RE: active vs. passive voice

Subject: RE: active vs. passive voice
From: "Lauren" <lauren -at- writeco -dot- net>
To: <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com>
Date: Thu, 27 Mar 2008 14:13:16 -0700

> From: Michelle Vina-Baltsas

> I've read many threads on this listserv related to the use of
> "appears"
> vs. "displays" or "is displayed".

There has never been a consensus for the proper convention to use from
previous incarnations of this debate in this forum. Personally, I avoid
"appears" because of its magical sound but if my client likes the verb, then
I use it.

> Is the use of "is displayed" passive voice?

The use of "is" before a verb puts the verb after the subject, so it is
passive. I don't like to think about grammar rules, so I try to find the
easiest way to de-passify a phrase. In this case, I would change "is" to
"to" and then fix the sentence. "To" puts the emphasis on the action rather
than the result and puts the command in active voice. So for this example,
I would write "click XXX to display YYY" rather than "YYY is displayed when
XXX is clicked."

Technical documentation should focus on actions rather than results. That
is, the documentation should show "how to" do an action, rather than "what
is" something or what an action causes.

Lauren


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Create HTML or Microsoft Word content and convert to Help file formats or
printed documentation. Features include support for Windows Vista & 2007
Microsoft Office, team authoring, plus more.
http://www.DocToHelp.com/TechwrlList

True single source, conditional content, PDF export, modular help.
Help & Manual is the most powerful authoring tool for technical
documentation. Boost your productivity! http://www.helpandmanual.com

---
You are currently subscribed to TECHWR-L as archive -at- web -dot- techwr-l -dot- com -dot-

To unsubscribe send a blank email to
techwr-l-unsubscribe -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
or visit http://lists.techwr-l.com/mailman/options/techwr-l/archive%40web.techwr-l.com


To subscribe, send a blank email to techwr-l-join -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com

Send administrative questions to admin -at- techwr-l -dot- com -dot- Visit
http://www.techwr-l.com/ for more resources and info.


References:
active vs. passive voice: From: Michelle Vina-Baltsas

Previous by Author: RE: Word 2007: invisible caption
Next by Author: RE: Hurdles
Previous by Thread: Re: active vs. passive voice
Next by Thread: Re: active vs. passive voice


What this post helpful? Share it with friends and colleagues:


Sponsored Ads