RE: Rant continued from previous page (was Re: Another Word guruquestion)

["Combs, Richard" <richard -dot- combs -at- Polycom -dot- com>]

Geoff Lane wrote: 
 
> If the reader only has one of the pages, and continuation 
> markers are used, the reader at least knows that he doesn't 
> have all the information. In the case I cited, he would have 
> known that there were further exceptions to the general. He'd 
> know that he couldn't be sure of the torque setting for any 
> fastener for which he didn't have an explicit value until 
> he'd had sight of the continuation page.

Sorry, but I think the problem wasn't lack of a continuation marker, it
was improper presentation of the information. 

If there is a default value, but with exceptions, present the exceptions
first. Present the "All others" entry last. 

The presentation you describe was backwards, essentially saying, "Use
value X unless you're _later_ told not to." That's akin to the
unfortunate type of procedure step that says something like, "Turn on
the power, but not until after ..."

Richard


------
Richard G. Combs
Senior Technical Writer
Polycom, Inc.
richardDOTcombs AT polycomDOTcom
303-223-5111
------
rgcombs AT gmailDOTcom
303-777-0436
------




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