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Re: minimalist? online help

Subject: Re: minimalist? online help
From: Jean Weber <jean -at- wrevenge -dot- com -dot- au>
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Date: Wed, 21 Nov 2001 11:23:16 +1000

Nancy,
You might find some of the ideas in my e-book (see sig) helpful. Among other things, it discusses the top ten user complaints about online help, and what to do about them. You could turn that around to consider what the benefits of adding specific types of information might be for your users.

Regards, Jean
Jean Hollis Weber
mailto:jean -at- wrevenge -dot- com -dot- au
The Technical Editors' Eyrie http://www.wrevenge.com.au/
-----------------
Still available: Editing Online Help, a tool-independent introduction to
planning, developing, and editing online help systems. For a table of
contents, go to: http://www.wrevenge.com.au/bookshop/olhbk.htm


At 10:14 AM 20/11/2001 -0700, Nancy Mignone wrote:

Our online help is, I guess, minimalist: few colors, just the essential information in any procedure, no introductory material before procedures, very little in the way of location indicators. I mean, it is bare bones.

I have some sections that I need to update. I am wondering if I should add some of the following:

screenshots (controversial, I know)
product overview
file re-ordering to follow logical order of operations
locational directives
explanations of why a user might perform a given procedure.

Because I will be doing it in stages (we have a release in December), I'll have to plan out thoroughly what changes I intend to make, in order to assure consistency throughout.

What do you think?


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References:
minimalist? online help: From: Nancy Mignone

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