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> Furthermore, this issue beckons the misguided notion that tech
> writers are
> "advocates" for the user. I do not feel technical communication
> has anything
> to do with being a "advocate" for the user. This is something a
> lot of tech
> writers use to distract themselves from their primary task -
> production of documentation.
You mean the notion is misguided in YOUR opinion. I disagree. If you're
not producing the documentation for the user, who are you producing it
for? Why bother? That's like saying the "primary task" is typing, and
thinking about what you should say simply distracts you from the primary
task of typing.
If I were in the original poster's shoes -- and I'm assuming that it's
Rita's job to develop the GUI and not the poster's -- I would *ask* Rita
if I could help. Tell her you've got an interest in it, that you've got
some experience in that area, or whatever your qualifications are. If
she's already resistant to input, trying to convince her (or even worse,
convince her boss) that she *has* to work with you is going to go
nowhere. Of course, if this really is part of your official
responsibilities, that's a different story.
