appears vs is displayed

Subject: appears vs is displayed
From: "Robin M. Allen" <robin -dot- m -dot- allen -at- WORLDNET -dot- ATT -dot- NET>
Date: Tue, 25 Mar 1997 08:26:34 -0600

Hi ya'll:

I'm in the middle of a raging debate among several tech writers about
the use of "appears" vs "is displayed," e.g.:

"Click Add and the Add Patient window is displayed."
vs
"Click Add and the Add Patient window appears."

Even though it uses the passive voice, I personally prefer "is
displayed." To me, "appears" sounds like it happens through magic. Any
thoughts?

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