIC to make word processing easier. It didn't matter how much it sucked - it was a *computer* I could have at *home*. No more dialing into mainframes at 1200 baud!

My current laptop - a bit of a dinosaur now - runs at a conservative estimate about 10,000 times faster, has 125,000 times as much memory and stores about 10,000,000 times as much data. My connection to the outside world is about 150,000 times faster. Nudes are now rendered in 24 bit color, not ascii art, and audio has a range of 16Hz to 19,000Hz instead of one beep at 1200Hz.

Everything is too easy.

 

[Penuche]

It was more or less normal until you mentioned anvils XD
Something made of flammable paper wouldn't be my first choice to use to bend red-hot iron. <snip>

I do wirework (mostly bronze or brass, because they're more affordable to practise with), and hardening the wire is done by repeatedly hitting the worked wire, while it's cold, on an anvil.

 

[oggbashan]

You had a PC? We had to carry our bits to the kitchen blender by hand. Pulse was for number crunching and Puree was for word processing. You had to scrape the data out with a spoon, and hand-correct the parity errors.

Somewhat more seriously, my first system was a Z-80 CP/M based system sold by DEC. It predated the PC. 8" floppies and had text editing best described as rudimentary. I wrote tools in BASIC to make word processing easier. It didn't matter how much it sucked - it was a *computer* I could have at *home*. No more dialing into mainframes at 1200 baud!

My current laptop - a bit of a dinosaur now - runs at a conservative estimate about 10,000 times faster, has 125,000 times as much memory and stores about 10,000,000 times as much data. My connection to the outside world is about 150,000 times faster. Nudes are now rendered in 24 bit color, not ascii art, and audio has a range of 16Hz to 19,000Hz instead of one beep at 1200Hz.

Everything is too easy.

My first computer was in 1963 - an IBM 1401 mainframe driven by punch cards. I wrote programs for it in machine code because using a programming language slowed it down.

I was the system manager and relief programmer. I had a staff of 25 women as machine operators/punch card entry typists. They taught me more than !BM did.

We operated that system 18 hours a day for seven days a week.

 

[ThisNameIsntTakenYet]

I do wirework (mostly bronze or brass, because they're more affordable to practise with), and hardening the wire is done by repeatedly hitting the worked wire, while it's cold, on an anvil.

Ah, that makes a lot more sense. My bad for immediately thinking about swords and stuff.

My first computer was in 1963 - an IBM 1401 mainframe driven by punch cards. I wrote programs for it in machine code because using a programming language slowed it down.

I was the system manager and relief programmer. I had a staff of 25 women as machine operators/punch card entry typists. They taught me more than !BM did.

We operated that system 18 hours a day for seven days a week.

I'm currently studying to become a computer programmer and program a lot in my free time. Mostly high-level languages like C# and Java, but I happen to have a little bit of experience with Assembly, which is about as low a level as I have ever worked with. A computer like that sounds like an interesting challenge. I figure programming was really different (and arguably harder) in the early days.

 

[FknNemesis]

Many years ago I used to have a French language notebook that used DOS. It had dBase, SuperCalc and WordStar as plug in chips. It was that old!

For DOS and the applications the operating commands were in French. But if something went seriously wrong the French error messages defaulted to English.
...
I knew I was in deep shit when the error messages were in Norwegian.

My first owned PC was an IBM XT with mono screen and 10mb hard drive. I was using WordStar. As I upgraded to AT and beyond I used WordStar 2000+. That had a built in dictionary that could be customised. My 'custom' additions were twice the size of the original dictionary.

Somewhat more seriously, my first system was a Z-80 CP/M based system sold by DEC. It predated the PC. 8" floppies and had text editing best described as rudimentary. I wrote tools in BASIC to make word processing easier. It didn't matter how much it sucked - it was a *computer* I could have at *home*. No more dialing into mainframes at 1200 baud!

I may or may not be old enough for most of that. Or maybe I was just a young starter. *eyeroll*

My father was a bit of a closet nerd [in denial], we had a Philips Videopac G7000 [Magnavox Odyssey] and VIC-20. How can one not be a nerd with that at home while even not 30. Yet he will never admit to being a nerd lol.

Anyway... he caught the Commodore bug maybe a little too heavily and thus we were rather slow with the adaptation of the PC, as the C64 and C128 ruled for him (still annoyed I never got to use an Amiga 1000!).
I vaguely recall we had one of the later IBM AT machines but for some reason, having gone full nerd at young age it wasn't until we got our 486-SX that I became interested in computers again.

I had gone full nerd myself and learned BASIC on the C64. I blame Multiplan Facile (easy - my a$$) for my IT intermezzo (I worked almost a year trying to turn that spreadsheet into a 'DB' for something my dad did, much in vain obviously).

When I returned we had Windows 3.0 already. Other than CD-ROMs with dictionaries and encyclopaedias, it would be until I switched to Mac that I discovered the beauty of selecting a word and hitting a hotkey and having 'lookup' results. Maybe Windows had that too but I've always been a CLI person. Even now I use Alfred.app to query google, start timers, and what not.

Plus I just preferred the touch of paper... I was that kid who spent many a rainy school free Wednesday afternoons on his bed surrounded by multiple tomes of the Winkler Prins.



While I'm not too keen on the Prisma dictionary (Van Dale, sort it that already) I just love having access to all these merely a keystroke away (Command-Control-D). That hotkey totally replaced my walk to the shelf.

http://i.imgur.com/QYojWnk.png?1


PS: My age is not yet the answer to life. So I missed pretty much everything before VIC-20 and even for the VIC-20 I may have been considered too young. Never worked with a mainframe until end 90s when a major SP500 company who had contracted me still had operational relics in their production environment.

 

[legerdemer]

I have a small paper Merriam-Webster at work that gets used about once or twice a week. Home, a hardback M-W alongside a Concise OED - these get used about once a month or so. Plus three or four English-to-other language (and vice versa) dictionaries that I rarely use now. But my favorite is my father's Larousse, from which I first learned French while looking up all the characters in Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After, etc. I remember this old friend fondly - it kept me plenty of company, taught me some French (and British) history, and was kilometers better than looking through the phone book while waiting for my parents to get back from work. And if this doesn't date me...

 

[R. Richard]

Some years back, I used an old (Merriam Webster?) dictionary that described an aardvark as, "a nocturnal, burrowing animal with large ears, a long tubular snout and an heavy tail that eats ants."
I was impressed that the aardvark tail ate ants.