Cross-Cultural Interactions: A Humorous Anecdote

By John Gallagher

This article attempts to describe a typical day for a non-Chinese speaking, Western technical writer, working in a Taiwanese company. The dialog tries to relate the communication difficulties and misunderstandings that are common and is not a slur on the English language skills of Taiwanese. In fact, I am a huge admirer of the upbeat, diligent persistence of Taiwanese to master English. It is a constant prod for me to humbly continue on the yellow brick road of improving my own Chinese language skills.

Tarzan , the R&D engineer, more commonly called "RD," crouches and immerses himself in his code as he sees me coming. I intercept before he submerges.

"Hey Tarzan, how was your weekend?"

"Sleep."

"Reviewing that manual can be tiring."

"No. Catch bugs. Will look manual tomorrow OK?"

"OK. I just need to finish it this week. I want to check this one thing though."

"Tho?"

"What does the 'Power Save' function do?"

"To save the power."

"OK. Is it on or off by default?"

"Up."

"Alrighty. When do you turn it down?"

"I change '1' to '0' in the code."

"No, I mean the user…when does he turn power save off…I mean down?"

"[confused silence]…when he wants to ['duh' echo in the background]."

"No, I mean why would the user turn this great 'Power Save' function off…down?"

"Just click 'Power Save' to appear the 'Power Save' window and don't click the square."

"Deselect the checkbox...yes, that's how to do it. Thanks. But why would the user do that?"

"To close 'Power Save.'"

"Yes [silent arrrgh]…but why? It seems to me that 'Power Save' should always be on, so why would anyone turn it off? Is there some performance trade off? Do I do it when I need to debug? What? When? Why?..."

"It's in the standard."

"OK. Can I see the RFC (Request For Comments) standard and I'll check it out. Thanks."

RD Tarzan promises to e-mail me the RFC and I shuffle off to see the product manager, more affectionately called "PM."

PMs worship the Schedule Deity but the dates in the weekly reports (and the deadlines we work to) are usually token offerings to higher management to avoid being scolded. The "real" dates I get only after a hidden contract of silence has been "agreed to."

NOTE:

Names used are fictitious. Taiwanese often use an English name alias as people who don’t speak Chinese often mispronounce their names or simply can’t remember them (I’m told). The name chosen is usually either a translation from a "nice-sounding" Chinese word (taken from a dictionary) or a sound approximation of the person’s Chinese name, resulting in some interesting choices at times.

Shuffling and "Chinglish" are "things that seep into the subconscious" after a period here.

"So, Sultry (the PM), have you reviewed that part of the manual I gave you? I think 'the Schedule is this week'"

"No, the Schedule is delay."

"Really [looking at dates that haven't been changed in the official Schedule]."

"RD not find all the bugs, so not release to the Schedule yet. I look your manual. I delete some words."

"Oh, some words are wrong?"

"No. Have too many words."

"OK. Which words did you delete?

"One page."

"Which page?"

"The page with many words."

"Oh [trying to reign my mind in from the precipice]."

"I don't delete the page. Just the words. I put the company logo picture here. It is beautiful here."

"Yes, it is."

"Now, we talk to RD about the Schedule."

"Sure. I just talked to him, but I can go back. I need to know the status too, so as to motivate him to review what I wrote. I think it's OK, but they make changes sometimes without telling me. Lead the way."

We both slide over to RD's trench.

" [Me] Hey Tarzan, PM wants to talk to you about the Schedule."

"[RD with visible, audible cringe] There have many bugs in it."

"[PM] But the Schedule is this week. It needs the code."

"[RD slumped] bugs, bugs…"

"[PM] I need the code tomorrow to put on the CD. The CD needs one week. Then I release the CD on the public."

"[RD] The bugs are there tomorrow."

"[PM] The CD needs one week. Tomorrow is the Schedule. [To me] Put the file in my Inbox tomorrow."

"[Little ol' me] Is a blank file OK?"

"[PM] It should be the Word format!"

"[Moi] Sure thing. It will be the Word format."

I go back to my desk. RD has e-mailed me the RFC. I print it out and rummage through the tech jargon to figure out when the user should turn "Power Save" off.

9 PM already. I swerve through the swarms of traffic and strive to get to my studio sanctuary in one piece. I shake my head viciously on closing the door and try to empty it of the nether-nether twilight zone that has diffused into it. All I want to do is fill it with sweet blankness…the Word format.

The Devil Mountain Views -- May/June 2002
(ebstc.org/newsletter/front.html)
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