h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

'Communication' is an overused buzz-word, isn't it? We're all told how much we have to communicate. In the modern corporate office environment we're often assessed on it.

In fact, there's a whole discipline out there on how, when and what to communicate. You can read books of management theories on the subject. You can probably even attend a course and get some sort of diploma in it.

In my industry, IT, communication is quite a formal affair. There's a world of difference on how you communicate, depending on whether you're addressing your team on routine operational issues, handing over to someone on another shift, reporting performance, reporting progress in a project, telling people that something's gone wrong, or telling people that something major has gone wrong.

In fact, there's another category: communicating with users. This is the hardest of the lot, as you simply have no idea how they're going to react. You see, they belong outside our technical bubble. They're somewhere out there in Userland. They don't understand the words we use: the server names, the applications, anything technical. But if we tell them that they don't need to understand these things they say we're being condescending, or that we're not treating them with respect.

If we tell them about our projects, they tell us they don't need to know, or they don't understand, or, worst of all, they reply with their cranky suggestions. What would they know about planning an IT project!

Sometimes I think it would be better if we just didn't say anything to them at all.

It's incredibly difficult to communicate at times, and I know I for one don't get it right. I try, and I make as much opportunity as I can to try, but I don't think I'll ever be a word slinger like some people can. I envy them that.

Well put, here. It is a problem, isn't it? How to get people to understand what's being worked on, and how it affects/doesn't affect the enduser.

Its all so difficult, communication, on various differnt levels, and in so many differnt situations, where any, some or all of these 'differnt levels' may be opperating, often at the same time....

One I've encountered,, a fair few times, and which broadly speaking I guess fits into the 'technical', or 'computer/information-technology' nature of things, is when clients, actually, more often than not potential* clients, communicate to me, that they want X Y or Z. and, just in their communicating, 'what they want', its obvious they haven't actually got a clue what they want, havent' a clue of what they want actually is, and moreoften than not, don't even seem to know why* they want what it is they want but don't know what it is, they want. I must admit I tend to get lazy, on their behalf, and that useually then results in such potential clients, not being* clients < : This is useually very self-centered, from my point of view; I don't want them to comission me, for a bit of accessbility testing, adn then get all stroppy about it, when I give them what they asked* for, only for them to then decide that this isn't actually what they wanted*

Emotional communication, in a relationship is a whole otter kettle of fish, of course, and often, certainly in my case, I find, that as a male, I've just not been bought up to have a suitably 'expansive' set of ways to describe all that mushy silly 'feelings' and 'emotions' sort of stuff.... (though I am improving in this respect at least ) I guess in both cases, to an extent, its not having a single word, or phrase, which describes somethign which is, in essence intangible... It'd all be so much easier if we were all telepaths

One of the principles of communication is to appear professional and businesslike, but even that can be a challenge. My media client doesn't like it at all, and wants me to write to them in a very informal style. It just doesn't look good when it's bad news I'm telling them.

Totally agreed!; There were many many things I loved about the last full time job I had, and the company I worked for... their.... slightly relaxed attitude to certain bits of communications, dress-code in teh workplace, etc, really didn't apeal to me; To the extent I kept getting told off for turning up to work dressed fairly* smartly in proper trousers, shirt an tie (somtimes a suit)...
Their 'casual smart dress ting, went through to some of the communications I'd get from managers etc... fine if the Emails on a work rlated* issue, but when its directly* to do with work... nah I dinny like that!

Interpretation of any communication comes into it as well, especially to the end user. It's not uncommon for 2 people to read the same thing and come up with 2 different meanings. Its why communicating, (especially via the written word) can be difficult at times and why people react in such diverse ways too.
There's no simple answer to this conundrum other than either ask for clarification if something appears unclear or just and ignore it.
I've always leaned towards keeping folk informed regardless of whether they agree or not and give additional explanations if required/asked for to clarify any confusion or misconceptions.
At the end of the day it doesn't matter what program/software gets put out, there will always be detractors, always be some end user who doesn't like what a program does for whatever reason.
You just have to look at the debates that rage about Apple systems compared to Microsoft systems.

