Elevator Instructions
Last semester in the Enterprise Center Building, I took the elevator down from the fourth floor to the first floor Mondays and Wednesdays after class. The process went like this:
- I press the Down button in the fourth floor hallway.
- The Down button lights in response.
- The elevator door opens and students exit the elevator.
- I notice the Up Arrow is lit inside the door jamb, so I delay entering.
- The door closes, and the elevator continues Up to the fifth floor.
- The Down button remains lit. I don’t have to press it again.
- The door opens again, the Down button goes dark, and I enter the usually empty elevator.
- I press the 1 button inside the elevator. It lights in response.
- The doors close, and the elevator continues Down to the 1st floor, usually without an intervening stop.
- The 1 button goes dark, the door opens, and I exit.
Clearly, the elevator is responding to some very specific instructions. But not all the rules are evident from my experience. Some have to be discovered by hard thought. Does it respond differently to the Up button than to the Down button? Under what conditions does it reverse direction? More specifically, would it stop on the fourth floor on the way to the fifth floor if no passenger inside wanted to get off on 4? What other variations would the programmer have to anticipate to give the elevator a complete set of instructions?
The numbered list IS NOT a set of INSTRUCTIONS. It’s a description of an ordinary but specific situation I often encountered with variations.
Clearly, if our goal was to describe the elevator’s operation to a general reader, we could spend lots of time detailing how many people were on the elevator at any time, how many destinations they shared or didn’t share, whether the elevator stopped or didn’t stop at intervening floors on the way to any passenger’s destination, and on and on and on.
But none of those descriptions would help THE ELEVATOR function properly for the most efficient fulfillment of the passengers’ simple needs. benefit of the passengers.
A RADICAL IDEAL READER ASSIGNMENT:
What if, instead of writing a 1000-word Descriptive essay detailing the elevator’s functions and operating patterns, my job was to INSTRUCT THE ELEVATOR.
My writing would change in several crucial ways:
- It would adopt a vocabulary, a rhetoric, a tone, that the elevator would understand.
- It would ignore any details extraneous to the elevator’s “need to know.”
- It would establish a clear set of behavioral guidelines.
- It would include details about button presses, route efficiency, signal lights, door timing, etc., that passengers might never need to know.
- It might not need to mention passengers at all.
.
While I was contemplating how to combine an Elevator Instructions assignment with an Ideal Reader Unit, I decided to give AI a chance to experiment with customizing a single thesis to appeal to different audiences. First, let’s take a look at how ChatGPT responded to the challenge to write Elevator Instructions. Then see how it handled two other topics.
The ChatGPT “Solution”
I hope it’s clear that the value of the Elevator Instruction exercise is to dramatically illustrate that we NEVER write for a GENERAL AUDIENCE. We can’t expect to persuade EVERYONE of ANYTHING. Instead, keeping a very specific reader in mind, we craft our arguments to appeal to the background, the intelligence, the education level, the social conscience, the sophistication, the prejudices of our IDEAL READER, who is, ALWAYS, the one person we think we might be able to persuade to agree with us.
In-Class Exercise
- Find a writing partner right now in class.
- Work together to start a set of Elevator Instructions.
- Post them to the blog.
- Return to them whenever you have a better idea how to improve them.
SAMPLE INSTRUCTIONS, in no particular order:
—Respond to all Summons Buttons by PROCEEDING to the corresponding floor.
—When arriving at any floor to which you have been Summoned, STOP the elevator and OPEN the door.
—Following 15 seconds of inactivity on any floor, CLOSE the door.
—If Proceeding up, IGNORE all Down Summons.
—If Proceeding down, IGNORE all UP Summons.
—Following 15 seconds of inactivity on any floor, if the door is closed, PROCEED to the base location.
The Gamer 2.0
SleepyCat
Coffee Lover 03
doglover7025
Snowman10
excellentstudent27
Gymrat
hockeyfan
holistic25
ilovebeesss
ilovemydog
The Gamer
Naturechild101
BreakingBad45
ravensfan8
temporal111
thatpersonoverthere
toetio
username1132005
Calm&Patient
webbwrestler135
Counterintuitive Spring 2024 
At the base level, any button activates the elevator.
Elevator door automatically closes after 5 seconds of inactivity.
