Grammar Lesson

Okay, so I'm writing these destination guides, and in researching the various cities, I visit anywhere from 10 to 100 Web sites in a day. Some are very polished, with compelling graphics and excellent prose, some are passionate but kind of clunky, and some are clearly slapped together in the "they say we need a Web site so put something up ASAP" tradition. That's okay; I'm just there to get some basic info and move on. But I do have a pet peeve, and I'm appalled to see it crop up nearly everywhere, even on some of the professionally done sites.

It's not "it's" or "its'" when you're referring to something and its attributes. As in, "carefully restored to it's 1800s grandeur" -- good God, who gets paid to write this stuff, and who signed off on it? Oh, that's right, the real writers and editors all got laid off as soon as the economy got dicey because it's not that important to worry about grammar and its fine points.