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The customer? I think that customer is going to interpret ANYTHING as
an explicit promise that the issue is to be fixed exactly how they
want it. What does the internal representative (CS, Sales, etc) for
that customer say? There should be something in either your SLA or
their Master Contract that addresses how bugs are fixed, because EVERY
customer is going to want their bug fixed in the next release their
way.
By someone you report to? Change it to how they want.
Anyone else? There's nothing wrong with using "addressed".
On Fri, Mar 12, 2010 at 9:55 AM, McLauchlan, Kevin
<Kevin -dot- McLauchlan -at- safenet-inc -dot- com> wrote:
>
> All,
>
> I'm getting push-back on some standard language in our Release Notes.
>
> In the list of issues/bugs that are not being fixed for the current
> release, we say "To be addressed in a future release".
>
> We carefully don't even say "next" release.
>
> But the problem is the word "addressed".
>
> Some customer has decided that "To be addressed in a future release"
> means "...an explicit prmise that the issue is to be fixed exactly how I want it".
>
> I have labored under the illusion that to "address" something
> is to turn your attention to it. To pick it up and make a
> decision, and _possibly_ act on it.
>
> So, as far as _I_ am concerned, we "address" issues by deferring them,
> by delaying them, by deciding that they are not worth doing, and even
> by deciding to FIX something... and fixing it. But, as far as I'm
> concerned, as a native English speaker, all of those other practices
> are ALSO, just as validly, "addressing" the issues.
>
> It's like prayer (if one is religious):
>
> God always answers prayers.
> Sometimes the answer is no.
>
> Please tell me what you believe is meant by "to address something".
>
>
>
> - Kevin
>
> PS: "The customer is always right" is not a helpful response.
>
--
John Posada
Senior Technical Writer
NYMetro STC President
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