EX or E.X?

[Piccolo Daimaoh]

This is sort of a minor nitpick of mine, but it's been bugging me nonetheless.

At the top of the forum where there is the Japanese letters, after the chouon (ー) there's what is basically the Japanese period for use in abbreviations and such like Mr. (ミスター・).

This would make it Daizenshuu ii・ekkusu or Daizenshuu E.X. What bugs me is that everywhere else on site it's written as Daizenshuu EX (without the period).

Would anyone be able to tell me why this is?

[Hujio]

I know I shouldn't, but I'm gonna say it... In what crazy world do you learn all this "Japanese" stuff from?

That is not a Japanese period, that's a interpunct, or a "katakana middle dot". It's used to separate two words written in katakana that appear back to back so that they don't get confused as one word. So for instance, Mister Satan is sometimes (although not always) written as 「ミスター・サタン」.

Example:
俺はミスター・サタン。
Ore wa Misutaa Satan.
I'm Mister Satan.

Notice the difference between the interpunct and the period?

Anyway, the way it is written above in the forum logo is completely acceptable, and correct. The reason it is written that way is to convey the fact that each letter, the "E" and the "X", are pronounced individually and not as one word. If they were to be pronounced as one word, like the letter "X", then the katakana would just be written as 「エックス」 (ekkusu). So there ya go.

[Piccolo Daimaoh]

I know I shouldn't, but I'm gonna say it... In what crazy world do you learn all this "Japanese" stuff from?

The thing is, I wasn't actually taught about "katakana middle dots". I just thought that was it's job based on seeing it in ミスター・. I'll try to not guess Japanese stuff in the future.

That is not a Japanese period, that's a interpunct, or a "katakana middle dot". It's used to separate two words written in katakana that appear back to back so that they don't get confused as one word. So for instance, Mister Satan is sometimes (although not always) written as 「ミスター・サタン」.

Example:
俺はミスター・サタン。
Ore wa Misutaa Satan.
I'm Mister Satan.

Notice the difference between the interpunct and the period?

I am fully aware of what a Japanese period looks like. I just didn't know what to call that thing in ミスター・.

Anyway, the way it is written above in the forum logo is completely acceptable, and correct. The reason it is written that way is to convey the fact that each letter, the "E" and the "X", are pronounced individually and not as one word. If they were to be pronounced as one word, like the letter "X", then the katakana would just be written as 「エックス」 (ekkusu). So there ya go.

Thank you. This was the answer I was looking for.

[Herms]

Actually, it is somewhat odd that the interpunct is there. It's not used in the katakana spelling for the "EX" in the Street Fighter EX series, which is simply イーエックス. And it doesn't really seem to be used in kana spellings for similar abbreviations, like DC Comics (ディーシー), A.D. Police (エーディー), GTO (ジーティーオー), or, last (and probably least), DragonBall GT (じーてぃー)

[Amigo Ten]

The E and X are supposed to be pronounced separately? That's news to me.

[Metalwario64]

Never listened to the podcast?

[EDIT] el correcto my languago.

[Hujio]

Actually, it is somewhat odd that the interpunct is there. It's not used in the katakana spelling for the "EX" in the Street Fighter EX series, which is simply イーエックス. And it doesn't really seem to be used in kana spellings for similar abbreviations, like DC Comics (ディーシー), A.D. Police (エーディー), GTO (ジーティーオー), or, last (and probably least), DragonBall GT (じーてぃー)

But while it may be odd, it's still perfectly acceptable. Although, I know on the main site there is no interpunct. So the one on the forum may just be a screw-up? Either way, I think it's fine.

[Amigo Ten]

Never watched the podcast?

No.

[VegettoEX]

The E and X are supposed to be pronounced separately? That's news to me.

It they weren't, it would be "Ex" or just simply "X"... though that misunderstanding was another reason why Julian tossed the kana into the logo.

[Kendamu]

I do have to admit, though, that DAIZENSHUU X does have a nice over-the-top 90s comic book "X-TREME!!!" feel to it, though. Maybe next April Fool's you can go that route and make your site all dark looking and talk about how the dub music is cool or something.

[Gaffer Tape]

I don't know how many years went by before I realized that they were pronounced separately, and I was pronouncing the site Daizenshuu X. Now I can't even fathom that pronounciation without it feeling weird and out of place.

[RoarkVegeta]

Completely off-topic, but I was listening to an old episode of the podcast yesterday, and Mike (during his Pokeymans craze) called the site "Daizenshuu ii・ekans" . Sorry, but I thought it was hilarious.

And metalwario64, you can't watch a podcast .

[VegettoEX]

And metalwario64, you can't watch a podcast .

Well, you can... just not our show...

Though we have done some original video content before...!

[wannywan]

I just couldn't help it... Mike, it's though as in flow...

Didn't you invent the rules?

[edit] Just to be on topic as well as a snide remark , I've always pronounced it E X in English, just as you would with two consecutive capital letters, full stops (periods) or not.

[VegettoEX]

I just couldn't help it... Mike, it's though as in flow...

Didn't you invent the rules?

God dammit >.<

[Metalwario64]

And metalwario64, you can't watch a podcast .

Elementary my dear Watson... For you are simply picking knits!

[SaiyaJedi]

Incidentally, the interpunct is a cause of a mistake that my students make all the time in their writing. They assume that a period in an initialism works the same way as the interpunct, and only put periods between the letters -- never after. You get things like:

U.S.A
F.B.I
U.K

...and so on. And no matter how many times I correct this error with red ink, it just doesn't want to go away...

(The technical term for knowledge of one's native language interfering with learning a foreign language is called -- you guessed it -- "interference". The big one with Japanese-speakers is, of course, katakana pronunciation, but there are plenty of others, such as SOV grammar, using English words with their Japanese sense, and unnecessarily vague/indirect constructions.)

[/teacher rant]