Re: Proper Names - Definition

But that is comparing my forum grammar with finished art grammar is it
not?




No, I'm comparing your insistence on the correct use of capitals for proper nouns with your much more relaxed attitude towards correct spelling.

But, seeing as how you continue to try to connect your bad spelling with the deliberate use of lowercase in logos, I will say that I am more bothered by the former than I am by the latter. In fact, as I've said, the latter doesn't bother me at all.

Forum posts and company logos are both attempts to communicate to a target group, and just as you gain an impression of "not particularly accurate" service from Halfords because of their logo (I'm not clear what "less accurate" service is, but I take it that it's not good), I form an impression of you based on your spelling.

You were right not to be hopeful Dominic, sorry, but I'm still lost with
that one.




That's obvious by the fact that you then go on to say "I reckon in general for the purposes of this discussion you could replace the word 'art' in my posts with 'design'". The whole point of this particular sidebar was that you had asked if you had ever stated or implied that designing was art. Now, you turn round and confirm exactly what you had apparently just been disputing. In summary, the discussion was as follows:

* You equated design with art.

* I said that I didn't agree that design was art.

* You asked where you'd said that design was art, apparently because you were now saying that design wasn't art.

* In answer, I pointed to your previous comments.

* You said you didn't understand the discussion, but we could take your comments on "art" to be referring to design.

Well, I should be their target market because I have a car and I also
restore cars as a hobby.




So you have a car and restore cars? So what? What we call "boy racers" over here may well spend far more on their cars than you ever will and maybe that's who they're appealing to. As I've said before, I imagine they did some research and tested the logo before introducing it.

You see, my argument is that this use of lower case for proper names may
have some rare, very rare, times when it actually makes sense, but on
the whole I think this myriad use of the effect has no sense to it other
than fashion.




Not fashion but effect. Lowercase evokes a different response than uppercase. We're all very aware of the response it evokes in you, but you don’t seem to want to accept that not everyone feels the same.

Well, that's a fair point if I had loads of time to discuss this and I
didn't think we were boring the socks off other people on this board ...




Nobody is forced to read this thread. If they're bored by it, then they just shouldn't read it.

that's rather harsh isn't it? Am I expected to know every rule regarding
the proper use of capitals?




When you're criticising the deliberate use of lowercase for proper nouns, I don't think it's asking too much for you to know that "English" is a proper noun and therefore takes a capital.

What I meant by that politician comparison was when we get onto other
subjects ... and hence getting away from the original question.




Well, what you wrote was "Do you know, I think you'd make a darn good politician. They are excellent at answering questions and sticking to the point (cough)."

"Getting away from the original question" was the point of the last part of your statement, but the clear implication of "They are excellent at answering questions" was that I was not answering your questions. And when I first asked you what questions I had not answered, you didn't take the opportunity to say that's not what you meant; instead, you repeated a question I'd already answered. So, are you now saying I have answered your questions? If not, which ones have I missed?