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Subject:RE: Interesting site for software tech writers From:"technicoid" <technicoid -at- cableone -dot- net> To:<techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Thu, 8 Jan 2004 18:07:20 -0700
>Some [advice] will make it harder. He advises the engineer-spec-writer
to write
>informally and use humor.
True, but he was targeting a primarily internal audience. For customers,
humor would not be appropriate.
>Humor may hold the attention of the reader, but is usually frowned upon
>in the documents TWs produce. Humor, if it does make it into a
>published manual, does not internationalize well.
Again, I think the distinction here is between a document that is used
internally and one that ships with the product. Frankly, I don't think a
functional spec should EVER find its way outside of a program team. And
I agree 100% on the issue of humor in docs that need to be
internationalized.
I've never has a functional spec from which I could actually begin the
content-development process for a user guide. I'm not sure I'd take that
approach even if I wrote the spec. Different audiences, different
purposes.
