TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
<snip>
This method clearly calls out the fact that these are options, not a
series of steps, even if the reader is skimming the document. I don't
think that Brian's original sentence or Steve Evanina's suggestion
does that effectively.
<snip>
My comment:
<snip>
To create a new file do one of the following:
* Select New from the File menu
* click the New icon in the toolbar
* press Ctrl+N
<snip>
Using an economy of words and keeping the readability index low, the user
is instructed to "do one of the following." How could this be possibly
misconstrued as a series of steps?
If I wanted the user to perform a series of steps, I would have used a
number list.
