RE: Pet Peeves

["Combs, Richard" <richard -dot- combs -at- Polycom -dot- com>]

Diane Brennan wrote:
 
> I've been doing technical writing since 1991. Context is key.

Quite correct, youngster. 
 
<snip>
> 
> >>In the original, it's perfectly clear.
> 
> It isn't any clearer than the above examples. 

But we were discussing a specific edit -- replacing "his" with "the" --
in a specific sentence. The question at hand was, "Which is better,
example A or example B?" I maintain it's A.

Your examples are clear, I agree. But your context is procedures for
accomplishing tasks. The sentence in question is descriptive prose --
"John set his user settings" -- not procedural or task-oriented. Wrong
context.

Richard


------
Richard G. Combs
Senior Technical Writer
Polycom, Inc.
richardDOTcombs AT polycomDOTcom
303-223-5111
------
rgcombs AT gmailDOTcom
303-777-0436
------




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