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Subject:Re: Common instruction? From:dwiltshire -at- pnmt -dot- com To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Tue, 14 May 2002 09:09:18 -0400
Linda Stark wonders: <<Is it common to start assembly instructions for
components of a very large tool with: 1. Locate six screws.... 2. Locate
two
O-rings. Grease them with....>>
Geoff Hart replied: << ... "locate"
doesn't seem to be the best word, since the actual meaning is "obtain" or
"make ready" or "grab them now so they don't escape".>>
_ _ _ _
I agree that the author could have chosen a better word than "locate". I'm
wondering if the intended meaning was to look for the six screws and two
O-rings already on the device, and do something to them, rather than
gathering them up before beginning the procedure. It's hard to tell if this
is the case, based on the short excerpts.
To avoid this ambiguity, maybe an extra phrase should be added, or the
"locate" step combined with the following action step. For example,
something like: "Remove the six screws on the back of the device that hold
the cover in place." Would that be an improvement?
(Sorry for chiming in late; I'm on the Digest.)
Dan
Dan Wiltshire
Senior Technical Writer
Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc.
7708 Green Meadows Drive, Suite A
Lewis Center, Ohio 43035 USA
telephone: (740) 657-1047
fax: (740) 549-2197
preferred E-Mail address: dwiltshire -at- pnmt -dot- com
alternate E-Mail address: wiltshired -at- aol -dot- com
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