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In discussing what can and should be measured, I agree that we should
measure what's important wherever possible. The point I'm making is
that the common objections to the obvious measurements of output and
productivity are childish, because real-world measurements are really
taken in multiple quality dimensions. Geoff, if in your environment a
writer attempted to goose his page output by writing one word per page,
do you think your manager would notice? I'm sure the editor would!
There are product and process dimensions to quality; this applies to
many things, not just documentation. Product quality involves accuracy,
completeness, and clarity; process quality involves time and resources.
The two are different. The answer to the question "Is this procedure
accurate?" is not "I wrote this book in 22 days." However, the answer
to the question "Is this project on schedule?" is equally not "This
procedure is accurate." Both questions are legitimate and important;
both answers may be correct; but they are not interchangeable. Writers
tend to focus on product quality, and aren't interested in process
quality. Managers, especially outside the writing function, tend to
focus on process quality. But both are important, and looking in both
dimensions at once eliminates the possibility of Zeno-like paradoxes.
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