radical revamping of techpubs

John Hedtke john at hedtke.com
Fri Oct 19 11:10:43 PDT 2007 

You're making an assumption that the market is driven by quality.  It 
is not, though that's certainly a factor.  The market is driven even 
more by good marketing.

At 10:58 AM 10/19/2007, Technical Writer wrote:

>And yet people still buy it. If they did not, issues of quality 
>would be irrelevant; only the "quality" items would be purchased, 
>the "crap" would languish on the dealer shelves, and we would be 
>working rather than having this 
>discussion.http://www.tekwrytrs.com/Specializing in the Design, 
>Development, and Production of:Technical Documentation - Online 
>Content - Enterprise Websites
>
>
>Subject: RE: radical revamping of techpubsDate: Fri, 19 Oct 2007 
>10:55:33 -0700From: gflato at nanometrics.comTo: tekwrytr at hotmail.com; 
>framers at lists.frameusers.com
>
>
>
>I have seen enough bug reports in my time to know that quality is 
>not subjective. If the software generates a mile-long list of bugs 
>reported by customers and QA people, the software application is crap.
>
>
>Thank you,
>
>
>Gillian Flato
>Technical Writer (Software)
>nanometrics
>1550 Buckeye Dr.
>Milpitas, CA. 95035
>(408.545.6316
>7  408.232.5911
>* gflato at nanometrics.com
>
>
>
>
>From: Technical Writer [mailto:tekwrytr at hotmail.com] Sent: Friday, 
>October 19, 2007 10:52 AMTo: Flato, Gillian; 
>framers at lists.frameusers.comSubject: RE: radical revamping of techpubs
>The same could be said of pacemakers, missile control systems, and a 
>host of others. That does not change the fact that in most software 
>applications, perceptions of quality are highly subjective.
>
>
>Subject: RE: radical revamping of techpubsDate: Fri, 19 Oct 2007 
>10:09:42 -0700From: gflato at nanometrics.comTo: tekwrytr at hotmail.com; 
>framers at lists.frameusers.com
>
>
> >>Quality is primarily a subjective opinion;
> >>Similarly, whether a product is crap or not is again an opinion, 
> not an objective evaluation that can applied in all cases.
>
>When you work in the semi-conductor industry making high-tech 
>instruments that are used in fabs (chip fabrication plants), quality 
>is not subjective. If the tool stops running after a few thousand 
>cycles or a part on the tool fails after only a few months of 
>running, then it's objective. A part broke, the Tool shutdown, 
>quality is crap, that's not subjective.
>
>TechWriters in my field document the software that runs on these 
>types of tools. If you go to a fab, you'll see the type of tools I 
>am taking about.
>
>BTW, why don't you identify who you are? You act so sanctimonious 
>yet you hide behind a moniker. Have some cohones and tell us who you are.
>
>
>Thank you,
>
>
>Gillian Flato
>Technical Writer (Software)
>nanometrics
>1550 Buckeye Dr.
>Milpitas, CA. 95035
>(408.545.6316
>7  408.232.5911
>* gflato at nanometrics.com
>
>
>
>
>From: Technical Writer [mailto:tekwrytr at hotmail.com] Sent: Friday, 
>October 19, 2007 9:37 AMTo: Flato, Gillian; 
>framers at lists.frameusers.comSubject: RE: radical revamping of techpubs
>  And I know of a CEO who used to either get there first, or let the 
> wannabes struggle over the crumbs. Name of Bill Gates. Quality is 
> primarily a subjective opinion; witness the 90+% of the population 
> of the planet using Windows, despite the occasional Blue Screen of 
> Death, or necessary re-booting orre-installing required. Similarly, 
> whether a product is crap or not is again an opinion, not an 
> objective evaluation that can applied in all cases. The Debian 
> flavor of Linux is considered "the best" by some, and "the worst" 
> by some. The opinions are subjective. Everyone TW wants to believe 
> that he or she is producing quality documentation that creates a 
> warm fuzzy in the user, and makes customers-for-life of the company 
> that produces whatever is being documented. I simply suggest a 
> reality check may be more useful. If the TW is documenting 
> software, perhaps he or she should change fields to one with a 
> slower pace of life (and writing). The option is to accept the 
> realities of the marketplace, and how those influence and constrain 
> the production of technical documentation. In a world in which 
> dynamic onlne help files are rapidly replacing hard copy documents, 
> it seems more useful to focus on developing a skill set that 
> enables high-volume production of acceptable quality content, 
> rather than obsessing over trivial (to most users) details of 
> grammar, construction, or voice. In that direction may lie the 
> future of TW--get it written, get it online, and concentrate on the 
> Pareto principle of satisfying the needs of the majority of users 
> rather than obsessing over the subjective opinions of the 
> minority.    < From: gflato at nanometrics.com> To: 
> tekwrytr at hotmail.com; framers at lists.frameusers.com> > ...or similar 
> biggies realize that time-to-market is everything, > > 
> Time-to-market is not everything if you sacrifice quality. If 
> you're first on the market but your product is crap, the fact that 
> you were first on the market is irrelevant. > > I know a CEO who 
> got fired because all he cared about is being first on the market 
> but his products were crap and failed often. Other company's that 
> were slower to market but turned out quality products, stole 
> marketshare from that company. The company almost went under until 
> the board of Directors wisely fired him and put a new CEO at the 
> helm.> > > -Gillian> >
>
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Yours truly,

John Hedtke
Author/Consultant/Contract Writer
www.hedtke.com <-- website
541-685-5000 (office landline)
541-554-2189 (cell)
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