Re: fa-ce-tious adj. 1 Straining to be funny, esp. inappropriately

["Dana Worley" <dana -at- campbellsci -dot- com>]

On Monday, February 26, 2007, Mike Starr wrote: 

> However, I'm fascinated that this actually saw the light of day. I do 
> appreciate humor in documentation but it usually doesn't happen except in 
> start-ups. I think there's a place for humor in documentation... not in all 
> documentation but I do believe there are many products that a little humor 
> might make the product (and the documentation) less intimidating. I'd like 
> to see the audience analysis for this particular product.

I'm surprised at the reaction. I like the manual. It's fun, and there's 
certainly nothing offensive in it.  

It's a sports watch, not a Rolex. The target audience is the 30- to 
40-something fitness crowd who are somewhat serious about their 
sport & exercise (serious enough to worry about lap-counting/timing 
and how the watch performs underwater). 

I don't think the humor is lost on them. I, myself, would appreciate a 
little light-heartedness in the manuals for my 
altimeter/barometer/compass watch and my heart rate monitor. If 
you've got to read the manual to learn how to use the darned thing, 
it might was well be amusing. The manuals for my watch & monitor 
are dry, poorly translated, and contain several inaccuracies. 

2 cents,
Dana W.

***************************
Dana Worley
Software Product Manager/Manager, Software Support Group
Campbell Scientific, Inc. 
Microsoft MVP, Windows Help


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