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--- KMcLauchlan -at- chrysalis-its -dot- com wrote:
> > I'd tell him I tested it and it's already 100% accurate.
>
> Careful. Somebody might record a little statement
> like that and fling it back in your face
True... nobody wants to be on record saying something is 100%
accurate. Maybe that's why the SME doesn't want to review it.
But you can usually test software to a pretty high degree of
confidence before writing the topic. I am allergic to writing
"The GetFoo call returns 'foo'" unless I have a timestamped
piece of actual sample code that I ran myself. If someone says
your doc is incorrect, it helps to be able to rerun the test or
refer to the code to demonstrate your doc is actually correct.
I find SME reviewers tend to just scan for errors. That's OK,
but what I really need an SME for is to tell me what I forgot to
write.
Now that I think about it, I realize all my SME contact usually
occurs early on in the process and is built into the docs. So
when the doc is done, SME review is pretty much superfluous.
Also, think about the hidden assumptions from the SME in the
original post: Why does the SME assume that if he doesn't review
it it won't be accurate? Why does he assume that it will be 100%
accurate *after* he reviews it?
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