Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[missdaredevil]

"*I don't think it's a big deal to show opera glasses to someone searching for binoculars that you somehow infer is a woman."* "But you don't want to pop up ads for HIVdrugs on someone's pae, because you inferred they hae HIV when their boss is standing there looking at their computer.

I don't really understand the first sentence.

Could anyone explain that?

Thanks

[Mister Micawber]

.
The whole passage does not quite make sense, but showing opera glasses to someone searching for binoculars means offering an inadequate response.
.
_________________
"I really do not know that anything has ever been more exciting than diagramming sentences." � Gertrude Stein
...............
Canadian-American who teaches English for a living at Mr Micawber's

[bud]

It sounds like it must be a discussion about webpage design. "Opera glasses" are a small pair of binoculars, but with less magnification. They are meant for use in a theater, such as an opera house.

The first sentence is about making presumptions. To be a big deal is to be important or to matter much or to be a problem. So it means, "It is not likely to matter much in making the presumption that a woman searching for binoculars might be interested in seeing opera glasses." That is, most women would not feel insulted. (I don't know that I agree with that, but that is what is meant.)