DD5HW2 Proofreading

Grammar:
For some of the steps in my instructions, I realized that the audience might not have a clear idea of what the pronoun is describing, so I took out the pronouns and added the specific subject. For example, I would have the picture of the button and have in the step, "click the button." I changed the wording from click the button to click the specific button even though the picture of the button is below the step. This avoids ambiguous pronoun references. Also, I had to change some of the tenses to match each other. In an instruction manual, the tense should be in the present. In the present, you are doing the actions currently.

Sentences:
In my instructions, I did have new or important information near the end. Usually, I had the specific button specified at the end of each step. Along with the picture of the button, it gives little room to be confused and negates ambiguity. I simplified some of the steps to fit an "appropriate" length. A step that is too long is intimidating and making the steps difficult disrupts the "flow" of the instructions.

Words and Phrases:
While keeping the steps simple for all users to be able to read and follow, it becomes the appropriate level of formality. With the short and simple steps, I used precise words to eliminate any confusion about the steps. In the checklist, it states that you should avoid stating the obvious. I feel like for this project at least, we have to assume that the audience has no knowledge about the information. What is "obvious" to one person may not be "obvious" to another person. Steps such as "Use the mouse and right click on such and such" would be crucial to a person that has not operated a computer before, but not a necessary step to someone who is a master with a computer. I changed some of the words to be more simple, a.k.a I took out some of the fancy words, as there was no need, and sometimes the reader wouldn't know the meaning of the word. If that happens, they would have to look up the word, and that disrupts the flow of the instructions. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

DD6HW2 Brainstorm

DD6HW6 Tech Comm Journal Search

DD9HW2 Reflect on PR