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Subject:Re: as opposed to the user's user name From:Paul Goble <pg -at- pgcommunication -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Fri, 25 Feb 2005 16:05:03 -0700
"diotima" <diotima -at- myway -dot- com> wrote:
> "from the bla bla, you can edit the user's name, user name, and
> password."
I often find it helpful to transform a list as if it were a
mathematical expression.
Distributive property - cX + cY = c(X + Y)
...you can edit the user's name, the user's user name,
and the user's password.
When using the distributive property to factor a list, sometimes
it helps to try a bullet list. This makes it clear whether the
word "user's" applies to the whole list, or to just the first item:
...you can edit the user's:
* name
* user name
* password
Commutative property - c(X + Y) = (X + Y)c
...you can edit the name, user name, and password of the user.
Substitution - A = (X + Y)
...you can edit the user record. The record for a user consists
of a name, user name, and password.
Finally, I'd examine the whole treatment of the topic. To me,
expressions like "from the bla bla, you can ..." are a red flag
indicating feature-oriented, rather than task-oriented thinking. Is the
question on the user's mind, "What can I do with the bla bla? Please
give me a description." Or is the question, "How do I change a user's
password? Please give me a procedure."
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