Re: determining document version

["Lisa Bronson" <Lisa -dot- Bronson -at- ipaper -dot- com>]

Mike asked,  "At which point do you determine that your document has moved
to a different version?"



The two companies I have worked for where this was an issue determined it
this way:

--If it is a change that is backwards compatible (such as a correction,
addition, or improvement to a procedure), we do a revision.

--If it is a change that is NOT backwards compatible (such as a new feature
that was not previously available, or a different vendor's part with
different operating instructions), we make a new document.

In both companies, we used a numbering system where each section of a
manual was assigned a document number.  When a backwards-compatible change
is made, we add "r1" to the end of the document number.  When a
non-backwards-compatible change is made, we assign a new document number.

I don't know if it matters, but both of these companies are capital
equipment manufacturers.  I am unsure if the same type of system would
apply to software manuals, because I have not done that type of work
(yet!).  :-)

Hope that helps!

Lisa Bronson
Associate Technical Writer
Evergreen Packaging Equipment
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
319-399-3239


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