At the time of writing

[columb]

Which is correct

At the time of writing testing is continuing.
At the time of writing testing was continuing.

Personally I go for the second choice because when this is read in the future 'At the time of writing' will be in the past. I suggested to my colleague that he replace this with

As I write testing is continuing.

but that still leaves the original question.
As an aside I'm also not sure of the best punctuation for the sentence

Personally I go for the second choice because when this is read in the future 'At the time of writing' will be in the past.

Columb Healy
Living with a seeker after the truth is infinitely preferable to living with one who thinks they've found it.

 

[SQLSister]

But by this logic, nothing would ever be in the present tense. Suppose I write "I am having a baby." (I'm not.) If you read it ten years later, should it be past tense? No, because it was happening in the present at the time you wrote it. Past and present tense refer to the time perspective of the writer at the time of the writing. The first example is correct. I personally would put a comma in it after the word writing, but the comma is optional if the starting prepositional phrase is short. Your suggested change is also correct and may be preferable becasue it is shorter, not due to any tense issues.

Questions about posting. See faq183-874

 

[SteveGlo]

I read a pseudointellectual explanation of why there is was no such thing as 'Now' last week according to which it would never be correct to use the present tense

 

[CajunCenturion]

I agree that 'testing was continuing' is preferable. 'At the time of writing' is a reference to some point in history, thus encouraging the use of past tense.

Without knowing the nature of the document, it is hard to say, but I think I would shy away from 'As I write testing is continuing' because it is in first person and sounds more like a narrative. I don't know if that is appropropriate for the document in question.

Aside:
Personally, I go for the second choice because when this it is read in the future, 'At the time of writing' will be in the past.


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[Dimandja]

>As an aside I'm also not sure of the best punctuation for the sentence

Personally, I go for the second choice because when this is read in the future, 'At the time of writing' will be in the past.

I added 2 commas.

 

[wuneyej]

At the time of writing testing was continuing

My first thought is that ongoing would fit better than continguing. But even after that change, there's still too much "ing" in that sentence.

As I write, testing is continuing (or ongoing).

This sounds better, but maybe As I write, testing continues. is better still. Just my opinion.

Some other variations that popped into my head...

At the time of writing, testing had yet to be completed.

At the time of writing, testing had not yet reached completion.

 

[CajunCenturion]

It seems we all posted together.

SQLSister has a good point about the perspective of the writer. It is also related to the 'person' used in the document. If you choose to write in first person, then I would follow SQLSister's suggestions.

Good Luck
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To get the most from your Tek-Tips experience, please read FAQ181-2886
As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

 

[MakeItSo]

But by this logic, nothing would ever be in the present tense. Suppose I write "I am having a baby."

Don't mix up the two forms:
The ing-forms quoted by columb are gerunds, whilst I am having whatever is the normal progressive form which needs an auxiliary (have)...
;-)

Besides that, I share CC's opinion.

[blue]The last voice we will hear before the world explodes will be that of an expert saying:
"This is technically impossible!" - Sir Peter Ustinov[/blue]

 

[columb]

CajunCenturion asked about the nature of the document. This was a report on testing carried out over the weekend. This testing raised a number of issues, some of which are yet to be resolved. We are continuing testing on the unresolved issues and, st the time of writing, testing is continuing.
The report is being written for the project manager.

Columb Healy
Living with a seeker after the truth is infinitely preferable to living with one who thinks they've found it.

 

[Stella740pl]

Then I wouldn't use "As I write, testing is continuing.", as it is too personal for a report, and appears to be more appropriate on a personal letter, memoir, fictional book, etc.

 

[aardvark92]

In this context I don't think at the time of writing, testing is continuing, or any variation thereof, is appropriate. The clause at the time of writing implies, I believe, that the status will have changed by the time the report is read.

For example, a travel guide may say, "At the time of writing, the exchange rate was 8.2 quetzals per U.S. dollar." The reader should understand that the rate is in flux, and will likely be different when the reader visits.

However, the report is presumably being written for a manager who will read it upon receiving it (in an ideal world). The report can simply say, "Testing continues." A final report (or an addendum to this one) can give the final results once testing is completed.