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RE: RE : More usage: "Open" or "Access" web addresses
Subject:RE: RE : More usage: "Open" or "Access" web addresses From:"Leonard C. Porrello" <Leonard -dot- Porrello -at- SoleraTec -dot- com> To:"Techwr-l" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Wed, 19 Mar 2008 09:51:11 -0700
Some argue that all language is metaphor. In fact, it's not dificult to argue that "click" itself is metaphorical. One doesn't click. The "mouse" clicks. To be strictly literal, you'd have to say, "apply pressure to the left-most button on the top of the mouse until you hear a 'click', then release the button." Of course, this begs the question, "does a tree falling in a forest make a noise if there is no one to hear it?" In other words, "does the mouse really 'click', or is the 'click' merely just a human mental construct?"
I don't want to try to settle this issue here. Rather, as a result of these considerations, I would suggest there is a continuum between literal and metaphorical. While statements that appear to be most literal refer to physical acts (e.g., "click"), virtual acts (e.g., opening a combo box in a dialog) and mental acts (e.g., reading "words" on a screen) can also be considered similarly literal. Therefore, it's not untoward to say "select" when instructing a user to choose one of several options, and it's ok to tell a user to "go to" a URL. In online help, "Click wwwDOTsampleurlDOTcom" and "Go to wwwDOTsampleurlDOTcom" are both fine. In printed docs, however, it wouldn't make sense to say, "Click wwwDOTsampleurlDOTcom", and there is nothing wrong with saying "Go to wwwDOTsampleurlDOTcom" rather than the more literal, "Enter wwwDOTsampleurlDOTcom into the address field of your internet browser."
Above and beyond philological and philosophical considerations, one needs to consider audience. I totally agree with Ned. What you say depends "on who your users are. Find out who needs to do it, and that will tell you a lot about whether to give them the baby talk (go to) or the rich heritage version (ftp to, or connect to)."
Leonard C. Porrello
SoleraTec LLC
www.soleratec.com
-----Original Message-----
From: techwr-l-bounces+leonard -dot- porrello=soleratec -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com [mailto:techwr-l-bounces+leonard -dot- porrello=soleratec -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com] On Behalf Of Yves JEAUROND
Sent: Wednesday, March 19, 2008 8:41 AM
To: Techwr-l
Subject: RE : More usage: "Open" or "Access" web addresses
Give users the easiest path: "Click [URL]."
Btw, "open" is a figure of speech for output---you can open a can
or a door, but not an URL.
And by giving them a link to the URL, they have access. :-)
A trick that helps with such problems is asking what the user is
trying to make. To do so , consider Aristotle's four causes,
if the example were a marble statue:
- material cause: marble (The result is made of what?)
- formal cause: the model posing for the statue (The result is made to look like who?)
- efficient cause: hammer & chisel (The result is made how?)
- final cause: payment for finishing the statue. (The result is made why?)
Focus on the efficient cause, by answering the question "How?",
rather than the material cause---the computer implementation, HTML...
Sad Fact
=> A user can only click [to select, to enable, to use], type, scroll, read,
and very little else.
All the other verbs---go, visit, surf, access, run, draw---are highly metaphorical;
at best they give a specialized audience an analogy of some formal cause;
at worst they are ambiguous. Ask the localizers.
Regards,
YJ
"Cardimon, Craig" <ccardimon -at- M-S-G -dot- com> a écrit :
Again, I'm seeing different variations here. If I want to direct users
to ftp://ftp.comeandgetit.com , would I
tell them to open that URL or access it?
I probably just advised them to "open" IE, so should I use "open" again
so soon, or should I tell them to "start" IE, and "open" this web
address?
Are web addresses opened or accessed?
I'm getting dizzy.
-- Craig
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