Let's Go Right Ahead
What bugs you at software presentations? Most people list complaints such as over-dependence on Powerpoint slides, small unreadable fonts, lecturers that talk too softly, or who mumble, demonstrations that crash. My own pet peeve is a strange one.
What really bugs me is the phrase: "I'll Just Go Right Ahead And...".
A lot of presenters seem to punctuate their every movement with this phrase.
For example, the lecturer might be demonstrating how sql injection works. The talk will go something like this:
 Okay, I'll Just Go Right Ahead And type a username in the login box here. And then i'll Just Go Right Ahead And click on the OK button. Now if we Just Go Right Ahead And read the message here it says we forgot to put in the password. So I'm gonna Just Go Right Ahead And put in the password."
There's nothing all that wrong with the phrase. The problem is that if you start to notice it, then it will really start to irritate you. And when it really starts to irritate you, you will become ultra hyper sensitive too it. And then they'll say it again and you'll start to itch and tremble and you'll want to leap out of your skin and kill the lecturer. Then five minutes will go by where they won't say it, and you'll start to miss it. The suspense will start to kill you. You'll be sitting on the edge of your seat just dying for them to say it one more time. When they finally do, you'll find yourself standing up and cheering. Then you'll sit down quietly and keep taking notes.
So watch our for that one.
Finally:
How would the opening narration of Star Trek have sounded if Captain Kirk had been a Software Lecturer?
Okay hi guys. Welcome to the session. These are the um, voyages of the Star Trek Enterprise. Mobile Phones off thanks guys. We're gonna just go right ahead and explore strange new worlds, okay? Next we're gonna just go right ahead here and seek out new life and new civilizations and then okay i'm just gonna go right ahead and boldly go right ahead where no man has gone right ahead before. Okay?
'Will' on Thu, 17 Nov 2005 07:30:31 GMT, sez: "too it" or "to it"? :P
LOL. Loved the final Star Trek quote. Keep it up!
'Angus Logan' on Thu, 17 Nov 2005 07:52:41 GMT, sez: Were you in my TechEd Session ;)
'Andrew Shepherd' on Thu, 17 Nov 2005 19:27:38 GMT, sez: I've watched videos of myself giving presentations and I just want to throttle my onscreen persona. STOP WITH THE POINTLESS PHRASES! You said UH three times in that one sentence!
These things are easy to point at, hard to not do yourself.
'leon' on Thu, 17 Nov 2005 19:41:03 GMT, sez: thanks andrew -- oh i'm not suggesting that if i were a lecturer i wouldn't make this mistake.
i'm a terrible lecturer (Gus can attest to this, for example). i don't simply say "uh" -- i swear uncontrollably like a robot with tourettes syndrome.
'Jason Kemp' on Fri, 18 Nov 2005 00:01:27 GMT, sez: Very true, and appropriately timed. I just attended a VS 2005 launch in my hometown, the beautiful Victoria, Canada.
Every presenter used "I'll go right ahead and..." at least, oh, I'll go right ahead and say 4 times a minute.
Another I noticed during the event was "Right off the bat." As in, "Right off the bat you can see we made Team System really, really complicated."
'blameMike' on Fri, 18 Nov 2005 14:08:35 GMT, sez: ROTFLMFAO!!!!
'JOE' on Sat, 14 Jan 2006 18:16:36 GMT, sez: I THINK THIS IS THE LOWEST THING A COMPUTER HAS EVER DONE TO ME THAN YOU YORS TRULEY JOE
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