RE: Numbering Steps for Multiple Paths

Subject: RE: Numbering Steps for Multiple Paths
From: Kyle Kimberlin <Kyle -at- di -dot- com>
To: TECHWR-L <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>, "'Kevin McLauchlan'" <KMcLauchlan -at- chrysalis-its -dot- com>
Date: Wed, 29 Sep 1999 12:48:31 -0700

Kevin McLauchlan wrote:

If you are on duty in the control room when the alien lands:

1) Press the big red button

2) No other action is required in this situation.

OK, I am your reader and the Alien is landing, and I get out the manual.
So the first thing to do is to press the big red button.
The second thing to do is to no other action is required in this situation.
I would know how to press the big red button.
I would not know how to no other action is required in this situation.

Here's the way I would present this instruction:

If you are on duty in the control room when the alien lands,
press the big red button.
No other action is required.

Of course, you would emphasize press "press the big red button," and show an
illustration or photo of it. But what you have here is not a procedure, just
sentences. Two sentences with one thing to do and no steps. No numbering is
called for here, in my humble reader's opinion.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kyle Kimberlin
Technical Writer
Digital Instruments, Veeco Metrology Group
Santa Barbara, CA. USA
kyle -at- di -dot- com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~






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