Re: The double "this"

["Susan W. Gallagher" <sgallagher -at- EXPERSOFT -dot- COM>]

At 11:21 AM 9/10/97 +0300, you wrote:
>1)      "This flag specifies that this node allows read access
>
>             ** I think that the double "this" is inelegant,
>                causing the flag and the node to jostle one
>                another for the spotlight.

I agree. Then, too, it's relatively inelegant to lead with "this".
Can you repeat the flag name???
        The <blahblah> flag specifies...

But, I suspect the real problem is that you're trying not to leave
out any words, which is an all-too-frequent trap. If you've got a
bunch of flags to document, leading with "This flag..." in every
description can be overly repetitive and the reader already knows
which flag your talking about. If this is the case, I recommend
(and do) leave out the "This" lead-in and start with the action
verb, like this:

        Specifies read access for the selected node.

Subject understood, reader understands, and not a whole lot of clutter.

Just my... Heck, I guess I should just keep a roll of pennies on
my desk, huh??? ;-)


-Sue Gallagher               http://pw1.netcom.com/~gscale/susanwg/
sgallagher -at- expersoft -dot- com     http://www.expersoft.com

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