passive and active

[balakrishnanijk]

When I write' Microsoft was founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in the year 1975',Microsoft Word prompts me to change it to' Bill Gates and Paul Allen founded Microsoft in the year 1975'. What is the matter?

[Ouisch]

Nothing is wrong. It's just that many teachers and writers prefer the active voice, and that is how MS Word is programmed. Take for example the classic song "I Heard it Through the Grapevine." The title is stated in the active voice. In the passive voice, it becomes "It Was Heard by Me through the Grapevine" which is far more wordy and not nearly as succinct.