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Subject:Re: grammar survey - recap From:Chris Knight <knight -at- ADA -dot- COM> Date:Fri, 22 May 1998 15:39:24 -0700
Hutchings, Christa wrote:
>
> Thanks to all who responded to my grammar survey. The hands-down
> winner was #1 (my favorite too!).
>
> >1) When finished, press END. 11 votes
> >2) When done, press END. 4 votes
> >3) Press END when finished. 5 votes
> >4) Press END when done. 1 vote
One more thought: Whenever we say "If blah-blah-blah", we ought to also
say what to do if the condition ISN'T true. The human mind wants to know
what the alternative is, and so, if that info isn't there the reader
will experience (subconsciously in most cases) some cognitive
dissonance. Of course, using "When..." avoids this problem.
I also agrre with the person who pointed out that this is not a question
of grammar, but of style.
--
Chris Knight
Consultant, Technical Communication Architect
Vancouver BC, Canada
(currently at Applied Digital Access,
E-mail: knight -at- bcg -dot- ada -dot- com Phone: 604-415-5886 Fax: 604-415-5900)
Opinions expressed are my own, not ADA's
