• A: Even if means X is useful for some purpose, it is not good to say “you should use X” or “you should avoid Y
  • B: And why is that?
  • A: Whether a means is useful depends on its purpose. What is useful for one purpose may not be useful for another purpose. Therefore, the purpose should be clearly stated, and the description should be something like “means X is useful for purpose A for this reason” or “means Y causes this problem when used for purpose A,” so that the reader can select and choose according to the situation.
  • B: Okay, that certainly sounds beneficial!
  • A: So, we should avoid writing “we should use X”
  • B: That’s a boomerang!

It is unhelpful to write “˜should’ when telling people how to do something, because it will lead readers to use the method even in situations where the method is not beneficial.

Maybe it’s better to simply say “˜should’ when you want to get the buzz going.


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