Caps Lock Poll

I use it when I have to tell off some script kiddies on IRC :P

I USE CAPS LOCK ALL THE TIME, HERE AT WORK.

The Federal Government does or used to do all it’s press releases in capitals. I used to use it for things I had to read out loud - just found caps easier to read for some reason.

The Caps Lock key is the bane of ISP tech support…easily 75 percent of the “It wont take my password/username etc.” calls are a result of this fiendish key. And not only is it big, but it is located between two much more useful, and more often used keys - Tab and Shift. This of course leads to accidental deployments which are undetected due to the dots or asterisks which populate the password field as the end-user types.

Ok, here’s an opportunity to ask a question I’ve long wondered about (and I know there are lawyers who read this site):

Why are legal documents (such as software lisence agreements) always written in all-caps? It makes there terribly hard to read. Is there a historical reason for this?

Often I’ll use Caps Lock when inserting comments or changes into a story I’m sending back to an editor. It helps editors find small or subtle changes. Apparently something called the “compare” function in MS Word will compare two texts and highlight the changes, and people who use this feature and imagine that the whole world does too tend to encounter my strings of caps and conclude I’m a twit.

All caps can be used in portions of a legal document to highlight particular importance. Comes out of the railway ticket cases which led to the red hand rule and the current expression in caps.

Document aesthetics can be quite important for those who read copy for a living, like CBC radio reporters and announcers. Generally at CBC Saskatchewan all our scripts are typed in upper and lower case. Newsreaders always print in full caps (even if they don’t type in full caps) simply because our printer is configured this way and it’s easier to see. Our local show scripts are usually printed in upper and lower case. There is one associate producer who types all scripts in upper case, which always lead me, when proofreading, to read them in a loud voice, almost yelling.

Alan said: “All caps can be used in portions of a legal document to highlight particular importance.”

I appreciate the answer Alan, and I wont hold you responsible - but BOOOO!!! All caps is a terrible way to show importance and has a huge sacrifice in readablity. Bold and italic work much better - as they font designers take these into account.

I have lobbied tirelessly for 8 years before the law societies of Canada for them to accept MS Works Kids Bold 16 font as the means to give this notice. I feel your pain.

If all caps is a “huge sacrifice in readablity” then why do newsreaders print scripts in all caps?

i USE IT ALL THE TIME BY BLOODY ACCIDENT.
Although there are ways of turning it off, it would be handy to have it for the rare occasions when it is useful - eg UK post codes or CASE SENSITIVE stuff