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Subject:Re: Another tragic case of not reading the manual From:Andrew Plato <gilliankitty -at- yahoo -dot- com> To:techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com Date:Fri, 15 Aug 2003 09:14:45 -0700 (PDT)
<miriam -at- silvershed -dot- co -dot- uk> wrote...
> I wonder how far we can go as authors to make sure that this doesn't
> happen - it seems like the manual could have been the most shining example
> of technical authorship, and it still wouldn't have helped.
Never underestimate the extreme stupidity of humans. Even if it was documented
perfectly and drills were given every hour, there are always people who defy
all logic and reason and insist on doing stupid things. Nature has a way of
weeding those morons out of the gene pool.
Stupidity is also contagious. When groups of people get together, they tend to
migrate to the lowest point of intelligence. Hence, if the boss is acting
stupid, the employees will follow and act even stupider.
What can you do as a tech writer to avoid this? Don't be stupid. Make sure
information is accurate and clear. Also realize you're not going to stop stupid
people from doing stupid things.
Andrew Plato
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