spanners,
i was thinking like you and so the question from Simon was not clear to me too ...
maybe it depends if you are B1 , B2 or B1B2 ...
for me : thrust reverser : T/R
transformer : TRU
ah ! acronyms ...
FCU : fuel control unit , flight control unit , flush control unit ???
anyway , basically if a part of a system is not critical then it can be de-activated , thats the reason why the MEL exists ... and also as others said , to avoid a delay ... sometimes it is even quicker to fix the problem by a simple test than to fill the techlog...
Guys , i do not have to remember you that MELs are customized ... except under the use of the MMEL.
a simple msg can "generate" a maintenance procedure without real problem ...
Simon , may i suggest you to be more accurate ?
Rgds.