Is "can be viewed using many different devices" correct? Is it missing a word?

Question

Web pages can be viewed using many different devices: desktops, tablets, and phones.

I don't understand "viewed using" section. I think it miss a certain word.

You could optionally add the preposition "by": "Web pages can be viewed by using many different devices..." — BillJ, Oct 16, 2017 at 12:31

StoneyB on hiatus · Accepted Answer · 2017-10-16 12:26:03Z

2

Web pages can be viewed.

How can they be viewed?

They can be viewed using many different devices.

Many different devices may be used to view web pages.

answered Oct 16, 2017 at 12:26

StoneyB on hiatus

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I think it must add the preposition "by" (as @BillJ said above). They can be viewed by using many different devices.
– Pham Van Duc
Oct 16, 2017 at 12:50
@PhamVanDuc BillJ also says that the by is optional.
– StoneyB on hiatus
Oct 16, 2017 at 14:10
The full passive sentence is They can be viewed by using many different devices. . and the reduced the sentence is : They can be viewed using many different devices. (reduce "by"). Is that right?
– Pham Van Duc
Oct 16, 2017 at 15:07
To this US English speaker, the version with "by" sounds weird, and I'm not sure the original sentence is a reduced version of it. It's perfectly normal and fluent as it is.
– stangdon
Oct 16, 2017 at 15:24
is there any difference between two sentences?
– Pham Van Duc
Oct 16, 2017 at 15:30

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