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Subject:RE: Houston, we have an auction From:"Richard L Hamilton" <dick -at- rlhamilton -dot- net> To:"'Boudreaux, Madelyn \(GE Healthcare, consultant\)'" <MadelynBoudreaux -at- ge -dot- com>, <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Mon, 5 Apr 2010 12:28:31 -0600
Thanks for pointing this out. Fascinating stuff; wish I had the cash to
bid on that piece of history.
Regarding the terseness, the second page, emergency powerdown, looks
more like a checklist than a manual.
Best Regards,
Richard Hamilton
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> -----Original Message-----
> From: techwr-l-bounces+dick=rlhamilton -dot- net -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
> [mailto:techwr-l-bounces+dick=rlhamilton -dot- net -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- co
> m] On Behalf Of Boudreaux, Madelyn (GE Healthcare,consultant)
> Sent: Monday, April 05, 2010 9:32 AM
> To: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
> Subject: Houston, we have an auction
>
>
> Gizmodo reports that the manual pages describing how to perform an
> "emergency power down" on the Apollo 13 are up for auction. They used
> this procedure save energy they would need later, once they'd lost the
> ability to generate more power. Without these pages, we'd all be
> deprived of Tom Hanks. ;)
>
> The pages themselves are shocking. It's almost in a code; I
> assume that
> they couldn't take hundreds of pages of documentation with them when
> every ounce counts, so in this case, they must have written in near
> code, and then trained the astronauts on how to read said
> code. What do
> you think?
> http://gizmodo.com/5507848/the-manual-pages-that-saved-apollo-13
My SO suggested I print them and hang them in my cubical to show the
next person who asks why my job matters.
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and Doc-To-Help does the rest. Free trial: http://www.doctohelp.com
Explore CAREER options and paths related to Technical Writing,
learn to create SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS documents, and
get tips on FUNCTIONAL SPECIFICATION best practices. Free at: http://www.ModernAnalyst.com
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