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Things I like to read in a review...

Gareth · 17 · 2042

scotland Offline Gareth

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Things I like to read in a review...
on: August 02, 2014, 05:56:56 PM
This topic was prompted by Detron in the review competition.  While I'm not so egotistical as to think I have the last word in review writing, there are some things that I think are worth putting out there.  I also want to be clear that none of this is aimed at any specific review or reviewer, these are just some ramblings on my part.

A) Don't be afraid to be a little verbose.  "this is a good tool" might be an accurate statement, but it hardly makes for an interesting read.  Go into detail as to why you have said what you've said.

B) Talk about how well it works.  It's fine to talk about how well formed, good looking, smoothly opening etc a tool is, but you do also need to talk about how well it functions in use. I'd give examples as well.  Look at it this way; if Jeramey Clarkson was to go on about how beautiful the latest Ferrari is, how comfortable the seats are, how nicely the doors close etc, but then never actually turned the engine on and drove it, you'd feel pretty short changed, right?
 
C) A good picture is worth a thousand words.  Not everyone is going to agree with me on this, but I do think it a nice shot of what you are talking about helps a lot.  Personally (and all of this is only my opinion) I like a nice uncluttered background and nice close-ups of the various implements.  Even with a cheap camera or a phone camera you should be able to take a reasonable shot with good, natural lighting on your side.  I'm not expert on photography so Google is going to be your friend on this.

D) Get a second opinion.  Not on your findings so much, but having someone else read over your review will pick up on any silly spelling or grammatical errors.  Also, if they can't understand the point you are trying to make, then you might want to think about re-writing bits to make things clearer.  I find my wife good for this kind of thing, but I'm not sharing her. :D

E) Don't assume too much knowledge on the readers' part.  A tough line to walk, I feel.  You don't want to treat your reader like a total simpleton, but if you keep making comparisons back to a multitool that isn't part of the review and that no-one has ever seen, then you're going to confuse people.  So saying "the Squirt's blade is very similar to the one on a Micra" isn't remotely helpful if the reader has never held a Micra, not unless you then go on to define what that statement means.

OK, enough from me I think. ;)  As I said; these are just my personal thoughts and you lot have every right to disagree with me.  So what I'd like to read now are any tips or thoughts of your own on the subject. :tu:

PS.  I'd also strongly recommend reading Grant's Official Main Site Review Format.  Despite being written by Grant it really does contain some useful stuff. :whistle:
« Last Edit: August 04, 2014, 12:42:27 AM by Gareth »
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us Offline detron

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #1 on: August 02, 2014, 11:58:19 PM
brilliant!  very sound advice!

if I improve on my reviews, then everyone wins, since there are more review readers, than there are review writers.


if anyone ever notices ANYTHING in one of my reviews (going forward from now)  please feel free to point it out.

that is as long as you can explain why it should be different. (unlike my boss who just says "do it differently" and walks away)
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gb Offline Cupboard

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #2 on: August 03, 2014, 07:26:52 PM
that is as long as you can explain why it should be different. (unlike my boss who just says "do it differently" and walks away)

It really annoys me when people do that. I'm happy to accept criticism but you might at least show me the respect to suggest how I might like to do it better next time.

Gareth: That sounds like an excellent guide. It is always difficult to talk about how well specific features work if you never use them but some effort to test things is always appreciated.

I know in my last review I did a bit of hand waving "this looks like it might work" sort of stuff, and that irritates me when other people do it :D


it Offline danilo

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #3 on: August 03, 2014, 09:16:53 PM
the best thing in a review is when the author makes you aware of facts you weren't thinking/aware about.

I guess this fits in the  "don't assume too much knowledge" point


ca Offline Syph007

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #4 on: August 03, 2014, 11:23:18 PM
Well said Gareth.   :salute:
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scotland Offline Gareth

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #5 on: August 04, 2014, 12:44:13 AM
Cheers folks. :)  I really would like to hear other people's thoughts on this as well though, even if they do totally disagree with me. :D
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ca Offline Chako

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #6 on: August 04, 2014, 12:59:58 AM
I don't judge. I figure if someone is nice enough to put some time into writing a review. I am happy with that.
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hr Offline styx

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #7 on: August 04, 2014, 10:07:03 AM
well I agree. I just think that the problem with pictures is most people think of them a bit too late. I personally have that problem that when everything is said and done, then it hits me - should have taken a pic
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us Offline Lynn LeFey

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #8 on: August 04, 2014, 04:34:38 PM
One thing I like in reviews, and try to do myself, is to give specifics of the tool. Size, weight, and material construction. I KNOW you can go look these things up, but that's extra work for readers (of which there might be many) as opposed to work for the writer (who only has to do it once). Whether a tool is selected or not could really depend on weight or some dimension important to pocket carry, so these numbers could be very important to a potential buyer.

