TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: bounce-techwr-l-137490 -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
> [mailto:bounce-techwr-l-137490 -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com] On Behalf
> Of mlist -at- safenet-inc -dot- com
> Sent: Friday, July 22, 2005 4:05 PM
> To: TECHWR-L
> Subject: RE: [C]onfidentiality-notice [R]evocation [A]nd
> [P]roscription
>
>
> Bonnie Granat [mailto:bgranat -at- granatedit -dot- com] upbraided me with:
> > You could probably find out if the large corporations (and
> > sometimes small)
> > that use them have successfully terminated employees who
> > violated e-mail
> > policy and won wrongful termination lawsuits brought by those
> > employees.
>
> If the corporate sharks were waving pieces of paper
> at such a lawsuit, they'd find it much more effective
> to wave the policy that they require all employees to sign.
> The bumpf at the bottom of our outgoing mail is directed
> at recipients and wants them to do something.
>
Yes, I noted that YOUR e-mail has something quite different -- it is merely
a request. It places no burden on me -- it is simply a request that I can
ignore if I like. And I like, because it's absurd to think that I am going
to spend time trying to determine whether I got a piece of mail by mistake.
LOL.
> > What's at the bottom of YOUR mail, Kevin, is a simple request.
>
> It's simple, surely. But it is unnecessary clutter, it is
> redundant (when was the last time that you included such
> stuff in a paper snail-mail letter?), and in my case, it is
> grammatically incorrect, because it asks the recipient to
> "notify us ... by... deleting...".
>
To be fair, Kevin, it actually says "by replying to this message and
deleting it from your computer without copying or disclosing it." There is
nothing wrong with the grammar.
> You can't notify anybody by deleting.
> So, among those who know proper English, the company is
> embarrassing itself perpetually. (Not that I think anybody
> actually reads the bumpf, but it's the principle of the thing.)
>
I'm not sure why, but you are misreading it. Sometimes when we get an idea
in our head, we literally cannot see what is in front of us. There's nothing
wrong with the second sentence, but the first needs to be tweaked or
rewritten.
> Rather than just ask the head legal beagle to put a
> judicious comma and a "then" in the right place, I thought
> I'd seek ammo to have the silly thing abolished entirely.
>
Only this e-mail I am replying to seems to have this in it also: "If you
received this in error, ignore and delete. If it happens
more than once, please let us know so we can fix our problem."
Perhaps they're working on it as we gripe!
Bonnie
> Kevin
>
> --
> If you received this in error, ignore and delete. If it happens
> more than once, please let us know so we can fix our problem.
>
> The information contained in this electronic mail
> transmission may be privileged and confidential, and
> therefore, protected from disclosure. If you have received
> this communication in error, please notify us immediately by
> replying to this message and deleting it from your computer
> without copying or disclosing it.
>
Now Shipping -- WebWorks ePublisher Pro for Word! Easily create online
Help. And online anything else. Redesigned interface with a new
project-based workflow. Try it today! http://www.webworks.com/techwr-l
Doc-To-Help 2005 now has RoboHelp Converter and HTML Source: Author
content and configure Help in MS Word or any HTML editor. No
proprietary editor! *August release. http://www.componentone.com/TECHWRL/DocToHelp2005
---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as:
archiver -at- techwr-l -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Send administrative questions to lisa -at- techwr-l -dot- com -dot- Visit http://www.techwr-l.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.
