And keywords for the meta tags in Excell speadsheets.
For f*cks sake give me a break. Just use a text file for content, keywords can be a paragraph in an email, and if needs be use a pencil and paper for layouts then fax it through if you can’t scan it!
There is a serious point here but I am so incredulous at my latest round of documents encapsulating the entire Office product suite that frankly I am struggling to know where to begin. I would think education might be a good start; real basics.
This is not meant to be a Microsoft bashing, but they have to take a large wedge of the blame for monopolising the tools and then not showing people the best way to do things. I would be sure that the way things are suit Microsoft perfectly.
I can well imagine that most people, probably for fear of ‘being different’, buy, install and use, Office for creating and sharing documents and have no other knowledge of how to do things. It’s not like your local college are, generally, going to explain anything else in their ‘Computing for Beginers’ course other than, turn on your PC and then from the start menu choose Word; now we can begin. Sheesh!
What might be a better approach is….
1 There are dozens of Word processing applications out there, we are going to use Word in this class, but the others are perfectly good.
2 You don’t need to worry about sharing documents in Word format, it’s often not a good idea, try an open format like PDF instead. There are lots of free PDF applications out there like the ones installed on your college computer, and Apple computers can read and write PDFs by default. Using a PDF file will make sure your documents can be viewed by the people you send them to just as you see them on screen.
3 If you are just taking notes then maybe a Powerpoint document or a spreadsheet is not a suitable format. Why not use a nice simple application, there are lots out there that come preinstalled on your computer like Notepad, or Textedit etc. Again you can use PDF to distribute the final document to the recipients.
4 Use the right tool for the right job – you don’t use a hammer to tighten a screw, why use Word to design a web page.
And if people are really going to insist it is perfectly reasonable to keep using Office for all this, then the users need to be taught how to use the software a damn site better, because if my experience is anything to go by the users are being badly let down by their tutors.
I am saddened that this is where we are at in 2006. There are so many better ways but people are just not being taught the basics well enough.
So this post is for you, for everyone, who is sick of receiving attachment after attachment of badly formatted Word/Excel/Powerpoint nonsense that clags up your day.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
LOL! Well said. Experienced it many times.
Not sure if M$ has any responsibility (actual or moral) in educating people how to use their software correctly or efficiently. That is a more a task for places of learning as well as employers (who, let’s face it, don’t know better either!).
I have worked with other design “professionals” who are equally clueless in many areas which I think are essential. But what I am about to say is the equivalent of a greasy mechanic standing proudly next to his cherished circa 1970’s MG: we learnt to use computers in an era when we HAD to understand the basics to get the most from (or anything!) from the machine. We used systems with 2MB RAM (and no – I’m not going to point to my earlier 32K machines as there was no way I could design using it, even if I wanted to). With such little memory and other hardware, there were minimal, yet clever programs and it was not an option to drop in a 10MB JPEG just ‘cos “it didn’t say I couldn’t”.
We know the difference between bitmap and vector. We understand why ZIP compression produces better graphics than lossy types (JPEG). We know that Word can’t format and KEEP that format between sessions. We know that Powerpoint is a one-way street for transferring graphics. Etc.
But every cloud has a silver lining. IF these customer did know their magic wand from their clone tool, we wouldn’t be in business or employed. And it’s almost comforting to know that customers will send the most ridiculous content in the most illogical format. And it prepares us to know that M$ will have been the inventor of that closed format.
They’re not clever when it comes to “working under the bonnet”, but like most road users, they know what they want and where they want to get to. Let the professionals make sure they get there… and charge them for the privilege.
I think M$ does have moral responsibility. Computers pemeate our lives in so many ways and have a direct effect on the way we live and work. M$ has an unparallelled monopoly in an unparallelled market. With this in mind I believe they have a responsibilites to computer users at large, not just their shareholders, and (miles behind) their customers who are by and large poorly informed at best.
Obviously it doesn’t end there, I agree employers and educational facilities have a responsibility too.
This is simplifying the issue but I am not sure it is that complicated. It’s not hard to teach people about basic file formats, say text and image – probably half an hour or so in a simple computer course and you’re set. But drill the message home.
It’s also beneficial to the businesses who employ these staff.
I don’t want to have to charge customers for the privilege of me sifting through inappropriate file formats and badly laid out documents the upshot of which is errors in communication, additional wasted time and money, and is frankly a pain in the butt.
And of course, this random use of Office formats mean that I, even though I will most likely never create an Office document, have to purchase the product. That’s just dandy for my business. Thin end of the wedge through user ignorance if you ask me. Easy money for M$.
I’m starting to feel like Jamie Oliver and his school diner campaign!!
The problem is that most of the offenders who have been using this pieces of software inappropriately didn’t learn to use computers at school. They weren’t invented when they were at school.
So they are trying to get their heads round driving a formula one racing car having never driven a car, or seen anyone else do it or had driving lesson in their lives. (I like the car analogy) Not that office performs like a F1 car – maybe I should compare it with learning to drive an oil tanker or maybe a tank.
Bolderdash and piffle!
Sorry – just felt like using that phrase.
However, nope – I still disagree. Except this time I am also stomping my feet while typing this. Putting the monopoly issue to one side (a risky argument, in my opinion – would Apple be a “goody goody” with 95% market share?), does Ford, GM or VW offer or even enforce driving lessons when you buy their cars?
OK, I realise there is a limit to car analogies, but I wish to thank the good Mrs C for her backing on this topic
I remember from my heady days of cutting edge software development cough that my months spent typing a 220 user manual was pretty futile. The majority of usage queries I got (kinda outnumbered by bug reports – but that’s another topic for another day…) were easily answered in the pages of the manual. And I am talking of a physical manual here – not one on a CD, the types of which are always a pain to refer to.
So, if users are so lazy as to not pick up a user manual, flick through the index pages before asking (and I’m as guilty as anybody on this), how possible would it be to get them to a regional seat of learning? Would there by tuition days in each and every city? What about Wales?
I can see the only practical way forward being proper education for those still at school/college/uni and in-house training for those beyond that stage.
I would commend those who want to go out of their way to learn the finer art of Notepad vs. Word, but these people would strike me as being the more conscientious amongst us and the least of our problems anyway
Ahhhhh… I feel better after all that!
PS – why not charge for extra time to sort out the customer’s mess? It’s all part of the package. It should also encourage the customer to train their monkeys! So, from this last statement, can we conclude you’re Mr Nice approach is contributing to the problem? LOL!
Right then, I’m stomping my feet and waving my arms (must remember to put down my cup of tea first next time!).
Firstly, the car analogy is pants. Don’t argue.
Secondly, who cares or knows what Apple or anyone else would do, it’s just conjecture.
But you’re right, who actually gives a shit. F*ck ‘em, and bill their companies more for the extra work, not my problem! Idiots.
Although I fail to see why I should have to buy Office because of other peoples ignorance.
Thank goodness, for a moment I really thought I was turning into Jamie Oliver!
LOL! That’s the attitude
I’ve seen some very good deals on software come through my inbox lately. Hope this link is of help:
www.60-seconds.com/178_software_scam.html
PS – FAO: katnoodle tech support… I don’t get automatically informed by e.mail when my valuable contributions are ripped apart. Jump to it!
Re:I don’t get automatically informed by e.mail when my valuable contributions are ripped apart. Jump to it!
No? Really? Shame! Why don’t you read the manual or go on a course or something – heh!
Now then children – behave!
Am just about to tick the box to see if I get an email when one of the array of katnoodle readers replies to this insightful comment.
Poor Nick, go easy on him, he is from Wales after all
Wales??????????????
OH GOD! You’re (nearly) right!!!!