Thanks for the link back, and the response. You bring up some very good points.

Admittedly, throwing in the towel is the last resort. Very last. Some organizations aren’t responsive to suggestions regarding usability.

Once, I worked for a company whose product managers (and technical editors) were adamant about the documentation not filling in those usability gaps. On the PM side, they figured that the application was usable as it stood; it wasn’t. On the editors’ side, they were so blinkered by their style guidelines that any variation from the look, feel, and flow of any of the other documents brought the wrath of [name of your favourite deity here] upon the writer’s head.

Sometimes, your sanity is worth more than the stability of a job. Of course, I never advocate bailing until you have something else lined up!