On Thu, Sep 08, 2005 at 08:25:29AM -0400, David Clymer wrote: > On Wed, 2005-09-07 at 08:14 -0400, Stephen R Laniel wrote: > > On Tue, Sep 06, 2005 at 06:43:16PM +0100, Jon Dowland wrote: > > > We've had a lot of these queries recently. Does that suggest the > > > installation process needs to be adjusted slightly, to combat the > > > assumption a GUI environment is installed by default? Or should we be > > > pushing for people to read the installation docs before going ahead with > > > it? > > > > I don't think people should ever have to read documents in > > order to use a product. Requiring people to read the docs > > suggests that the product itself isn't designed well enough > > that it explains its own usage. And it allows programmers > > the luxury of being lazy in their UI design. We should > > assume that people won't read the docs, and build our > > products with that assumption in mind. > > > > Well put. >
For some products, Stephen's position is simply silly. Consider, for example, a Boeing 747. Another example is a C compiler. There are many more. Too many to list, and more than I could possible even know about. In general, the world is larger and more complicated than any of us know. -- Paul E Condon [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]