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I've seen this quite a bit lately, and to me it's like "orientating"; just plain wrong. more word than necessary. here's an example: "The new release has a graphical interface and shorter wait times." isn't "graphic" enough? how does anyone else feel? perhaps I'm just being a nutbucket...  I apologize if this is a YART; I tried a search, but it kept giving me geographical....
formerly known as etaoin...
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old hand
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old hand
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Might be in the same basket as (say) 'geological' c/f 'geologic'
In Australia, NZ (and the UK I believe), one refers to 'the geological history'.... whilst US papers/texts drop the 'al'.
Then there's historic/historical?
Whose to say who's correct?
stales
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"adjective: written or drawn or engraved
adjective: relating to or presented by a graph "~Onelook.com
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Carpal Tunnel
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yeah, I started to think about those... hmmm. I don't know. graphical just seems like too much. feels wrong in the mouth.
[blergh]
formerly known as etaoin...
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Carpal Tunnel
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Couldn't "graphical" be a useful way of indicating that a mixture of pictures, diagrams, and text are used?
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Carpal Tunnel
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I agree with eta--graphical: 
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Carpal Tunnel
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I think that in any of these cases, if we think about it, we'll find that there's a difference in meaning, sometimes subtle, sometimes not so subtle, between the two words. We'll also probably find that the longer term is often misused for the shorter term.
For example, historic, to me, carries a weight that historical doesn't. "This historic occasion…" vs. "the historical marker on Rte. 13 marking the site of…".
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Carpal Tunnel
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Good point, Faldage. Since graphic has come to be used so often as an indicator of violence/gore/nitty gritty in movies, I wonder if some people might be using graphical to differentiate from that connotation?
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yeah, Faldage, that's getting to what I'm thinking. I still have to wrap my head around a few more examples before I've gotten it, though... one of those times when my brain just doesn't want to follow those paths... other thoughts keep getting in the way, won't let me concentrate. Jackie, I hadn't thought of that, but you could be on to something.
formerly known as etaoin...
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Jackie, your reminder that we now use "graphic" to connote violence, sex, etc in movies and such, made me wonder why it
is we invent new meanings for old words, adapting the word to encompass something losely based in the original meaning.
Do we do this because there is no "single" word to convey the new meaning? So in our constant desire to shorten long phrases to a single word, we invent a new meaning? Or do we do out of boredom for the current words, and a desire to bring "freshness" into our language?
Not a deep query, just one I often think about.......
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