Every number on the panel corresponds to how many floors the elevator goes up or down.
Numbers are sequential — the elevator always stops at the next closest number in relation to whether it’s going up or down.
The elevator always goes to the higher number before coming back to the base.
The last floor the elevator has been used for is the level it stays at until activated again.
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These are worthwhile observations, Holistic, but they don’t qualify as Instructions to the Elevator.
How would your elevator respond if someone on the 5th floor pressed the button in the hallway while someone inside the elevator pressed the button for 8?
There’s no way to answer that question from your instructions.
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Elevator instructions:
While being outside of the elevator you will locate buttons outside of the elevator. Choose the arrows pointing up to show you want to be on the elevator
(Caution) the weight limit for this elevator is 750 lbs, it does not have to be distributed equally
When the button is pressed for someone to get on, keep the doors open for 15 seconds afterward close and drop the person off to their destination
If others on other floors decide to also press the button, make sure to stop on the way to there to pick them up as well unless the weight limit is already used up
When dropping someone off make sure to also leave the doors open for 15 seconds when coming off
Stop at each floor in order, if it is going up and someone picks a lower floor level, drop off your person first and go back to pick up the other person
The people know what floor they are going to by pressing the button and seeing the arrow at the top allowing them to know what way the elevator is going
When rising in the elevator you must wait for the time being inside the elevator to get to your floor that is needed
When declining down the elevator you must also wait inside the elevator for the time being as you are being dropped off
Once the elevator is stopped and opens to where you are supposed to go,
In case of an EMERGENCY: stay on the floor stopped and do not move, make sure there is a red button inside instructing the people on what to do and warning others of the elevator emergency
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I love how many elements of the operation and variations on behavior you’re addressing here, Gymrat, but they aren’t all addressed to the same reader. They should all address the Elevator as the Ideal Reader.
Your first batch of observations:
—That first pair are instructions and a warning to a person who wants to use the elevator.
—There’s a lot of action in this little instruction, Gymrat. I can’t follow all of it, but it’s clearly addressed to the Elevator, instructing it what to do.
—The same could be said for this batch. Hard to follow but clearly instructions for the elevator.
Good first draft.
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EaglesFan and CoffeeLover
1.Start on floor one or the base, there is one button outside of the base floor to go up. If on floor four, the outside only has one button to go down.
2. There are lights on the outside above the doors to signal going up or down, those lights will indicate which direction to go
3.If on any other floor between 2-3 there are two buttons on the outside to go up or down.
4. Once a floor is picked on the inside between floors 1-4 go to the floor that is summoned and open the door
5. When going to assigned floor allow 3 seconds for a button to be clicked on the outside or inside before closing the door
6. If summoned to another floor while going to a certain floor to the top, stop at the first floor you are summoned and open the door
7.If there are no floors clicked within 15 seconds, go back down to base floor if not already there
8.In case of emergency, there is an emergency button that will be clicked, stop, there might be something stuck inside, authorities will be alerted and arrive on the outside.
9.If going up, ignore any down summons or requests, if going down ignore any up requests or summons.
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It took me awhile to realize how good this little set of instructions is, EaglesFan and CoffeeLover.
—It’s nicely intricate regarding the non-essential instruction about how long to hold the door open in the absence of a button press, but that’s what makes it impressive.
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– If there is any inactivity for about 10 seconds if the elevator is on any floor but the base floor the elevator will return to the base location.
– If the elevator is moving up it won’t back down to get the people who just pushed the down button. It would get to them after.
– The doors stay open for about 10 seconds unless the sensor gets tripped by someone.
– Starting the action of the door opening there is a chime that sounds on the floor.
– When buttons are pushed in the elevator depending on the direction the elevator will continue to go that way. So if there was a button pushed to go up, the elevator wouldn’t go up until the bottom floors were visited first.
– The order doesn’t matter as much as the direction.
– The weight limit for the elevator is 2100 lbs.
– The elevator would be able to get more people off than getting more people onto the elevator to make sure that the weight limit isn’t exceeded.
– If the elevator is stopped at a floor then pushing the open door button will reset the timer for how long it takes.
– Hitting the close door button will cause the elevator to close.
– The alarm button in the elevator button will alert the front desk, maintenance, and the fire department.
