Enable/disable vs yes/no?

Subject: Enable/disable vs yes/no?
From: Geoff Hart <ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca>
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com>
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 2004 10:18:23 -0500


Manisha wondered: <<Any thumb rules on when to use Enable/Disable and Yes/No? for example Bypass Control - Enable Disable Bypass Control - Yes No All four Enable, Disable, Yes, No are buttons.>>

The two groups of alternatives have very different meanings, so the choice of which one to use should be clear. "Yes/no" is the answer to a question that asks for permission to go ahead and do something; "enable/disable" is a command to the computer to do something (turn something on or off). The context should tell you which of the two alternatives are correct.

In the example you gave, "yes/no" is acceptable if this is a question: "Do you want to disable the control?" Yes, I do. "Enable/disable" answers a different question: "What do you want me to do about the bypass control?" Please enable it.

--Geoff Hart ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca
(try geoffhart -at- mac -dot- com if you don't get a reply)


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References:
RE: Text enrichment software tool: From: Erez Perelmuter
Re: Text enrichment software tool: From: Peter Neilson
Enable/Disable Vs Yes/No: From: Manisha

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