Re: Abort, Retry, Fail

[Mike Pope <mikep -at- ASYMETRIX -dot- COM>]

I think it's more fundamental than this -- if users have to look up a term
in a dictionary OR in the documentation before they know what an error
message is trying to tell them, maybe it's time to think hard about some
clearer vocabulary. Heck, even WE don't know what the terms mean --
how can we expect the users to?

 -- Mike Pope
mikep -at- asymetrix -dot- com

 ----------
>From: TECHWR-L
>To: Multiple recipients of list TECHWR-L
>Subject: Re: Abort, Retry, Fail
>Date: Monday, April 18, 1994 8:51AM

>Hello Out There:

>I can't believe that people are looking up "abort" and other terms in the
> dicitionary
>for an explanation. Isn't it clear that because there is confusion, the
>company
> that
>uses these terms for whatever reason has failed to explain these terms
> succinctly in
>written form somewhere? Isn't it clear that their technical writing staff
has
> failed
>to identify a confusion area and failed to correct this? Every error should
>have
> a
>written definition as well as a solution. I personally like numbered errors
>and
> a
>lookup table giving me all the causes and tests for correction. If the disk
> operating
>system has failed in doing this, then I suggest you write them
(Microsoft???)
> instead
>of (or as well as, since it's fun reading all this stuff) TECHWR-L -at- VM1 -dot- 
(Hey,
> don't
>blame me -- it's Monday morning, and I'm having a gripe attack.)

>Thanks for listening -- Jim Walsh     jimw -at- tennessee -dot- sc -dot- ti -dot- com   (the
>tennessee
> is
>                                                                  for my
> favorite author)