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RE: Writing tasks for online help. Specific vs. General
Subject:RE: Writing tasks for online help. Specific vs. General From:"David Downing" <DavidDowning -at- Users -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Wed, 8 Aug 2001 13:04:28 -0400
<<Is it better to write a general category with information included
(less
topics in the project) or better to have many topics with short,
specific
information.>>
Well, I really don't think you can generalize. It al depends on the
specific application you're documenting and the resources you have
available.
The only generalization I feel safe making is that it isn't an either/or
situation. You need some broad topics, and you need some very specific
ones. I always think it's a good idea to link your specific topics back
to broader ones, in case the user needs context.
One thing I suggest when someone asks me a broad question about online
help is to look at some existing help system that are actually being
sold. What do you see help authors doing? What do you like about a
particular help system? What do you hate about a particular help
system?
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