TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:RE: "Click-and-drag" or just "drag" -- ? From:"Cardimon, Craig" <ccardimon -at- M-S-G -dot- com> To:'Kathleen MacDowell' <kathleen -dot- eamd -at- gmail -dot- com> Date:Tue, 23 Oct 2012 17:44:30 +0000
Thank to everyone who replied. You definitely helped.
From: Kathleen MacDowell [mailto:kathleen -dot- eamd -at- gmail -dot- com]
Sent: Tuesday, October 23, 2012 1:47 PM
To: Cardimon, Craig
Cc: Kat Kuvinka; techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Subject: Re: "Click-and-drag" or just "drag" -- ?
How ponderous would it be to say
You can move Tool One by clicking on it and dragging it into the desired position.
I wouldn't add anything about releasing it; people will find out soon enough, unless there's something tricky about how that should happen or the function doesn't work correctly...
I start wondering about how pedantic I need to be after I've written lots of descriptions like this. But the thing is, if you keep them short, you make sure your audience at least knows the minimal capabilities of the product.
At least that's how I approach it. YMMV :-)
On Tue, Oct 23, 2012 at 9:20 AM, Cardimon, Craig <ccardimon -at- m-s-g -dot- com<mailto:ccardimon -at- m-s-g -dot- com>> wrote:
I was wondering how pedantic I need to be, and how brief I could be.
Why wouldn't "drag" suffice?
The audience should be computer literate.
I am pondering just how "ponderous" I need to be.
From: Kat Kuvinka [mailto:katkuvinka -at- hotmail -dot- com<mailto:katkuvinka -at- hotmail -dot- com>]
Sent: Tuesday, October 23, 2012 10:06 AM
To: Cardimon, Craig; techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com<mailto:techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com>
Subject: RE: "Click-and-drag" or just "drag" -- ?
Depends on your audience and if you have attempted somewhere to teach them what it means to drag. And drop. They should drop after dragging, yes?
>
> Maybe I've been staring at this too long, but if some items need to be dragged around, would you say:
>
> "Click-and-drag Tool One where you want it."
>
> Or Just:
>
> "Drag Tool One where you want it."
>
> --Craig
>
Information contained in this e-mail transmission is privileged and confidential. If you are not the intended recipient of this email, do not read, distribute or reproduce this transmission (including any attachments). If you have received this e-mail in error, please immediately notify the sender by telephone or email reply.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Writer Tip: You have more time to author content with Doc-To-Help, because your project can be up and running in 3 steps.
See the “Getting Started with Doc-To-Help” blog post. http://bit.ly/doc-to-help-3-steps
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
You are currently subscribed to TECHWR-L as kathleen -dot- eamd -at- gmail -dot- com<mailto:kathleen -dot- eamd -at- gmail -dot- com>.
To unsubscribe send a blank email to
techwr-l-leave -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com<mailto:techwr-l-leave -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com>
Information contained in this e-mail transmission is privileged and confidential. If you are not the intended recipient of this email, do not read, distribute or reproduce this transmission (including any attachments). If you have received this e-mail in error, please immediately notify the sender by telephone or email reply.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Writer Tip: You have more time to author content with Doc-To-Help, because your project can be up and running in 3 steps.
See the “Getting Started with Doc-To-Help” blog post. http://bit.ly/doc-to-help-3-steps
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
You are currently subscribed to TECHWR-L as archive -at- web -dot- techwr-l -dot- com -dot-
To unsubscribe send a blank email to
techwr-l-leave -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
