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> Too many writers also fail to learn the technologies and technical
> details regarding the products they are documenting. This leads to
> weak, ineffective documentation. Which leads to weak, ineffective
> products. Which leads to weak, ineffective companies. This leads to
> ... well, you get the idea.
Errr...sounds like you are blaming failure of companies and products solely
on the tech writers. This is a bit much!
>
> Whether we use FrameBlaster or MS Turd - as long as the job
> gets done, how we get there is irrelevant.
It's pretty frustrating to use a contractor who doesn't know the tools. It's
a waste of time and money for all.
> To those that are infuriated, explain to me how, exactly, I am wrong.
> How is it that training in tools and techniques is more important than
> content? How is it okay to blame all problems on the engineers or
> other employees? How is it acceptable to sit in a cubicle all day
> waiting for someone to give you the answers you need?
I'm not infuriated, but I would say that there are several skills of equal
value that one needs to succeed. For example, you can be an expert at your
tools and technologies, but fail to follow procedures, meet deadlines, or
get along with your coworkers. Or you can have an amazingly large workload
that prevents you from effectively completing any project.
It's not okay to blame all problems on others, but weak ineffective products
are often caused by poor project management and the refusal of prima donna
developers to follow any type of development procedures. How good do you
have to be to produce accurate work when you need to get it to the printer
last week but they're still adding features?
Regardless, people may be infuriated because of the less than diplomatic way
you try to get your point across. I think most people on this list care
about what they do. The incompetent brittle slobs probably don't know this
list even exists...
