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Subject:RE: Pseudowriters (Should 'Pseudo-issue') From:"Michael West" <mike -dot- west -at- oz -dot- quest -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Wed, 27 Dec 2000 12:51:50 +1100
Mike Stockman has complained of writers who
> insist on spending their
> time developing brilliant processes and style guides that let them
> publish beautiful, efficient, inaccurate, and incomplete material.
At the risk of prolonging a non-debate that
seems to be forever spinning its wheels, I
must point out that a user guide that is
inaccurate and incomplete cannot also be
beautiful and efficient. Nor can a process
that results in inaccurate and incomplete
technical publications be described as
"brilliant" except by someone engaging in
rhetorical excess.
Beauty and efficiency in technical publications
must be judged on the basis of fitness for
purpose. Without accuracy and complete
coverage, there can be no fitness for purpose,
and hence neither beauty nor efficiency.
Perhaps Mike Stockman is confusing the
"beautiful" with that which is merely
superficially nice-looking--a common mistake.
Think of Keats: "Beauty is truth, truth beauty ...."
I think we all agree that familiarity with a
subject is a prerequisite to designing a
technical publication.
I think we all agree that mastery of a subject
does not in itself make someone a good
communicator. We judge technical
publications on how well they accomplish their
purpose--not on how much the author knows or
thinks he knows.
So maybe we can move on to discussing real issues
in the new year.
--
Michael West
Technical Writer
Melbourne, Australia
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