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Subject:Re. Use of voice in instructions From:Geoff Hart <geoff-h -at- MTL -dot- FERIC -dot- CA> Date:Mon, 18 Dec 1995 16:56:15 LCL
Mercedes Abels asked for support in the use of "you"
instead of "he/she" or passive voice in her operator
manuals.
I'd suggest that this is a case that's tailor-made for the
imperative voice. Instead of saying "you should not touch
live wires" or "the operator, s/he should not touch", or
"the wires should not be touched", simply say "Don't touch
the wires." To be consistent, make all actions parallel:
"Do this or don't do that", as appropriate.
--Geoff Hart @8^{)}
geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca
Disclaimer: If I didn't commit it in print in one of our
reports, it don't represent FERIC's opinion.
