TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Chris wrote:
>The toaster toasts your bread. You can use it to toast bread-like
>substances that are in the shape of a slice. For example, you can
>use it to toast slices of nasty sandwich bread, English muffins, or
>sliced whole-wheat bread. You cannot use it to toast an unsliced
>loaf of bread, nor can you use it to cook a pizza.
I still prefer:
-----
The toaster toasts your bread. It can toast bread-like substances
that are in the shape of a slice. For example, it can toast slices
of nasty sandwich bread, English muffins, or sliced whole-wheat
bread. It cannot toast an unsliced loaf of bread, nor can it cook a
pizza.
-----
It's entirely understood that the toaster is a tool that you use, and
that it doesn't do these things on its own. Adding "you can use it"
to each sentence adds 25% more words without improving the
understandability one whit.
>Using the toaster enables you to toast your bread while you are
>frying your eggs.
I would accept this because it refers to the general usefulness of
the toaster as a time-saver, thus "allowing" you to do other things
while it's working. But for a specific feature, I prefer the direct approach.
__________________________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Shopping - Send Flowers for Valentine's Day http://shopping.yahoo.com
Buy or upgrade to RoboHelp X3 today and receive the WebHelp
Merge Module for FREE ($299 value). RoboHelp X3's all-new
features include conditional text, completely re-engineered
printed documentation output, Context-sensitive Help Toolkit,
single-source layouts, and more!
Order online today at http://www.ehelp.com/techwr-l
---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as:
archive -at- raycomm -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com
Send administrative questions to ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com -dot- Visit http://www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.
