Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your Factoid shopping experience:
1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the Factoid offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of Factoid at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.
2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about
3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a Factoid? Wrong! If the Factoid is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.
4. Questions - Got a question about Factoid then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....
5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling Factoid? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about Factoid and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.
6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Factoid wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.
7. Feedback - happy with your Factoid then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.
8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Factoid site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site
9. Contact - got a question about Factoid, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.
10. Payment - ready to pay for your Factoid, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.
, Australia, is often incorrectly referred to as the largest city in the world by area., Canada, was never designated by UNESCO as the world's most multicultural cityA
factoid is a spurious (unverified, incorrect, or invented) "fact" intended to create or prolong public exposure or to manipulate public opinion.It appears in the
Oxford English Dictionary as "something which becomes accepted as fact, although it may not be true", namely a speculation or an assumption.The term was neologism by Norman Mailer in his
1973 biography of Marilyn Monroe.Mailer described a factoid as "facts which have no existence before appearing in a magazine or newspaper", and created the word by combining the word
fact and the ending
-oid to mean "like a fact". The Word Detective (October 18 2000)'Factoids rule -- a "factoid" being the playful invention of novelist Norman Mailer, who defined a "factoid" as something that looks like a fact, could be a fact, but in fact is not a fact.' (Wesley Pruden, Editorial in
Washington Times)]
There are strong connections between factoids and urban legends.
Examples
- Many residents of the Australian city of Mount Isa, Queensland believe that their city, in terms of its area, is the world's largest or second largest. In reality Mount Isa, Queensland is the largest city in Australia, but there are several cities around the world with larger incorporated areas. Their own local council web site incorrectly suggests it is the second largest city on earth. Mount Isa City Council page suggesting their city is the second largest city in the world
- The media in Canada have often reported that the city of Toronto was named by UNESCO as the most multicultural city in the world. Although there have been some reports suggesting that Toronto may be one of the world's most diverse cities (see Demographics of Toronto), the United Nations agency has never designated any city as being the most multicultural or diverse.{{cite web
| url = http://ceris.metropolis.net/PolicyMatter/2004/PolicyMatters11.pdf| title = The Anatomy of an Urban Legend: Toronto's Multicultural Reputation| author = Michael J. Doucet| publisher = CERIS - Metropolis Toronto Centre of Excellence for Research on Immigration and Settlement| date = October 2004| accessdate = 2007-05-23--> Nonetheless, the belief in this status persisted for years, even finding its way onto UNESCO's own web site, UNESCO Best Practices for Human Settlements: Metro Toronto's Changing Communities into the pages of the The New York TimesClyde H. Farnsworth, "Toronto Journal: To Battle Bigots, Help from South of the Border," New York Times, Friday, 12 February 1993, 4. and
The Economist,
City of diversity, Economist City Guide: Toronto, (retrieved May 24, 2007) and into international media reports in respect of Toronto's two Olympic Games bids.
Other meaning
The word
factoid is now sometimes also used to mean a small piece of
true but valueless or insignificant information, in contrast to the original definition. This has been popularized by the CNN Headline News TV channel, which, during the
1980s and
1990s, used to frequently include such a fact under the heading "factoid" during newscasts. In the United Kingdom,
BBC Radio 2 presenter
Steve Wright uses factoids extensively on his show.
As a result of confusion over the meaning of factoid, some English-language style and usage guides recommend against its use. Language expert William Safire in his
On Language column advocated the use of the word
factlet to express a "little bit of arcana"William Safire, "On Language; Only the Factoids," New York Times, Sunday, 5 December
1993..
