Re: "It Ain't Literature, Y'know" (#740579)

Subject: Re: "It Ain't Literature, Y'know" (#740579)
From: "Glanbrok, Slayer of Bluntskulls" <conehead -at- OVERTHE -dot- NET>
Date: Thu, 8 Aug 1996 12:07:39 -0400

Shmuel Ben-Artzi wrote:

Imagine your audience, a single engineer or technician, sitting in front of
you. Now, think about how you would explain the procedure to them. Why
should a written procedure be all that much different than a verbal one?



Because:

1. In person, you can use gestures, intonations, repetition, rephrasing, and eye contact to convey meaning and get feedback.

2. A written manual must be able to stand on its own (or at least be part of a set of written docs), which requires careful phrasing, unambiguous wording, correct diction, clear syntax, and all the other aspects that tech writers are supposed to have mastered.

Oops! No time to think up more reasons!

conehead -at- overthe -dot- net

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