Re: Online Help "Click" vs. "Press"

[Laurie Little <llittle -at- GSALINK -dot- COM>]

I don't have vast experience with online help, but this issue applies to
all forms of docs, and you are absolutely correct. You can't 'press' a
button on the screen (unless it's a touch screen kiosk), so why confuse
the reader? Generally, I stick to 'clicking/double clicking'
buttons/tabs/whatever on the screen, and 'pressing' a key on the
keyboard.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Barb Ostapina [SMTP:Barb -dot- Ostapina -at- METROMAIL -dot- COM]
> Sent: Thursday, February 05, 1998 11:58 AM
> To:   TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU
> Subject:      Online Help "Click" vs. "Press"
>
> I'm writing my first online help text and I'd sure appreciate your
> thoughts
> on something.
>
> An outside vendor is creating the help itself; I'm just supplying the
> words. It's for an intranet directory assistance application done in
> HTML
> that will be used by ordinary citizens like me (as opposed to
> directory
> assistance operators). The vendor has told us that it's more
> appropriate to
> say "Press Search" rather than "Click Search" (referring to a button
> on the
> screen) for HTML help. Do you agree? (I use "click" or "double click"
> in my
> printed documentation when describing what to do with a button or
> field in
> a Windows application, and "press" when referring to a key on the
> keyboard.
> Maybe this is wrong, too?) Is this also true when referring to a tab
> (e.g.,
> a folder like thing with a clickable tab on the top) -- should it be
> "Press
> Residential" (to select the tab for the residential directory search)
> vs.
> "Click the Residential tab"?
>
> --Barb
> barb -dot- ostapina -at- metromail -dot- com
>
>
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