I agree about the photos as well, and here's a point where I'm probably weakest. But even a slightly out of focus shot is better than nothing.

I think it's fair in a tool review to give a description of the duration that the tool was tested over. I can give a fair overview of the Vic Rambler, for instance, but would really consider myself an expert on the Crosscut and Micra, two tools I've carried a LOT.

Honesty, in the sense of pointing out flaws, even in a tool you love, I think is important. Just because an issue or potential issue with a tool doesn't bother you, doesn't mean it should be glossed over. Gear teeth on SOGs might never bother me since I don't normally pocket carry, but knowing it's a problem, I should probably mention it in a review. This is sometimes a hard category, because we might not personally experience a given problem, even if we've read of others having the issue.

All of the stuff I just said was written with no particular review I've ever read in mind. More from a perspective of what I think about when I'm writing reviews. And, yeah, I don't always follow these guidelines. 
:facepalm:   :rofl:
« Last Edit: August 04, 2014, 04:36:13 PM by Lynn LeFey »


scotland Offline Gareth

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #9 on: August 04, 2014, 05:21:01 PM
One thing I like in reviews, and try to do myself, is to give specifics of the tool. Size, weight, and material construction. I KNOW you can go look these things up, but that's extra work for readers (of which there might be many) as opposed to work for the writer (who only has to do it once). Whether a tool is selected or not could really depend on weight or some dimension important to pocket carry, so these numbers could be very important to a potential buyer.

I agree about the photos as well, and here's a point where I'm probably weakest. But even a slightly out of focus shot is better than nothing.

I think it's fair in a tool review to give a description of the duration that the tool was tested over. I can give a fair overview of the Vic Rambler, for instance, but would really consider myself an expert on the Crosscut and Micra, two tools I've carried a LOT.

Honesty, in the sense of pointing out flaws, even in a tool you love, I think is important. Just because an issue or potential issue with a tool doesn't bother you, doesn't mean it should be glossed over. Gear teeth on SOGs might never bother me since I don't normally pocket carry, but knowing it's a problem, I should probably mention it in a review. This is sometimes a hard category, because we might not personally experience a given problem, even if we've read of others having the issue.

All of the stuff I just said was written with no particular review I've ever read in mind. More from a perspective of what I think about when I'm writing reviews. And, yeah, I don't always follow these guidelines. 
:facepalm:   :rofl:

That's a very good point.  It is indeed very easy to gloss over the negatives of a MT you love, but it's only fair to point them out when giving a review.  I'd hate to think I'd given a wrong impression to someone, who then spends their hard earned cash, only to find themselves thinking "why the heck didn't Gareth mention that!?".
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us Offline Kampfer

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #10 on: August 05, 2014, 10:40:29 AM
I thank you all for taking the time to write all the wonderful reviews, they are very informative and joyful to read.

I like to see photo of the review subject place next to common everyday items to  demonstrate its size, I feel it makes much easier to understand the bulk of the review subject than reading specification.
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nl Offline bmot

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #11 on: August 05, 2014, 10:47:31 AM
I thank you all for taking the time to write all the wonderful reviews, they are very informative and joyful to read.

I like to see photo of the review subject place next to common everyday items to  demonstrate its size, I feel it makes much easier to understand the bulk of the review subject than reading specification.


This, certainly if the specifications are not in metric measurements  :P
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hr Offline enki_ck

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #12 on: August 05, 2014, 12:17:39 PM
I thank you all for taking the time to write all the wonderful reviews, they are very informative and joyful to read.

I like to see photo of the review subject place next to common everyday items to  demonstrate its size, I feel it makes much easier to understand the bulk of the review subject than reading specification.


