RE: What is "well Written"?

["Chinell, David F \(GE Indust, Security\)" <David -dot- Chinell -at- GE -dot- com>]

A slightly different take on this issue derives from trying to deliver
*value* to my readers.

I started with an old equation: V = Q / C

The value of a thing increases with the quality and decreases with the
cost. But I got bogged down (as did many here) on determining what
"quality" documentation is. In the end, there was simply no simple,
meaningful way to determine this quality.

So I changed the equation to: V = U / C

The value of a thing increases with its utility and decreases with its
cost. Utility can be measured in tests. We can perform limited, specific
tests with volunteers who attend our training sessions, or with in-house
staff when pressed.

Utility is also great because it takes into account the purpose of the
reader. The utility of a thing can only be determined within the scope
of the reader's purpose. (A thing has a limited scope or range of
utility, probably with one or two focii where utility is maximized. The
scope is defined by the reader's purpose.)

Knowing the reader's purpose helps me get the purpose of a piece of tech
comm straight.

Bear
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