Field note template: blind-compare two drafts

An authoring template for recording a blind comparison of two outputs, with the method written down before the result.

SampleWritten to demonstrate the format. It does not describe the owner’s experience, results or recommendations.

Published

16 Oct 2026

Updated

Not revised since publication

Reading time

1 min

Topics

What was compared

[Two briefs, two tools or two settings. Name them A and B.]

Decide how to judge before reading the outputs, so the judgement is not shaped by the first one you see.

Produce both outputs from the same input.
Ask someone else to label them X and Y at random, or shuffle them yourself without looking.
Judge X and Y against the "done when" list from the brief.
Only then reveal which was A and which was B.

[Your observations. Say what you saw, not what you expected. Include the date and the tool versions if you know them.]

[One follow-up question the comparison raised.]

[How many comparisons, which kind of input, and what this does not show. One comparison is an anecdote, not a result.]