From: crystal@glia.biostr.washington.edu (Crystal)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.misc,comp.sys.amiga.applications
Subject: Re: Time Management/Scheduling S/W ???????
Date: 29 Aug 92 15:19:35 GMT
Article-I.D.: glia.crystal.715101575
Organization: University of Washington

In <64851@cup.portal.com> thad@cup.portal.com (Thad P Floryan) writes:

>In article <crystal.714978090@glia>
>crystal@glia.biostr.washington.edu (Crystal) writes:

>|  In <64773@cup.portal.com> thad@cup.portal.com (Thad P Floryan) writes:
>|  >[...]
>|  >It's very likely that someone NEEDing a time/project scheduling system has
>|  >other computers, too.
>|  
>|  Peculiar logic...does this mean that if I feel I *NEED* more than one
>|  calendar, I must have -several- refrigerators to hang them on??? :>
>|  
>|  I have  WHAT!WHEN!Whatever! on order.  My "need" for it has nothing to
>|  do with having more than one computer.  I just need some reminding at times
>|  (like when a bill is due, or a birthday coming up, or even when to be on 
>|  PMS alert. *grin*)  Scheduling programs aren't ONLY for the executive - us
>|  little people need to organize our busy lives, too.  (especially when we
>|  lapse into stress/forgetful mode!)
>|  
>|  Making assumptions about another's needs without asking for verification
>|  first of those needs is a poor practice.
>|  [...]

>Interesting how we "read" different requirements into the same posting. :-)

>Seeing a daytime posting from a ".trw.com" site (TRW being a defense contractor
>and a major credit/financial reporting company) asking about time scheduling
>software left me with the definite impression the request was made on behalf
>of the employer and wasn't likely to be for an inexpensive program to be run
>on a home A500.

Well, *there's* where the problem lies!  ;>

You did not simply read the posting and take what the fellow said at face
value.  An attempt was made to "snoop" out what the fellow wanted without
simply asking HIM for better clarification of what he was looking for. (BTW,
many people have breaks and lunch hours, and some even read the news when the
boss is in a meeting...;> so a daytime posting from a .com address is not an
accurate tool.  And with people sharing accounts all over the place, well,
you get the picture.) (Someone fingered the wrong account at the UW and now
assumes I am male - and I can't for the life of me convince him that his  
assumption is WRONG!!!!)  So be aware of errors when making assumptions not
based on all the facts.

Best to get the info straight from the horse's mouth...if he wanted Gantt
charts, he would have so stated.  If he wanted it for a machine other than
an Amiga, ditto.                                               

>Project and time management scheduling systems tend to be highly specialized
>products, with AutoPLAN and GraphicVUE coming to mind (from different vendors;
>I have no axes to grind).  Programs like these ARE bought/used by companies;

This paragraph above would have been a very good answer to the person's post.
It makes no assumptions, it just states facts.  

Statements like "If you are looking for such-and-such feature, this program
has it" are much more polite and less assuming (and less irritating) than the
statement I saw in another post "I assume you want this feature" which puts
the person on the spot and attacks his intellect and competence. (especially
if he had never even -heard- of such a feature).  The world is full of people
ready to tell us what we want and make our decisions for us, unfortunately.

>Contrast "casual use" with "serious application."

Neither of which he specified in his post.  Clarification of such would have
been in order, or simply post facts about programs you know about. Simple.
Life's too short to complicate it further... :>
   
Class dismissed...  ;>

Crystal
  ;>
"If we weren't all crazy, we would go insane!"  -- Jimmy Buffett
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.misc