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.
Rowena,
I applaud the idea of reliable, phased introduction of features. How
about
"
V1.0 is a fully-tested commercial system that performs all these
functions:
1.
...
25.
Planned enhancements, the first due for release in May 1999, will
progressively implement the following:
1.
...
15.
"
Of course, you may prefer not to number the lines, to wrap the
features rather than listing them down, and perhaps you would not want
to publish the next release date. Why not? Because
(a) if you miss it you have egg on your face
(b) if it is too far out it conveys an impression that it may never
happen,
(c) if it is too close it evokes a "don't buy yet" response.
That's my penn'orth.
P
========================================================
Peter Collins, VIVID Management Pty Ltd,
26 Bradleys Head Road, MOSMAN 2088, Australia
+61 2 9968 3308, fax +61 2 9968 3026, mobile +61 (0)18 419 571
Management Consultants and Technical Writers
email: peter -dot- collins -at- bigfoot -dot- com ICQ#: 10981283
web pages: http://www.angelfire.com/pe/pcollins/
========================================================
-----Original Message-----
From: Rowena Hart [SMTP:rhart -at- INTRINSYC -dot- COM]
Sent: Wednesday, September 09, 1998 7:46 AM
To: TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU
Subject: Desc. for "functionally incomplete" ?
Hi folks,
A question from one of our programmers:
How would you describe software that is in its v1.0 release and bug-
free, but "functionally incomplete"? As an example --
* The product will eventually support 40 features.
* The current release (v1.0) supports 25 of these features, bug-free.
* These initial 25 features provide basic functionality -- the product
performs the tasks that are required and nothing more.
* With each new release the product will evolve beyond basic
functionality, until it supports all 40 features.
Is there a term, possibly like "beta," that indicates that a product
is
not buggy, it just doesn't support all possible features?