RE: Yet one more - really need an explanation for this one

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

Patricia Egan wrote: 
 
> Re: "were" versus "are"
> 
> I am finding that certain legal departments are requiring the use of
> present
> tense, primarily to avoid "forward-looking statements." I have not
been
> required to change past tense to present, but the use of present tense
> permeates the documents.

I should hope so. 

In tech writing, using present instead of future tense is
well-established best practice -- "do X, and the foobar appears," not
"do X, and the foobar will appear." And outside of narratives, past
tense is only applicable in a few situations.

But I wouldn't worry about past tense being mistaken for
"forward-looking statements." ;-)

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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