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Subject:Sorry to interrupt... From:Peter Jones <Holtec -at- COMITY -dot- DEMON -dot- CO -dot- UK> Date:Wed, 2 Jun 1999 12:53:11 +0100
Technical Author's work is 100% labour [1] intensive. So, anything that
interrupts the flow of work, and takes the author away from the task in
hand, reduces efficiency.
One way of dealing with this is to rigidly ignore all interruptions and
stick to the task with gritted teeth.
Another way is to be totally 'interrupt-driven' and work on whatever
presents the greatest demand for your attention.
How do technical communicators deal with interruptions?
In particular how do you become 'transparent' as an author so that
whatever you are doing may be picked up, at any time, by another author
with the minimum of backtracking?
For example, reading this item is an interruption of your usual work
[2]. How have you arranged that you, or a colleague, are able to pick up
where you left off before reading it?
[1] British spellings I'm afraid
[2] If your work is specifically to read my correspondence I should be
most interested to know who you work for.
--
"What can be said at all can be said clearly;
and whereof one cannot speak thereof one must be silent."
