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.
Subject:Re: Discuss: Third party manuals? From:Romay Jean Sitze <rositze -at- NMSU -dot- EDU> Date:Mon, 17 Apr 1995 10:37:01 -0600
On Sat, 15 Apr 1995, Gwen Barnes wrote:
> In a word, piracy. How else is someone going to learn the program if
> they don't have manuals? Notice that a lot of the 'aftermarket' manuals
> are published by Microsoft Press, about Microsoft products which
> already have manuals of their own. Bill Gates ain't dumb -- if he can't
> get the $$$ out of them for the legit version of the program, he can
> cut his losses and at least make them buy the aftermarket manuals.
There has to be more to this than piracy. When I upgraded my MS Office
suite, Microsoft included an order form for all the additional manuals
they offered on the same topics.
RoMay Sitze, rositze -at- nmsu -dot- edu
The body of every organization is structured from four kinds of
bones. There are the wishbones, who spend all their time wishing
someone would do the work. Then there are the sawbones, who do
all the talking, but little else. The knucklebones knock every-
thing anybody else tries to do. Fortunately, in every organization
there are also the backbones, who get under the load and do most
of the work. --Leo Aikman, _On Bones_