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Marianne Bowen has <<...to refer to the product I am
documenting. The product name is rather long, meaning the
name, the TM symbol, and the word system after it. That
would be the correct usage of the product name.>>
The two obvious workarounds are to come up with a
nickname (e.g., "TANSTAAFL is the name of the "there ain't
no such thing as a free lunch" system software"), or to avoid
using the name entirely (other than--say--in the running
header on each page) and simply refer to "the software". The
latter approach is simpler and (for user documentation) much
more effective than cluttering the text with long names and
TMs and wordmarks.
<<The previous writer used the full name throughout the
document, including trademarking and the word system.>>
I have a sneaking suspicion--and it's one that I'd love to have
confirmed--that we've all been laboring under a serious
misunderstanding of trademark law. It seems perfectly clear
that in marketing documentation, you really do need to be
strict about using the trademark correctly, but I strongly doubt
that this is a requirement _anywhere_ else; for example, a
quick look at the Microsoft Word manual sitting in front of
me shows the use of (R) only for Microsoft and only on the
cover and in the copyrights, and not when it's being used as
part of the phrase "Microsoft Word". Ditto for Adobe
PageMaker: both words have (R) on the cover, but nowhere
in the main text. Finally, I don't recall the last time I saw an
(R) or (TM) outside an ad in _PC Magazine_ or any of the
other trade magazines that regularly discuss trademarked
products. Presumably, this is a clear indication that they know
something we don't. (Of course, nobody in their right mind
would try to steal a Microsoft trademark, so perhaps they're
not the best example... <g>)