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Thank you for taking the project seriously, ILoveMyDog.
These are all observations that you might make to a visiting alien who wanted to know how elevators work on earth, for example, but they’re not Instructions to the Elevator, which was the primary goal.
I love your work here, though. Lots of nice observations. I never mentioned the Open Door and Close Door buttons that override the built-in timing for automatic door operations. Yours is the only mention of it that I’ve seen. Good catch!
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Elevator instructions:
While being outside of the elevator you will locate buttons outside of the elevator. Choose the arrows pointing up to show you want to be on the elevator
(Caution) the weight limit for this elevator is 750 lbs, it does not have to be distributed equally
When the button is pressed for someone to get on, keep the doors open for 15 seconds afterward close and drop the person off to their destination
If others on other floors decide to also press the button, make sure to stop on the way to there to pick them up as well unless the weight limit is already used up
When dropping someone off make sure to also leave the doors open for 15 seconds when coming off
Stop at each floor in order, if it is going up and someone picks a lower floor level, drop off your person first and go back to pick up the other person
The people know what floor they are going too by pressing the button and seeing the arrow at the top allowing them to know what way the elevator is going
When rising in the elevator you must wait for the time being inside the elevator to get to your floor that is needed
When declining down the elevator you must also wait inside the elevator for the time being as you are being dropped off
Once the elevator is stopped and opens to where you are supposed to go,
In case of an EMERGENCY: stay on the floor stopped and do not move, make sure there is a red button inside instructing the people on what to do and warning others of the elevator emergency
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Apparently you and Gymrat were a writing team, BreakingBad. I’m glad your collaboration worked out. See my feedback above (to Gymrat) about your mix of several Ideal Readers.
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Sydney H, Vanesa S, Ashley F, Ava B.
When your button on the outside is pressed on the base floor you will go up
You will open your doors and signal the going up arrow
Your passenger will select the button of a floor on the panel for you to go to and you will close your doors
You will stop at any floors below the selected button if the up button was pressed on those floors
You will stop at the desired floors in order numerically
You must go to all floors selected in numerical order until all floors selected have been stopped on
Once you go to the highest floor selected your doors will stay open for 10 seconds before closing, you will go back to your base floor and wait for someone to press your up button
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Brilliant idea to Reply as a group of four human names collected as Anonymous. I like it.
About your Instructions:
It’s a really nice draft, and I love how you charmingly address your Elevator as You.
We have a strict prohibition against 2nd-person language in our academic papers for this semester, but in casual exercises, the level of formality is even lower than our informal academic stuff.
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Start at the base floor. (1st Floor)
Wait for summon from above floor or wait for a passenger on the base floor to press a button.
If Summoned from above, light the up arrow and move to the summoned floor or instructed to proceed upwards.
When the button is pressed from inside the elevator, proceed to the floor of the button pressed.
Once arrived at the summoned or directed floor open door and wait for 10 seconds.
If sensor is tripped in door hold door open an additional 3 seconds
If directed upward, a summon button is pressed above the current position. Stop at the summoned floor and open the door for 10 seconds. (With sensor rule)
If directed downward and a summon button is pressed below the current position of the elevator stop and open door on summoned floor for 10 seconds (With sensor rule)
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These are good notes in preparation of a set of instructions, ExcellentStudent. I like that you’re gathering background for upward and downward instructions and the differences between summoned and directed.
The next time you’re on an elevator, set your stopwatch for 10 seconds. It’s an eternity if you’re waiting for a door to close. 🙂
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Go to whoever hit the button first
If it’s going up, display up arrow, same for down arrow
close door after 15 seconds
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I’ll get the next one.
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Walking into the strange sterile office you are met with an elevator. The light above dings and you enter and you thumb over the small bit of paper in your hand you printed out prior to your doctors appointment. Third floor you note to yourself
1 and you find the button for the first floor and you click it. And to your horror the elevator begins to go down. You didn’t press the button fully and feeling the shaft G forces move through your stomach leaves you slightly on edge.
A tall broad shouldered woman enters the elevator and it goes up and docks once again at the ground floor. She looks at you for a moment as she presses the button for the first floor as it makes a soft click, then her hand moves through the panel as she selects every floor.
