Re: Tell them (only?) once

[Richard Lippincott <rlippinc -at- BEV -dot- ETN -dot- COM>]

At first, regarding "tell them once, I said:

>>Concerning "tell them once," the way I was always told there are -three-
>>things you should do in documentation:

>>1- Tell them what you're gonna tell them.
>>2- Tell them.
>>3- Tell them what you just told them.

>>It seems like a good summary to me.

Then Robert Plamondon said:

>But you didn't say it three times.
>You said it once, not three times, like you said you should do.
>You only said it once.

Nope. Three times. Let's take a look:

>>Concerning "tell them once," the way I was always told there are -three-
>>things you should do in documentation:

-- This line set you up to anticipate a method that I will be explaining. It
is the "tell them what you're gonna tell them" part. ("I'm going to tell you
what I learned."


>>1- Tell them what you're gonna tell them.
>>2- Tell them.
>>3- Tell them what you just told them.

-- These lines are the key part of the message, the "tell them" part.
("I'm telling you what I learned.")

>>It seems like a good summary to me.

-- It doesn't repeat the info, but it does remind the reader that the info
presented was a summary version. It "tells them what you just told them."
("I just told you what I learned.")

Viewed in this light, the message does, in fact, fit the three-part method.


What about this posting that you're reading now. Did I do the same thing?

Rick Lippincott
Eaton Semiconductor
Beverly, MA
rlippinc -at- bev -dot- etn -dot- com