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I don't think there's an "offical" definition of
release notes, just as there's no official definition
of administration manual, API guide, or quick
reference guide. Like all of the publication titles
that we and our co-workers toss around, "release
notes" means something different to different groups.
In my experience with release notes, you have the
release notes that developers/programmers write
(usually very badly) to document new functionality or
bug fixes. And then you have the release notes that we
tech writers prepare to inform users of new
functionality and bug fixes.
Are release notes a marketing document? No, I don't
think so. But the question raises the issue of what
distinguishes marketing collateral from technical
documentation. In my opinion, the distinction lies in
purpose and audience: marketing collateral is intended
to sell a product/service to customers; technical
documentation is intended to inform existing users how
to use a product/service. In the real world, making
that distinction isn't always easy, but it's a
starting point.
Steven Brown
Senior Technical Writer
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