And now it’s just you and this tall woman standing in an elevator as with every floor comes 15 minutes of inaction as you both wait for the elevator to close. The doctors appointment has long gone from your mind as you ponder the reason that you and this woman are in this elevator together. Every time you look back at her she’s smiling, thought this particular look over, which occurred during the 15 second wait for the elevator to continue to the 6th floor she was slumped against the wall with that same smile on her face.
And now you for the first time have to use the elevators emergency system. The looking over the panel once again there was a button with the image of a phone. You click it and the voice of a woman blares through the intercom system.
Though before you get to speak you wake up from your stress induced dream.
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Well, that was fun. 🙂 Thanks, TPOT.
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– If there is any inactivity for about 10 seconds if the elevator is on any floor but the base floor the elevator will return to the base location.
– If the elevator is moving up it won’t back down to get the people who just pushed the down button. It would get to them after.
– The doors stay open for about 10 seconds unless the sensor gets tripped by someone.
– Starting the action of the door opening there is a chime that sounds on the floor.
– When buttons are pushed in the elevator depending on the direction the elevator will continue to go that way. So if there was a button pushed to go up, the elevator wouldn’t go up until the bottom floors were visited first.
– The order doesn’t matter as much as the direction.
– The weight limit for the elevator is 2100 lbs.
– The elevator would be able to get more people off than getting more people onto the elevator to make sure that the weight limit isn’t exceeded.
– If the elevator is stopped at a floor then pushing the open door button will reset the timer for how long it takes.
– Hitting the close door button will cause the elevator to close.
– The alarm button in the elevator button will alert the front desk, maintenance, and the fire department.
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Youve addressed a lot of elements here, SleepyCat. As I’ve remarked to several of your classmates, they’re not actually instructions; more like a set of observations of how the elevator operates. You’ll have to decide for yourself whether you’ll gain any personal advantage by revising these so that they function to tell the elevator how to act.
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1. Press Down button in fourth floor hallway, elevator lights Down button and waits.
2. If Up Arrow lit, wait before entering.
3. If no passengers exit and going Up, continue to next floor.
4. Stop and open doors when passengers are waiting to descend.
5. Inside, press 1 button to descend to first floor.
6. If 15 seconds of inactivity, close doors and continue journey.
7. Respond to Summon Buttons by going to corresponding floor.
8. Stop and open doors at summoned floor.
9. Ignore Down Summons if going up, vice versa.
10. If door closed and 15 seconds inactive, proceed to base location.
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I don’t love every little bit of it, Snowman, but I really like this sequence:
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What does it need to know:
How much weight it can tolerate, should be in writing what is an unbalanced weight and what to do if said weight is unbalanced.
After 15 seconds of inactivity, the elevator cart should go back to its base.
Has to know when to go up and down, and be able to show riders by visible signs which direction it’s bound to go in that moment.
Wait 10 seconds before closing the door
The elevator should go in numerical order instead of skipping around, if going up elevator should complete going all the way up before proceeding down.
If the emergency button is pressed, return to the nearest floor to let passengers out, and signal for emergency services while also sending signals to the operator.
If instructed by the button, doors will forcibly shut, and will not force open or close when in motion or before reaching a floor.
Be able to tell passengers to wait before exiting or entering to prepare the cart for the weight change.
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Apparently, you decided to ignore basic operations and focus on unusual or emergency situations, NatureChild. I appreciate that weight and balance were not neglected. 🙂
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Wait at the ground floor with doors open for instructions.
Respond to summon by going up to the floor where the button was pressed, if multiple summons are given respond to the first one. If someone walks into the elevator and gives instructions from within prioritize these ones
Once the correct floor is reached wait fifteen seconds for people to get in or out. If the door is held by a passenger, hold but do not reset the timer.
If the elevator stops on a floor and goes three minutes without activation return to the ground floor.
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Very good start, Toetio. They’re all clearly instructions to your Ideal Reader.
There’s plenty of room to detail this list in ways that will help the elevator discriminate what you mean by jargon like “multiple summons” and “the first one.”
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You missed class MON FEB 26, during which I offered anyone who likes the Elevator Instructions assignment an opportunity to earn full Non-Portfolio credit for treating it as a legitimate challenge. Your Reply comes closest to being a first draft. Let me know if you’re interested.
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