The audience doesn't know what it needs was: RE: What is "well Written"?

["Stansbury, Stan" <SBS -at- dolby -dot- com>]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: techwr-l-bounces+sbs=dolby -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
[mailto:techwr-l-
> bounces+sbs=dolby -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com] On Behalf Of John Posada
> Sent: Wednesday, May 16, 2007 7:47 AM
> To: Chinell, David F (GE Indust, Security);
techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
> Subject: RE: What is "well Written"?
> 
> --- "Chinell, David F (GE Indust, Security)" <David -dot- Chinell -at- GE -dot- com>
> wrote:
> 
> > 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.
> 
Uh, excuse me, is this true of you, as members of the audience for tech
writing tool documentation? Do you not know what it is that you need
from it? 
Why would you assume that users of any other application are any
different in that respect?

I personally am so frustrated by the quality and usability of the
documentation for my writing tools that I use it as an example of what
to avoid in my own work. 


> to discount the oft-repeated chant "Know they
> audience" because most times, the audience doesn't know what it needs
> and you can only figure this out through continued testing and
> improvement modifications.
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