[grammatim[_2_]]

On Feb 6, 12:53*am, "L. Mohan Arun" wrote:
"Software" is not singular. It can be a plural term. May be this
discussion needs to be cross-posted to alt.usage.english but the
problem is with Word 2003 grammar.

You are simply mistaken. The word "software" is singular, always. It
is what in English grammar is called a "mass noun," and even if it
refers to many different entities, it is always construed as singular.

In context:
You need to use special software to create your personal website.
These are software that are very easy to use these days.

This is incorrect. You can say "There is software that is very easy to
use," or you can say "There are programs that are very easy to use."
You cannot intermingle the two sentences.

This is correct but Word found fault with "are" so I changed it to
"These are pieces of software that are very easy to use these days."
and Word accepted the "are". This goes to show that software is not a
"singular" term.

No, it shows that "pieces" is a plural "count noun," which is
construed as plural.

To prove that Word 2003 does not consider software as a "singular" try
both these sentences:
Not all html editor software are created equal
Not all html editor software is created equal

Both do not get flagged for any error.

The first is incorrect. The second is correct.

Here is another reference which clearly needs a plural reference for
"software"
"Other web site maker software are often bloated"

That doesn't make any sense at all -- I can't even tell what you are
trying to say.

Here too, Word finds fault with the "are".

That is the least of the problems.

----------------------------------------www.tinyurl.com/cheapwriting

A further lesson of your experiences is that there is no fully
successful grammar-checking program. Language is just too complicated
for computers.