History of first use of allcomputerized typesetting 3319

Not just that, but the phenomenom where people believe anything that is in print, and it often doesn't even matter who it came from.

It used to be that way for news over the radio, but I don't know if it is still that way now or not. I.E. "War of the Worlds!" broadcast.

At various workplaces I have noticed that talking in person or even sending email is often ignored.

But print it up as a memo, especially on company letterhead, and the story is different. They'll believe almost anything if you "make it official".

I told a manager this in one shop where I worked and he didn't believe me. "No one is that stupid", he told me.

So I wrote a memo and sent it to several people. At least two of them were executives. I was a programmer from an OUTSIDE contracting firm. About as small as a gnat on the corporate radar.

The memo simply had a list of attendees, the room and floor number, and the time.

They all went to the meeting, even though it was a presentation for another department. The people who were actually supposed to be there didn't question the uninvited once they also saw the memo.

That's not just dumb, but dangerous. What if I was doing espionage for a rival?

Of course, I was just proving a point, and to his credit the manager did make some policy changes and had some meetings to talk to his workers about it.

-- shannon "AT" widomaker.com -- "Trouble rather the tiger in his lair than the sage amongst his books For to you kingdoms and their armies are mighty and enduring, but to him they are but toys of the moment to be overturned by the flicking of a finger." - anonymous