I'm looking for a free online grammar checker.  I would like a list of
10.  If there aren't too many I would consider online grammar checkers
that charge a fee.  But they all must be online.
Thanks,
Mediatek01

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Request for Question Clarification by easterangel-ga on 24 Jul 2003 16:47 PDT

Hi! Do you want a machine based checker (like the function in MS Word)
or human checkers will be fine as well?

Thanks!

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Request for Question Clarification by justaskscott-ga on 24 Jul 2003 18:00 PDT

Would my answer to the following question be a sufficient answer to your question?

"Q: Best Grammar Site(s) on the Web"
Google Answers
http://answers.google.com/answers/main?cmd=threadview&id=179384

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Clarification of Question by mediatek01-ga on 25 Jul 2003 06:20 PDT

Hi easterangel-ga,
I was looking for machine-based checkers only.

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Clarification of Question by mediatek01-ga on 25 Jul 2003 06:22 PDT

Hi justaskscott-ga,
It would answer my question.  I had a hard time finding an online
grammer checker and this post explains why.  Post it as an answer and
I will reward you.

Thanks!

Hi mediatek01-ga,

As you have requested, here is a repost of my answer to "Q: Best
Grammar Site(s) on the Web":

I have not found an authoritative ranking of the best grammar
checkers.  The reason is probably that many experts view grammar
checkers as, at best, reasonably good, and at worst, inappropriate for
the typical user.  The Google Directory page on grammar (and spelling)
software contains links to three reviews that indicate the range of
criticisms.
 
"Arts > Writers Resources > Software > Spelling and Grammar" 
Google Directory 
http://directory.google.com/Top/Arts/Writers_Resources/Software/Spelling_and_Grammar/
 
"MS Word's grammar and style check: A step-by-step customization
guide", by Ron Scheer
Say What You Mean on the Web 
http://www.ronscheer.com/html/readingroom17.html 
 
"Do grammar checkers work?", by Yu Hong Wei and Graham Davies (1996) 
Camsoft Educational Software 
http://www.camsoftpartners.co.uk/euro96b.htm 
 
"Computer Grammar Checkers and Teaching ESL Writing", by C.J. Wong
(1996)
Chi James Wong's Home Page 
http://tiger.coe.missouri.edu/~cjw/portfolio/grammar-checker.htm 
 
Of course, two of these articles are seven years old, and so you might
hope that the situation has improved.  But recent articles are also
critical.

"Evaluating Grammar Checkers", by Daniel Kies 
Papyr.com 
http://papyr.com/hypertextbooks/engl_126/gramchek.htm 
 
"Grammar checkers helpful or harmful?", by Russell Shaw (07/15/2002) 
USA TODAY 
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2002/07/15/tech-grammar-full.htm 
 
However, if you are aware of the limitations, these articles also
suggest that grammar checkers can be of some use.
 
A few of these articles consider the grammar checkers bundled into
Microsoft Word and WordPerfect.  If you have worked with these
programs, then I presume that you are familiar with these grammar
checkers already.  If not, you might want to check them out, despite
the shortcomings mentioned in the articles.

In the absence of authoritative comparative reviews, a reasonable
measure of popularity and credibility is PageRank in the Google
Directory category for grammar software (cited earlier).  There are
two grammar checkers specifically mentioned in that category: Grammar
Slammer and Grammarian.

Grammar Slammer and Grammarian are also popular downloads for grammar
software on Download.com, a reputable software download site.

"Search results for grammar" 
Download.com [CNET] 
http://download.com.com/3120-20-0-1-4.html?qt=grammar 
 
Grammar Slammer is available from English Plus+. 
 
"Grammar Slammer" 
English Plus+ 
http://englishplus.com/gramslam.htm 
 
Grammarian (a Macintosh program) was discontinued by its original
maker.  However, it is still being produced by Linguasoft.
 
"Discontinuation of Grammarian X and Grammarian 2" 
Casady & Greene
http://www.casadyg.com/products/grammarian/2/default.html 

Linguisoft 
http://www.linguisoft.com/ 
 
Another popular download, which I have also come across on some pages
mentioning grammar checkers, is Grammatica, available for English or
French texts from Ultralingua.  You can view information on the
Windows and Mac versions here:

"Grammatica Grammar Checker (English): Windows 95, 98, 2000, Me, NT,
XP"
Ultralingua 
http://www.ultralingua.com/prodinfo/wingrame.html 
 
"Grammatica Grammar Checker (English): Macintosh OS 10.x" 
Ultralingua
http://www.ultralingua.com/prodinfo/macgrame.html 

Finally, I should mention a style checker, mentioned on several pages
that discuss grammar checkers.  StyleWriter checks not only for
grammar, but also for style -- for example, for wordy phrases or
complex words.  It is available from My Byline Media.

StyleWriter 
http://www.stylewriter-usa.com/ 
 
I hope that this information is helpful. 
 
- justaskscott-ga 
 
 
Search terms used on Google: 
 
grammar [also searched for this term in Google Directory] 
"grammar checkers" 
"grammar checker" 
linguisoft 
stylewriter