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Re: Of Skeletons and Meat (was: Process kills the dot.com)
Subject:Re: Of Skeletons and Meat (was: Process kills the dot.com) From:Andrew Plato <intrepid_es -at- yahoo -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Fri, 27 Oct 2000 09:39:40 -0700 (PDT)
--- Joy Brady <joy_m_brady -at- yahoo -dot- com> wrote:
>
> --- Andrew Plato <intrepid_es -at- yahoo -dot- com> wrote:
> I don't fear processes, I fear rigidity. I fear
> > people who can't comprehend the
> > content calling themselves "writers."
>
> Andrew, when it comes to a stance on process or
> structure, you are most rigid of all.
You're confusing two kinds of rigidity here Joy. Rigidity in rhetoric vs.
rigidity in practice. They are not the same. I am arguing a position, Joy. Of
course I am going to stand by my opinion. My argument is not that everybody
should abandon their values/opinions and just accept what's thrown at them.
> Your analogy of structure using the a skeleton that we
> hang the meat of content from assumes that "structure"
> is a lifeless skeleton and "content" the living
> "chunks of meat" draped on the skeleton. Such a
> creation would soon decompose. To take your analogy
> in the direction of how things really work: any
> creature, when first forming, lacks a skeleton. As it
> forms, it already has tissue, but bones (be they an
> internal skeleton or a shell) begin to take on
> increasing firmness. Ultimately, if the creature is to
> grow to it's full majesty and competence, it's flesh
> will come to rely on its skeleton (underlying
> structure), and vice versa (bone is always changing
> out and resorbing its elements thanks to the tissue).
> That's a fact. And I believe it mirrors the lifecycle
> of a document, too.
Beautiful. But its just an analogy.
The simple, cold, stiff, rotting fact is - if you shove crap into a process you
get crap out. I don't care how many majestic systems you have in place you
cannot under any circumstances produce useful and meaningful documentation if
you haven't a clue what you are documenting. Sure 100,000 morons beating on
typewriters may someday write the Comprehensive Guide to Windows 2000, but is
that really what you mean?
Content supersedes the process it takes to make it pretty.
Andrew Plato
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