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Re: Examples of Great Software/Web-based User Guides
Subject:Re: Examples of Great Software/Web-based User Guides From:Robert Lauriston <robert -at- lauriston -dot- com> To:techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com Date:Fri, 21 Aug 2009 09:23:53 -0700
"Automatic" seems entirely adequate to me.
Actual usage of "automagical' seems to be "automatic" with the
implication that the speaker is impressed that it works but doesn't
know how, or, when used ironically, knows how it works but can't be
bothered to explain. I don't see that either would ever be appropriate
in formal writing.
On Thu, Aug 20, 2009 at 2:57 PM, Erik Hare<wabbitoid47 -at- yahoo -dot- com> wrote:
>
> The term is easily over-used, but it has one critical use. In our world, a kind of deus ex machina is expected constantly from the instruments and institutions around us. It's rarely our faith in deus that causes us to expect it, but more of a machina ex deus.
>
> The term "automagical" is very precise when appliance usage crosses a line to a kind of belief system. It happens far more often than it should, too.
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