RE: How do you define your audience/"user requirements" in your docs, to the reader?

["Leonard C. Porrello" <Leonard -dot- Porrello -at- SoleraTec -dot- com>]

In consideration of those who are sick of this thread, this post has two
parts. The first part carries the discussion forward, denying that
considerations of metacognitive competence are merely a distraction. The
second part is forensic, restating my original question and explicating
the meaning of some of the punctuation conventions I used in that
question.

PART 1: Regarding the tech writers need to assess users' relative level
of metacognitive competence

If you have no idea of your readers' relative level of metacognitive
competence (call it what you will), I don't see how you can write
effective user documentation. I agree; a technical writer has to focus
on helping users "do what they need to do." To do this effectively,
however, a technical writer needs to understand how users see themselves
as well as how accurate that self-perception is (i.e., relative level of
metacognitive competence). My advice to you, in any case, is that you
get a clear idea of your users' strengths and limitations.


PART 2: A restatement of my original question and an explication of the
meaning of the punctuation conventions I used in that question; Or,
beating a dead horse

You've taken part of what I said out of context. Here again is my
original statement (with a few words added to make explicit, albeit
redundant, what I thought implicit): "I was wondering how to deal with
the challenge of defining my target audience explicitly--in my docs, to
the reader. I have hardware and software requirements [sections "in my
docs"], but I do not have [a] 'user requirements' [section "in my
docs"], nor do I have a clear idea of how to define my target user--to
the reader."

Please note my use of double hyphens and scare quotes. In English prose,
technical or otherwise, the em dash (or two hyphens in this case)
normally indicates a parenthetical statement to which the author wants
to lend emphasis. Scare quotes, as I used around "user requirements",
indicate a phrase is being used atypically. It was obvious to me (and,
judging by responses, most others who posted a reply) that I intended
"user requirements" in the context of what came before and after the
phrase. I never said or implied that I did not understand my audience.

Leonard C. Porrello

 
-----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- c
om] On Behalf Of Michael West
Sent: Wednesday, April 09, 2008 7:15 PM
To: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Subject: RE: How do you define your audience/"user requirements" in your
docs,to the reader?

 > Mike West stated: I don't know how you could have written a usable
>manual without a clear idea of what roles you were writing for.

>Although several Techwr-lers have provided very helpful feedback, Mike
>is at least the second person to post without understanding what I was
>asking. 
-------------------------

In your original post you stated, "I do not have 'user requirements'."

If you don't know what your users require, or what is required of them, 
then I don't see how you could write a useful set of instructions for 
them.

Perhaps what you meant is not what you wrote.

My advice to you, in any case, is to focus on helping them do what they 
need to do, not their "metacognitive competence", or in representing 
themselves to themselves, both of which appear to me to be pointless 
distractions by comparison.
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