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Agreed. Aside from assisting in removing bias from the reader, working your way through to the conclusion allows it to remain a mystery to the reader, allowing
by JohnLBevan 14y ago
Agreed. Aside from assisting in removing bias from the reader, working your way through to the conclusion allows it to remain a mystery to the reader, allowing them to enjoy being walked through the process of discovery, rather than just giving them an answer, then doing a "here's how we got there", which (in some cases) becomes less interesting once the answer is known.
To respond to Fusiongyro's point that this is a narrow view I point out that generally in writing style should change with context. In some cases the author of the article is exactly right about summing things up in the first sentence, in others johnfn is.
TLDR: Whether to use tldr depends on what experience you're looking to give your readers, what you're writing about, and who you're writing for.
- repsilat 14y agoYou and the GP are actually in agreement with the thesis of TFA (though not the specific argument it's making). TL;DR is unnecessary for two reasons: 1. If you're writing a piece in which "the journey" isn't important, then you should put your conclusions up front like a good journalist. 2. If you're writing a considered, long-form piece in which readers' appreciation of your conclusions is path dependent then a TL;DR is obviously counterproductive - if it's necnessary for a reader to actually read the piece, it doesn't make sense to reward those who skip to the end or didn't comprehend what they read. TFA took point 1, you and GP took point 2. Nobody (except Charlesmigli) has given an argument that TL;DRs have a place.
- JohnLBevan 14y agoI see the tl;dr as a failover to the full story. Those who have time you walk through the journey of discovery. Those who don't you'd rather they could at least see a summary of your conclusion than leave with nothing.