Footnotes
See also
External links
- Cyclopedia of Factoids
- Gullible.info, Compendium of Factoids
, Australia, is often incorrectly referred to as the largest city in the world by area.,
Canada, was never designated by
UNESCO as the world's most multicultural cityA
factoid is a spurious (unverified, incorrect, or invented) "fact" intended to create or prolong public exposure or to manipulate public opinion.It appears in the Oxford English Dictionary as "something which becomes accepted as fact, although it may not be true", namely a speculation or an assumption.The term was neologism by Norman Mailer in his
1973 biography of
Marilyn Monroe.Mailer described a factoid as "facts which have no existence before appearing in a magazine or newspaper", and created the word by combining the word
fact and the ending
-oid to mean "like a fact". The Word Detective (
October 18 2000)'Factoids rule -- a "factoid" being the playful invention of novelist Norman Mailer, who defined a "factoid" as something that looks like a fact, could be a fact, but in fact is not a fact.' (
Wesley Pruden, Editorial in
Washington Times)]
There are strong connections between factoids and urban legends.
Examples
- Many residents of the Australian city of Mount Isa, Queensland believe that their city, in terms of its area, is the world's largest or second largest. In reality Mount Isa, Queensland is the largest city in Australia, but there are several cities around the world with larger incorporated areas. Their own local council web site incorrectly suggests it is the second largest city on earth. Mount Isa City Council page suggesting their city is the second largest city in the world
- The media in Canada have often reported that the city of Toronto was named by UNESCO as the most multicultural city in the world. Although there have been some reports suggesting that Toronto may be one of the world's most diverse cities (see Demographics of Toronto), the United Nations agency has never designated any city as being the most multicultural or diverse.{{cite web
| url = http://ceris.metropolis.net/PolicyMatter/2004/PolicyMatters11.pdf| title = The Anatomy of an Urban Legend: Toronto's Multicultural Reputation| author = Michael J. Doucet| publisher = CERIS - Metropolis Toronto Centre of Excellence for Research on Immigration and Settlement| date = October 2004| accessdate = 2007-05-23--> Nonetheless, the belief in this status persisted for years, even finding its way onto UNESCO's own web site, UNESCO Best Practices for Human Settlements: Metro Toronto's Changing Communities into the pages of the
The New York TimesClyde H. Farnsworth, "Toronto Journal: To Battle Bigots, Help from South of the Border," New York Times, Friday, 12 February 1993, 4. and
The Economist,
City of diversity, Economist City Guide: Toronto, (retrieved May 24, 2007) and into international media reports in respect of Toronto's two
Olympic Games bids.
Other meaning
The word
factoid is now sometimes also used to mean a small piece of
true but valueless or insignificant information, in contrast to the original definition. This has been popularized by the
CNN Headline News TV channel, which, during the 1980s and 1990s, used to frequently include such a fact under the heading "factoid" during newscasts. In the United Kingdom,
BBC Radio 2 presenter
Steve Wright uses factoids extensively on his show.
As a result of confusion over the meaning of factoid, some English-language style and usage guides recommend against its use. Language expert William Safire in his
On Language column advocated the use of the word
factlet to express a "little bit of arcana"William Safire, "On Language; Only the Factoids," New York Times, Sunday,
5 December 1993..
Footnotes
See also
External links
- Cyclopedia of Factoids
- Gullible.info, Compendium of Factoids
Factoid - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A factoid is a spurious (unverified, incorrect, or invented) "fact" intended to create or prolong public exposure or to manipulate public opinion.
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Factoid - Definitions from Dictionary.com
noun . 1. an insignificant or trivial fact.
AskOxford: factoid
factoid • noun 1 an item of unreliable information that is repeated so often that it becomes accepted as fact. 2 N. Amer. a brief or trivial item of information.
factoid
Killer factoid home page
Killer factoids! In 1994 a letter from former Conservative MP John Maples was leaked in which he urged the Tories to find ``killer facts'' with which to attack Labour.
aardvark.dj: Interesting factoid # 375
Friday 6 February 2004 Interesting factoid # 375. Percy L. Spencer invented the microwave oven after standing in front of a RADAR transmitter and noticing that the chocolate bar in ...
factoid
The “-oid” ending in English is normally added to a word to indicate that an item is not the real thing. A humanoid is not quite human. Originally “factoid” was an ironic ...
factoid - definition of factoid by the Free Online Dictionary ...
1. A piece of unverified or inaccurate information that is presented in the press as factual, often as part of a publicity effort, and that is then accepted as true because of ...
Daily Factoid
