Re: Mac vs. PC survey

[Elna Tymes <Etymes -at- LTS -dot- COM>]

diane haugen wrote:


> I didn't get the impression Eric Haddock was suggesting this was a
> statistically significant study.  It was, I think he said, "interesting."
> In other words, I had no trouble picking up on this being an informal
> survey.  The issue --  whether people use a particular platform because the
> work environment forces them to rather than the platform of their choice --
> is, I think, one technical writers may find effects their work.

Then I'm sure you'd find it equally "interesting" if someone used their
personal web pages to find out if people who dropped by preferred mice to
"smart keys" in their use in word processors.  I wouldn't.  Anecdotal
data is *always* statistically suspect.
> >
> >There *are* some statistically defensible surveys on user preferences,
> >but they're done by people who know something about statistics.

> I would be interested in knowing what these studies are.  Would you be so
> kind as to share the sources so others could check into them?
> If you read the trade mags, you've seen them this year. I've run across
some in ComputerWeek, in Inter -at- ctive Week, and in several others, and
because they're not of immediate use to me, don't keep the issues.  Some
are done by Dataquest, some by other market research organizations that
get their money by doing these things for clients and publish synopses as
a kind of teaser to get more interest.  I'm sure a little
carefully-crafted keyword searching on the 'net would turn them up for
you.

Elna Tymes
Los Trancos Systems

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