Re: Peer edits

[Victoria Camgros <vcamgros -at- persistence -dot- com>]

Dave Stewart wrote:
"I've read about the benefits and challenges of peer editing, and I'm 
trying to come up with an initial list of items we should be looking for in 
each other's documents.

"Adherence to company style guidelines is a no-brainer, but are there 
additional items I should look for in other writers' documentation?"


Here's what I look forward to when a peer reads my work, and what I try to 
provide when I review another writer's stuff:

- A review of basic writing correctness: grammar, spelling, style guide 
consistency. This is not as good as a real editor (unless you get lucky), 
but can take the place of an edit when the editor hasn't gotten to me yet 
(as for an alpha or beta release).

- A review of (um) heuristics?: the other writers are technically savvy and 
intelligent, but haven't spent the time I have learning this particular 
chunk of the product. So if they cannot follow my presentation of the 
material, likely the customer won't either.

- A review of the document organization: similar to the last, and something 
that a technical reviewer will almost never notice. Checking whether the 
document's structure is logical and consistent.

- A review against the documentation plan: Ahem. I myself never leave 
things out, of course. :) But it can happen in the frenzy of a project that 
a planned section (chapter?) never gets written. Another writer will catch 
this. A technical reviewer almost never.

- A review of the technical content as it relates to other current 
projects. Our products are pretty large and technical, and typically have 
many projects feeding into a single major release. Often, another writer 
will see a connection between my material and his/hers of which I was unaware.

Hope this helps,
V.


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