Subject:Instruction Manuals for Other Places From:Amy Gale <amyg -at- grammatech -dot- com> To:TECHWR-L <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Wed, 08 Feb 2006 17:10:36 -0500
There is a serious need for these, I think. It's nice to give little
scripts in phrasebooks, and write an "about the culture" section in
travel guides, but sometimes you need something a little more
task-oriented[*].
I wrote a small one for my parents a few years ago when they visited
NYC. It had procedures like "buying a cup of coffee" and "taking a
cab". They even allowed for system malfunction (what do you say when
the coffee guy says something interrogative but you don't understand? [**]).
It would be a great project for a technical writer or a group of
technical writers. I call dibs on NYC.
Amy
[*] Most useful piece of "orientation" paraphernalia I got at school
here: a labeled diagram of a filled-out check (ours are surprisingly
different). Most horrifying and counterproductive: a 3 page document
titled "What is a US American?". Apparently you all like showers and
deodorant, and it's difficult to develop close, deep friendships.
[**] Yes, "I beg your pardon?" is a reasonable response, but chances are
that your NZ-tuned ears won't do any better the second time. It's
generally more productive to just say "black, please" the first time and
"to go, please" the second time. JMO. YMMV.
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