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As with another reported case, I dunno if the writer(s) were involved in the
suit, but someone sued Sony around here some years ago over a documentation
issue.
The suit involved a young man who was walking down the sidewalk with his
WalkMan on. He went to cross the street, didn't hear anything coming, and
stepped off the curb into the path of a car. Broken leg.
So he sued Sony, with the allegation that the
don't-wear-this-thing-in-traffic warning wasn't prominent enough. I don't
know what the end result of the suit was, but it's clearly a case where the
documentation was brought to court in a lawsuit.
My personal opinion, however, is that consumers need to take a little
responsibility for their own welfare. I've read lots of things on this list
about the difference between European and US manuals in terms of warnings.
It cracks me up to see a warning in a power saw manual telling me that a
carbide-tipped blade spinning at 2,000 rpm could carve up my hand. Really?
Wow! I never would have figured that out!
Thom Remington
Wilmington DE
remingtf -at- pop -dot- ds -dot- dupont -dot- com
Opinions expressed are mine alone. DuPont hires other people to speak for
the corporation.
