tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-399953666507652031.post5012595915472061134..comments2008-01-20T16:39:54.746-08:00Deehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00640058997702227911noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-399953666507652031.post-32573548999021771452008-01-20T16:39:00.000-08:002008-01-20T16:39:00.000-08:00Hey, everyone, I can see we've tapped a tender nerve, here. I'll climb on that bandwagon again in the next post. Let's top off our coffee mugs and play that tune some more.Deehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00640058997702227911noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-399953666507652031.post-69767800159081880282008-01-20T15:06:00.000-08:002008-01-20T15:06:00.000-08:00So much technical writing could benefit from huge doses of not just humour, but humility. If the people writing these things honestly want their work to be read and used (and why write it if they don't?), then the content must be made accessible. Easy to find the proper information, easy to understand directions. Is this truly so hard?Gordohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07601738885232775770noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-399953666507652031.post-25849070380825516412008-01-20T11:33:00.000-08:002008-01-20T11:33:00.000-08:00Gee, Dee. I found <A HREF="http://usingthecanons5is.blogspot.com/2007/12/extreme-close-ups-with-canon-s5is.html" REL="nofollow"> this link</A> which appears to be a fellow blogger who has an S5 and, like you, is struggling up the mountain. Don't tell him I said so, but your cactus is much more to the point.The Old Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06426667397513875027noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-399953666507652031.post-75723531489647643892008-01-20T11:20:00.000-08:002008-01-20T11:20:00.000-08:00Science writing, with the subgenre of instruction manual writing, is apparently an arcane art. I took it at university -- the first assignment was to write instructions for tying a shoelace. Bloody difficult, that was! And certainly pointed out how hard it is to write as though you knew nothing about it, but still get all the cogent facts in.<BR/><BR/>Not that I'm being Devil's advocate for such poor manual writing. The entire western world could be brought to its knees as we acquire ever more complicated gadgets, and in more quantities. What's the old joke about nobody being able to program their VCRs? And the other day I noticed an ad for one of those new trendy flat panel tvs -- seems you can't set them up by yourself but have to have a geek come do it. Too complicated, or rotten instructions?<BR/><BR/>Well, it will come to that, won't it, as long as we dumb down reading levels to 6th grade (or less), which is what National Geographic was being written at, last time I knew anything about it.<BR/><BR/>Well, that could lead me to several other rants, so I'll stop gracefully, while you still think I'm of sound mind ...Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05707246801058979473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-399953666507652031.post-57666090588131642052008-01-20T11:17:00.000-08:002008-01-20T11:17:00.000-08:00Sounds like you have more patience than me with these things, Dee. Some areas of my cameras I never do manage to explore. Mind you, the use of Google to track down the finer points is a piece of genius... :-)<BR/><BR/>John B.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com