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Subject:"The user can" vs. "you can" From:"Geoff Hart (by way of \"Eric J. Ray\" <ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com>)" <ght -at- MTL -dot- FERIC -dot- CA> Date:Thu, 21 Jan 1999 10:02:06 -0700
Marianne Bowen is <<...currently editing an older User Guide and have
found that it uses "the user can do this" to describe system
features, and "you will do this" to describe specific tasks. This
really bugs me, since I do like consistency. Is it acceptable to be
inconsistent in pronoun use...?>>
I don't much like it either. Speaking as an editor, I don't like
inconsistency since readers can be expected to assume that a
switch from "you" to "the user" means it's no longer their
responsibility, but rather "the user's", whoever that may be.
Speaking as a reader, I'm trusting you as a documentation
professional to make such changes of pronoun for a good reason,
and I'm going to be wondering why you made the change. Stick
with "you" throughout; if the actor changes, specifically identify
the actor (not "the user", but rather "the network adminstrator does
this, not you").
--Geoff Hart @8^{)}
geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca
