to get annoyed at people who use *of* instead of *have*...

[Saddlesore]

... as in "I would of bought you a present if I knew it was your birthday".

Grrr!

I was at secondary school in the 80s but honestly do not remember if someone told me not to say "would of". I didn't say it, or write it, because it doesn't make sense to put that preposition in that place.

I think most of the instruction I got in grammar was actually during French and German lessons, which may be where I learned about the structure of verbs.

Yes, it would have been, Gabilan.
Being an avid reader from an early age means I guess, that, yes, I acquired, and hardwired, the 'would have' "rule". My subsequent studies and job means that grammar has been my bread and butter for 30 years. So I get to be one of the lucky ones who doesn't worry about smug arseholes on some parenting forum slagging off others.

I am 42 and went to school in the 70/80s and I don’t remember being taught grammar very much or other details of the English language. I’m not sure what an adverb is for example and I don't know which is correct out of compared to and compared with. Maybe SPaG of this type of out of fashion at that time. We also lost a lot of teaching time due to strikes.

However, I now have a first class scientific degree, professional qualifications and work in a professional job that requires written work and I read a lot for pleasure, so I like to think I have a reasonable standard of written English.

However, I know that lots of people have not had such an education, do not need to write much at work, or have other issues such as English not being their first language, or SNs like dyslexia. I also don’t think internet forums, or facebook etc require perfect written English and while it is nice that the standard on MN is very good, it is not compulsory and I don’t think it is acceptable to pull others up on their mistakes.

No-one knows who the person behind the post is and it is not on to comment on their written English in an informal setting. It is especially hypocritical on here, where almost any other kind of judging is mercilessly jumped on.

OP are you certain they are saying Of and not 've

As in " I would've bought you a present"? As it sounds exactly the same.

The only way you could really tell is if they are typing it.

As it sounds exactly the same

It doesn't to me, though possibly it depends on someone's accent. To me there's a distinct difference between "would've" which sounds blended and close to a diphthong if there weren't consonants in there and "would of" which is two distinct words. Granted there's some cause for confusion as that's how the problem started but one has quite shortened and elided vowel sounds whereas the other has much longer vowel sounds.

They are the same in my accent. It is so silly to insist that people clearly enunciate a difference. The similarity in sound is how the written error came about in the first place.

there is no difference in enunciation in my accent it is just [ev] (sorry no schwa symbol).
Therefore it is quite an excusable mistake if people do not read that much.
And if someone is writing a problem here like
'I would of bought my dad a present but he died' then pulling them up on it is just sad.

"It is so silly to insist that people clearly enunciate a difference."

I don't insist. It just vaguely bugs me. It's not like I think a fairy dies every time somebody makes a grammatical error. I'm also quite aware that my own grammar is far from perfect, that language changes, and that homophones are a PITA when you're typing quickly.

"No-one knows who the person behind the post is and it is not on to comment on their written English in an informal setting. It is especially hypocritical on here, where almost any other kind of judging is mercilessly jumped on."

"And if someone is writing a problem here like
'I would of bought my dad a present but he died' then pulling them up on it is just sad."

But that isn't happening here. This is a thread about the prevalence of "would of" and how much it bothers the OP. It is not the same as commenting on a specific post in which someone makes the error, thereby singling out a poster who uses "would of".

"why you hear?

< winceyette>"

Yes, I typed "why" instead of "when". I said above that I do make mistakes.

yes I know Andy, I was just being dramatic.
I have seen the pettiest comments about use of English though, specifically on this forum.
Actually there is no 'would of' is there?
I must confess it does wind me up a bit, and I have to remind myself that not everyone likes reading and spelling as much others do.

I think a fairy dies every time somebody makes a grammatical error.

I am not making a grammatical error when I do not enunciate a difference in my speech.

Well, AIBU to get annoyed when I say "would've" quite appropriately, and someone quite inappropriately attempts to correct me.

If it's written down, then fair enough, but if someone is saying it, it seems uncharitable to unnecessarily assume they are ignorant.

I think it does depend, to an extent, when and where you were educated. I am another free expression 1970s/early 80s o level kids. English language was creative writing, grammar was studiously avoided. Only had ANY grammar lessons when learning foreign languages, I think we were only taught then as those particular teachers probably trained in the 1950s!
I have old school pals, who avoided MFL, with doctorates, that have no idea what an adverb, adjective or preposition, conjunction is! They've coped! I do think it is a lot easier having a basic grasp of grammar!