Which is correct - "is started" or "has been started" [closed]
Please let me know which one is correct:
- Some machine is started.
- Some machine has been started.
Additional information:
I am reviewing message for software product. There when a user clicks "Start" button, an operation/entity starts.
Solution 1:
It would be better to say the second one.
It can be argued that they both mean the same thing. "The machine is started" describes its current state as being started, implying that someone or something must have started it. "The machine has been started" directly confirms that its current state is the result of having been started.
However, as Tim mentioned, the first sounds quite awkward, as it's not common to use started as an adjective. That is why the second one is better.
It's possible that you derived "is started" from the contraction "The machine's started" which is more likely to be The machine has started. That may help to explain the uncertainty.
Solution 2:
The sentence
some machine is started
can mean a number of things:
Consider: some machines (e.g. so-called "simple machines", such as the lever) do not need to be started. More complex machines, like a table saw, must be started. Given that context
This machine is started.
could mean "This is one of the machines that gets started or that one must start before using it."
It could also mean (although somewhat awkwardly): the machine is running.
This machine is started at 7AM. We do not have a night-shift.
That would mostly likely mean that the machine is turned on at 7AM.
To say
The machine has been started
could mean:
At some point in the past, someone turned this machine on. It may now be off or it may be on. But one thing is certain: it has been turned on at least once; it is not a machine that was never turned on.
or it could mean:
The machine is now running. It was turned on, and it remains on.