[Ads-l] A quick review of the new OED.com

[Cohen, Gerald Leonard]

I just logged onto the online OED (via my university
subscription to it); I was trying to find the first
attestation of the term bikini.

My reaction was mixed. I appreciate now having a way to communicate suggestions to the editors for improvements
to existing entries, but I also feel dismay.  The previous overall format of the dictionary was transparent and straightforward, whereas the present one calls for special training.

But consulting an item in a dictionary should not call for
special training. What was once totally easy now presents challenges, and from my perspective, very unnecessarily.

Gerald Cohen
Research specialty: Etymology


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