Re: Techwriter Aptitude Test (A Daydream)

["Eric J. Ray" <ejray -at- RAYCOMM -dot- COM>]

At 01:57 PM 11/7/97 +0100, Mike wrote:
>Here's the scenario:
...
>appliance. Everybody tears open the package. Nine people take out the
>clock, start randomly poking at buttons look for the battery
>compartment, after a while they get the thing to display the time, a few
>people get it to display the correct time.
>
>One guy first takes out the instruction leaflet and reads it. After a
>while he's able to set the time correctly, adjust for time zones, set
>the alarm and switch between 12 and 24 hour display. Congratulations.
>You've found your technical writer.

I'll bite.

Answer:  Nope. You may have found a successful user, but
in my experience, you'll be better off with people who can
puzzle out how to make it work, and then explain it
to everyone else in the group. Or, with people who start
interrogating you--the SME for lack of anyone else--about
where the docs are and how the darn thing works.

I read instructions when I think that safety is at issue
_AND_ I might overlook something (assembling a drill
press, for example) or if I'm well and truly stuck, or
if I'm reasonably sure that something vital is buried in
the docs (installing a new hard drive in an old computer
where experience shows I'll have to tweak jumpers).
Otherwise, nope. I'm a puzzler.

However, I do religiously file all documentation I get
for future reference. ;-)

Eric



**************************************************
Eric J. Ray                      ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com
TECHWR-L Listowner         http://www.raycomm.com/


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