Re: Don't say what you CANNOT do in documents

Subject: Re: Don't say what you CANNOT do in documents
From: k k <turnleftatnowhere -at- yahoo -dot- com>
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Date: Tue, 20 Apr 2004 11:10:21 -0700 (PDT)



>
> "Note: You cannot build complex queries with
> multiple criteria since
> there is no way to store a criteria while you add
> another. To create a
> query using more than one criteria, you must first
> create an activity
> (see page 23)."
>
> Assuming you know what the terms mean, what are the
> feelings about
> putting something you cannot do in a document. The
> PM says it gives the
> wrong impression. I say it doesn't give an
> impression one way or
> another...it is just an instruction.
>

The PM may be thinking about this from a non-technical
viewpoint; maybe he's thinking of implications for the
company image. He has something of a point. If the
document tells the user "you can't" too often, the
user may get a bit of a negative impression stuck in
his mind. Lots of people find it easier to remember
negatives than positives.

In a case like this, it would not bother me at all to
take out the "you can't" sentence. How often can you
solve both a technical problem and a perception
problem by simply deleting a sentence?




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References:
Don't say what you CANNOT do in documents: From: John Posada

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