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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/16689
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

My story features two software developers who discuss computer-based things in the first chapter. It's not a significant part of the story, but it helps to establish who the characters are and what they know.

Being a software developer as my day job, I know how they should talk about things and interact with each other over these issues. I have tried to remove as much technical jargon as possible, whilst still making it realistic dialogue.

I've had someone who is not particularly technological read the chapter, and they understood all of the terms I used.

However, I realized today that someone (for example someone of an older generation) may not even know what terms like 'hacking' or 'alpha test' mean (they're about as technical as it gets).

Most of the stuff can be inferred from context what they mean, but for someone who doesn't know all the terms it might be quite boring to read the first chapter and not understand a lot of what is being discussed right away.

**How can I find a balance between realistic conversation that technical people would use, without losing the pace of the story by adding long-winded explanations about every technical term?**

All of the characters present are knowledgeable about these things, so I can't have them explain the terms to someone who isn't technical, and it wouldn't make sense to the story to change one of the characters or add another into the situation.

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**Edit**

Whilst most people who are within my target audience would know what it is I am talking about, I don't want to alienate anyone who would also possibly be interested in the book.

**To clarify:** I want to minimize the amount of technical terms that might deter readers, without compromising the experience of readers who would understand the terms used by sacrificing the authenticity of the dialogue. **What would be a good balance between the two?**

Original score: 8