This, certainly if the specifications are not in metric measurements  :P

You should put in next to a SAK then. After all it it the unit of measurement in space. >:D


But yes, adding both imperial and metric dimensions might be the best.


us Offline Lynn LeFey

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #13 on: August 05, 2014, 04:20:22 PM
I've settled on the style of using Imperial then Metric in parens in my reviews. This has no bias, except that my tape measure and scale give me Imperial. I then write them down, then use an online converter to get the metric numbers.

If I were in any other (sensible) place in the world, I'd just give metric. Did I ever mention that I'm not a fan of Imperial? Do you know how much fun converting 5/8 is to a decimal? Other examples are too numerous to bother with.


gb Offline Cupboard

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #14 on: August 05, 2014, 10:56:52 PM
I don't know why it's still used, the USA seems rather more fixated on it than us and you have a weird non-British version of the units of measurement we created too.

What really pisses me off is nominally identical things of which there are metric and imperial types. I was making something the other day that involved some 2" exhaust clamps, I drilled a load of holes using the metric one without realising the rest were imperial and that meant none of my holes lined up. Designing PCBs is also irritating with a mix of metric, imperial and metric/imperial equivalents that don't quite line up.


us Offline Lynn LeFey

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #15 on: August 05, 2014, 11:05:39 PM
Not to derail the topic, but I think the reason the U.S. didn't want to convert to metric was the cost of retooling production industries. As the U.S. becomes less of a world producer of exported things, maybe it'll become economically reasonable to switch.

That's at least one explanation I heard. Take it for what it's worth.

The metric system is awesome, and i wish I could think/estimate in metric. Unfortunately, I have my guestimator calibrated to Imperial. So, I can give a close guess on what a cup of popcorn kernels looks like. NO idea on its metric volume or mass. I can tell if an MT is at or around 2 ounces. I have no idea what that means in grams. Sad, really.


gb Offline AimlessWanderer

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Re: Things I like to read in a review...
Reply #16 on: August 06, 2014, 12:35:33 AM
Not to derail the topic, but I think the reason the U.S. didn't want to convert to metric was the cost of retooling production industries. As the U.S. becomes less of a world producer of exported things, maybe it'll become economically reasonable to switch.

That's at least one explanation I heard. Take it for what it's worth.

The metric system is awesome, and i wish I could think/estimate in metric. Unfortunately, I have my guestimator calibrated to Imperial. So, I can give a close guess on what a cup of popcorn kernels looks like. NO idea on its metric volume or mass. I can tell if an MT is at or around 2 ounces. I have no idea what that means in grams. Sad, really.

I've spent all my life in engineering which is a wierd hybrid of metric and imperial, there are still some imperial measurements in common use over here too - most notably miles over km. Speed limits are still in MPH too. Because of this I have to think in different units for different things

Distances - I think in miles
Speeds - I think in MPH
(I have no concept of km)

Lengths over 50ft I think clearer in metres, especially if pacing something out. Concrete for foundations is bought as "cubes" (1m3 units) here anyway

Lengths under 50ft I think in both (converting from either to the other so I'm 100% sure of my estimate)

Dimensions from 20" to 40" I convert into mm for clearer thinking

Dimensions from 2" to 20" I think in both but imperial takes precedence for rough measurements, and metric for accurate ones. Example, 200mm is just under 8" - which is actually 203.2mm - so 200mm is nearer 7.7/8" ... and that's all just off the top of the head

Dimensions below 2" (50mm) I think in mm to save faffing around with bloody fractions, although I know key "steps" (1/4" increments) such as 1.1/4" is 31.75mm which serves as a guide to quick conversions either way

Dimensions below 0.5mm (0.020") such as engineering tolerances I definitely NEED to think in imperial, so 0.04mm doesn't mean a lot until I realise it's just over 1.5 thou (0.0015").

Weights/Volumes (small and large) are all metric for me. I know off the top of my head that 1m3 in steel is 7850kg, so I can have a guess at weights, and a 1m3 tank holds 1000 litres (which in water is 1 kg per litre, or 1 Tonne).

Gallons, pounds, stones, cwt, acres ... all total gibberish ... though I can normally fudge a rough conversion of lighter weights as an 1oz (English) is just over 28g, and 1kg is 2.2lb ..... even though I'm more used to working with psi than Pascals (N/mm2) .... and yet I've more chance of guessing my own weight in stones than kilos, even though anything else I have to work in metric

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