If one is in doubt
Its best not to shout
To yell and scream
Will only demean

So take your time
Sit back and recline
Have a really good think
Then pour yourself a favourite drink

At the end of the day
Asking questions will pay
Solutions are sought
With a bit more thought

[back in the day]
ring! ring! ring!
[me] Good morning, Asteroid Lil here, how can I help?
[user] I hate your damn computer system.
[me] Ah, Mr. BogglestheMind, what's the problem?
[user] Your damn computer doesn't work!

And I would drop what I was doing, and march down to the Marine Mechanics classroom, not just to see what Mr. B was doing wrong (because the programs worked just fine for everybody else) but to talk him down out of his tree. No use showing him the manual -- he believed that software should be completely intuitive.

Those were the days. Not! I gave up programming for years after that job. There should be a buffer between the users and the people writing the code.

Yes, that's one of Pastey's problems here.

I'm happy being the buffer between the media users and the propellerheads, but they do pay a lot of money for the service.

Whereas we're all unpaid volunteers running this site in our spare time for people who don't have to pay to use it.

Which way round is it though; do the coders need protecting from the users.... or the users from the coders? I thought there was a communications division of the volentears, wouldn't all user-directed communcations go through that?

You lot have had it simple in some ways dealing with just technical matters, and customers there aare toughte communication issues.

That this topic should come up today is quite a coincidence. Yesterday I nearly had the opportunity to interpret at a working meeting with the IT department who were presumably introducing their English counterparts to our system. Unfortunately, I had already been booked in to go to the annual update seminar on customs guidelines and legislation.

I would really have loved to have been with the IT lot, though. (a) it would have speeded things up for them because our IT guys don't really have a very good command of English. (b) It would have given me an insight into the workings of a field where I am also involved (c) it would have been good practice (d) I would have got to know the English IT people. And maybe a couple of other reasons, not the least being that those customs/export/import talks are pretty tedious.

Translating is a fascinating branch of communication. Just imagine the challenge of programmer/user communication where each is using a different language! You can't just take the words and translate them into the other language. You have to re-phrase it and tune your translation to within the other person's conceptual horizon.

(Although in the case I describe it would be programmers talking to each other in different languages with me (definitely a user) filling in the bits in between - hopefully more than "do you take sugar in your coffee", though)

The best chap in our IT department is one who stepped sideways into it from a normal office job. Not only is he quick and efficient and the best programmer they've got, he also knows why you want this or that tweaked, and doesn't spend ages worrying about hypothetical situations that will never occur. On the other hand, he will add a little bit into a program because he think it might be needed later and he's invariably right.

Nice one 2legs; can't tell if it was intentional or serendipitous (or maybe well-hackneyed already):

>Emotional communication in a relationship is a whole otter kettle of fish

Quote of the week if it really was spontaneous!

TC: >You can't just take the words and translate them into the other language. You have to re-phrase it and tune your translation to within the other person's conceptual horizon.

This is true of all translation. I have a terrific book of photographs from the Hulton Getty Picture Collection, called '1920s' (one of a series) and it is a model of good translation. The captions are all given in English, German and French. Although the English is given first it was probably originally written in German (published by Koenemann).

Example, a section title:

Movers and shakers / Spieler und Gegenspieler / Bouleversements

Not literal translations: that would have been pretty useless, from any language to the others.

You cannot address another person without having an idea of where they are coming from.

{Quote of the week if it really was spontaneous!}

Spontaneous!? I'll have you know that 2legs is a poet. He agonises over these things. Every 'teh', 'winekey' and is hand-crafted and arranged with immaculate precision.

Yes, icey.... has it... for all the goat it does me, every word is masachistically crafted, and whittled, into the form that ultimately ends up on the virtual pages that are the screens we sea on h2g2....

The otter was, most definately a porpose.

I guess most people in IT at some time or other have had this pointed out, but another airing does no harm. Along with the illegal substance industry, we are the only businesses that call our customers 'users'.