the old language question.

By vie_philipp
December 19th, 2004 @ 3:22 AM Internal
back when we started the metblog vienna, the most discussed issue was which language to use. we were the first metroblog in a non-english speaking country, and after some hefty debates that even led to some metblog authors leaving the team, we decided upon english as the language of choice. now, half a year later, we have seen some changes in the team, and other cities like istanbul and tokyo where english is not the main language joined up. i was tormenting myself over this issue for quite some time now, and i think that, after half a year of the vienna metblog running, we should use the most democratic way of deciding wether we stick to english or switch to german. so, it’s up to you now to decide, dear readers. the poll will run for as long as it takes to show a trend in what you desire. so come forward now and use the voice the internet gave to to decide!
welche sprache sollen wir verwenden? / which language should we use?

deutsch / german

6 Comments so far

  1. TH (unregistered) on December 19th, 2004 @ 12:31 pm

    I’d just mix the languages ad lib. Und auch ohne Gewissensbisse mitten im Beitrag or inside a comment.

    Meine Ami-leser (sind ja ned so viele) knabbern jdenfalls immer wieder gern an den deutschen Beitr

  2. nex (unregistered) on December 19th, 2004 @ 4:53 pm

    “i also wouldn’t object if you used languages i don’t understand.” — what a nice way to say, “i couldn’t care less what you write.”

    as i said before: i really appreciate that i can read the bangkok and tokyo blogs. of course i think it’s best if every author uses a language he/she is comfortable with, but i’d like to have the option to switch entries in the local language over to english. actually, just a summary for the english version would do.

  3. TH (unregistered) on December 19th, 2004 @ 5:41 pm

    “Express yourself in whatever way you deem appropriate” does not mean “I don’t care what you say.”

    The common use of language is the main reason for misunderstanding each other. or somesuch

  4. Daniela (unregistered) on December 19th, 2004 @ 9:44 pm

    i am up for both. course, my english sucks compared to my german, which is only natural i guess. i have to admit id be rather sad if tokyo would write in their own language. my tokyo-ish is non existant, you know.

    i think ill keep my posts english only, and throw a few german words in it. that way both are satisfied. the german and the english readers.

    the russians probably not.

    well the russians that dont speak german or english either.

    i like russians.

  5. nex (unregistered) on December 20th, 2004 @ 3:42 pm

    TH, of course i didn’t _really_ assume you would post to a site on which no one has anything to say you care about; the point i tried to make is: how _can_ you care care what someone says if you’ve got no chance of understanding it?

    when this issue first came up i was surprised that there’s such a fuss about it, because deciding between a language all of the locals are rather proficient in and some lingua franca that virtually everyone speaks at a somewhat functional level usually is a no-brainer: if everyone speaks the local language, then use it — it would be silly to struggle with the slightly more difficult choice for no good reason — but as soon as there’s just one person in the group who doesn’t speak the local language, switch to the common one — it’s not nice to be completely left out just because the majority of the group can’t be arsed to adjust to you. i’m still not sure wheter the situation here has to be any more complicated.

    of course, no one here writes like shakespeare; this is just another reason to get some practice! you’ve got a web browser in front of you, i.e. you have several large dictionaries at your fingertips!

  6. grenz (unregistered) on December 22nd, 2004 @ 3:35 pm

    i talked to quite a lot people here in the states and they’re really happy that they can read our blog.

    i like to blog in english. i also try to write my entries as non-viennese as possible. i like a) to give intersting hints to viennese people and b) try to introduce the city to non-viennese folks.

    johannes


Terms of use | Privacy Policy | Content: Creative Commons | Site and Design © 2008 | Metroblogging ® and Metblogs ® are registered trademarks of Bode Media, Inc.