This is a read only archive of pad.okfn.org. See the
shutdown announcement
for details.
writethedocs-jargon
Jul 19 1300-1330
"JARGON"
Q:
why do people use jargon?
do we need it?
Strategies:
do not use jargon
"jargon is needed to establish base ground"
#tools
q: is there tools for figuring out the "understandability" of words?
yes:
Hemingway -> http://www.hemingwayapp.com/
readability indexes (Fleisch score)
language corpus + IDF (inverted document frequency) of terms
/// discussion on printing ///
problems of non-native speakers
#internationalization
-------------------------
"just speak a common english"
"the most common spoken language in the world is ... Bad English"
[...]
Legal jargon / Plain terms of use
Good point : http://tosdr.org/
"De-jargoning"
...
"Blah blah blah" book
Visualising language/ideas is often better than text
http://www.danroam.com/blah-blah-blah/
Reasons for jargon:
deliberate jargon (obscuring meaning) ... marketing / "Legalese"
Another book:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Road_Less_Traveled
If you have proper terms, you can get clearer.
There is not just bad sides to jagon.
"List of simple words?"
Check: Simple English wikipedia
Discuss: Style manuals / Style guides
"I'm a big believer in the editorial process"
-------------------------
Is there a programatic way of enforing this?
(again) the Hemingway tool, etc.
#usability #testing
How do you know that readers understood words?
Use Test groups - get feedback from people
EOF