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Subject:RE: Word up From:Emru Townsend <etownsen -at- Softimage -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Fri, 1 Dec 2000 14:33:03 -0500
> This is pretty common. Keep in mind that there may be numerous,
> non-documentation related factors to such a decision. One of
> the most powerful
> and persuasive arguments to use a tool like Word is that
> virtually anybody can
> use it. The ubiquity and simplicity of Word make it a
> preferred choice for
> managers and engineers, who don't care if it has the most
> ultra refined
> production tools.
Agreed. In fact, I rather liked it for my that ubiquity and simplicity at
the first job, since I could teach the engineers how to use the comments
feature for paper-free reviews. It worked well and reduced an ungodly
amount of clutter. However...
> > Regardless of his level of expertise, if you hand a
> carpenter a screwdriver
> > to drive a five-inch nail into a block of wood, he can't do his job
> > properly. Andrew, is it so hard to concede this point?
>
> Its just not that simple. Again you are operating on the
> assumption that Word
> or other tools are fundamentally flawed and cannot provide
> even the basic
> functions. That is not true. They just don't work in the way
> you want them to.
> I have seen great docs written in Word, FrameMaker, heck even
> on typewriters.
> There is no 1:1 correlation between tool and quality.
That is not at all what I am saying. I don't think Word is "fundamentally
flawed," and never said it was. All I'm saying is that, not being designed
specifically for technical writers, there will be times when it can't do
something that a technical writer needs, or at least not do it efficiently.
Similarly, Word is not designed specifically for desktop publishers, so
there will be times when it can't do something a layout or design person
needs.
I'm not coming at this from the perspective of a WordPerfect or FrameMaker
bigot; I used to teach Word for a living. One of the many custom courses I
delivered involved teaching people who needed to use Word for specialized
tasks. The vast majority of the time, Word can do things people don't
expect, but everyone once in a while you'd come across something it simply
couldn't handle.
(And, incidentally, one of the examples I had in mind didn't involve Word.)
If you read through my message again, you'll note that I never claim that
there is any correlation between tools and quality. I can say without
hubris that I have produced excellent poster art, magazines, manuals, and
more using tools ranging from WordPerfect 4.1 for DOS through to QuarkXPress
(plus the occasional scissors and glue). I'd be a liar if I said I thought
sophisticated tools automatically meant good quality.
> So the notion that somehow this set of tools is more "proper"
> to use over that
> set - is absurd. It is really just a matter of personal
> preference and comfort.
Often, yes. And if you go back through some of my posts here, you'll see
that I agree with you that personal preference and comfort goes a long way
to forming people's opinions. Again, experience: I used to teach people how
to get over their biases and make the transition from WordPerfect to Word.
Most of the time, the bases of the complaints were simply that the
frustrated student simply didn't know how Word did something, or expected it
to work like WordPerfect.
What I am suggesting is that, rightly or wrongly, management sometimes gives
you objectives and tools that make fulfilling that objective impossible or
prohibitively difficult, regardless of your level of expertise. Give a
talented person the wrong tool and it simply isn't going to get done right.
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