One thing should be acknowledged, though: The British place periods and commas inside or outside depending on the stop, much as we do with question marks.

So it isn’t “Correct vs. Incorrect” so much as it’s “Correct vs. Either Incorrect or British.”

For instance, you state that Chicago Manual of Style calls for a comma when making a list.
a. To separate words in a list (apples, oranges, bananas, and grapes). Notice that I used a comma before the and. Grammar sources such as Chicago strongly recommend inserting the last comma. Here’s an example from Chicago:
“I want no ifs, ands, or buts.”

AP style governs omitting the last comma before and or, or in a list.

Also, I enjoyed your excerpt on commas. I was the copy-editor for my college newspaper and I was constantly adding commas or taking them away depending on the type of clause.

I really enjoyed your article.

Thanks,
Sarah

While I stand behind my 10 or so grammar books, I do understand and appreciate what you’re saying.

I also understand how it is to put a period inside the quotes with a URL, and it messes up the clickability of the URL.

So, I’ll back you and Dennis on this one:

“While grammatically incorrect, the second sentence is technically more correct for the purpose given.”

Wow! You changed my mind with a grammar rule. That’s almost impossible to do!

I think I’ll post this one to Chicago and see what they say! I’ll let you know.

Robin

The URL is “http://www.usa.gov/Agencies/Local.shtml.”

The URL is “http://www.usa.gov/Agencies/Local.shtml”.

If the user typed the quoted characters exactly into their browser, the “grammatically correct” first sentence would cause an error, while the “user friendly” second sentence would work.

While grammatically incorrect, the second sentence is technically more correct for the purpose given. As Dennis said, there are many programming languages with very specific grammar. Most of these languages also punish the slightest variance from the correct grammar with compiler errors and program crashes. People in the IT world have developed their own grammatical style to avoid misinterpretations that could arise from “grammatically correct” punctuation. As Robin pointed out, there are many different style manuals in existence today, some at variance with each other. Perhaps it’s only a matter of time until an IT style manual is published.

Your sentence is correct.

However, not all punctuation should always appear within quotes. Question marks and exclamation points don’t always appear within quotes. It all depends on the sentence itself.

I’m glad you enjoy the blog. I hope you visit (and post) often!

Robin

This would apply only to a small percentage of applicants in which the severity of the individual’s impairment clearly presents a question or concern in regards to potential services and “ability to benefit.”

Thanks in advance for your help…I love your Web site.

Joan

You’re switching from commas and periods to exclamation points and questions, which are entirely different animals with different rules.

Unlike periods and commas, these all follow closing quotation marks unless a question mark or an exclamation point belongs within the quoted matter. (quoted from The Chicago Manual of Style)

Regarding using two forms of punctuation at the end of a sentence, here’s what Chicago says:

Q. Oh, English-language gurus, is it ever proper to put a question mark and an exclamation mark at the end of a sentence in formal writing? This author is giving me a fit with some of her overkill emphases, and now there is this sentence that has both marks at the end. My everlasting gratitude for letting me know what I should tell this person.

A. In formal writing, we allow both marks only in the event that the author was being physically assaulted while writing. Otherwise, no.

Thanks so much for writing.

Robin

“Capitalization doesn’t matter. The major engines aren’t case sensitive at this point in time.”

That a seperate sentence, not a dependent clause. The comma belongs there.

The fact that a publication’s content is not dated does not exclude the possiblity that their formatting or delivery methods are.

Personally, I dislike the American quotation-punctuation rule. What do you do when a sentence formed as a question ends in a “direct quotation?” (I realise that sentence didn’t need quotation marks, it was for demonstrative purposes.) It looks exactly the same as a statement ending in a quoted question; such as, “Isn’t this confusing?” The whole thing reminds me of the clumsy work-arounds to solve the alleged “split infinitive rule”.

If the quotation is a complete sentence, I will put the appropriate punctuation at the end of it. If it comes at the end of the sentence and the two marks match, I will drop the latter to keep from writing .”. or ?”? (you’ll excuse me for not putting quotations around those examples). But if the quotation comes at the end and does not match the punctuation of the sentence, the use of both marks is, in my opinion appropriate; especially if the quotation is the question. And if the quotation is not a complete sentence at all, then it seems wrong to punctuate it as a complete sentence for a rule based, as far as I can tell, soley on aesthetics.

Example:
Did you just yell, “I’m so happy!” or “I’m sappy!”?

The American way, while arguably more aesthetically pleasing, is counter-intuitive to the purpose of punctuation; which is, to clarify meaning and intent in written language. Then again, I still double-space after full stops and colons (whether HTML displays them is not my problem), use a comma before the conjunction of the final item of a list, and spell words with all the appropriate ‘u’s and silent ‘gh’s intact.

Anyways, on to what really prompted my post. The example, “He didn’t run, because he was afraid to move.” requires a comma, not because the dependant clause is not essential, but because it clarifies the meaning of the sentence: without the comma, it infers that he did run, but not for the stated reason.

-The ramblings of a Pseudo-Brit Canuck.