That's not a stand-alone question (RE: Is Grammer [sic] Important ?)

["Wilcox, John (WWC, Contractor)" <wilcoxj -at- WDNI -dot- COM>]

> ----------
> From:         Anthony Markatos[SMTP:tonymar -at- hotmail -dot- com]
>
> Is good grammar important for effective technical communications?
> About
> six months ago, I read a book on procedures writing that said
> "Numerous
> studies have concluded that there is no correlation at all between
> effective technical communications and grammar".
>
Whether good grammar is important depends on other factors.  Effective
TC can be accomplished in a document that consists only of pictures
(examples: model-building instructions, the Wordless Workshop in Popular
Mechanics).  Of course I assume you're talking about written docs, but
even then the most important factor isn't good grammar, it's your
audience.  If you're writing to an audience that expects good grammar,
you'd better use it.  But a great example of the opposite is the old
Compleat Idiot's Guide to Volkswagen Repair, by John Muir.  What a
classic, even if you never owned a VW.

First and foremost, always remember the TW's Prime Directive: Consider
your audience.  Audience analysis must come first.  Everything you
write, draw, or otherwise communicate depends on that.


Regards,

John Wilcox, Documentation Specialist
Timberlands Information Services
Federal Way, Washington USA
mailto: wilcoxj -at- wdni -dot- com
(I don't speak for Weyerhaeuser, and they return the favor.)