Summary: Future Tense

Subject: Summary: Future Tense
From: Doug Nickerson <Doug_Nickerson -at- ONSETCOMP -dot- COM>
Date: Wed, 4 Nov 1998 14:32:37 -0500

TechWr-L,

I asked about the use of the future tense in instructions.

Summary: most (in fact ALL) of the list members who replied are
for using the present tense when writing instructions. Unless I missed
somebody.

Narrative: A few months ago, I went to 'Speedy Muffler' to fix the
muffler on my truck. As a courtesy, after the muffler the
mechanics: checked my windshield wipers and cleaned
my windshield.

Now, I'm driving down the road, with a quiet muffler, &
I am seeing things I never noticed before!

So, not only am I now discovering the future tense ALL OVER my current
document, I'm discovering lots of other errors I'd overlooked, "you"
mistyped for "your," dangling
participles, misplaced modifiers, and so on ...


Thanks again,

Doug Nickerson

From ??? -at- ??? Sun Jan 00 00:00:00 0000=




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