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"Andrew Plato" <gilliankitty -at- yahoo -dot- com> writes:
> Hackos (and me of course) are correct. Most writers document surface-level
> instructions and do not take the time or effort to really think about HOW
the
> product/technology works and might be used. As such, most tech docs are
endless
> streams of pointless and worthless instructions.
The surface-level documentation you're describing is OK for a straight, bare
bones reference. It can also form a basis for a development spec, especially
where none exists. Most of us have worked in that situation, where the spec
consists of what's in the various developers' heads.
But the instructions are only "pointless and worthless" without
context--either in the documentation or in the end-users head.
> This is usually caused by an over-emphasis on style and structure. Writers
> spend all their energy and time building monuments of style and structure
and
> as such pay minimal attention to the content. The result - bad docs.
Um, I don't think it is the over-emphasis on style and structure. I think it
is evidence of a writer or writers who can't write, or the lack of
someone --an editor or senior writer--doing a developmental/substantive edit
on the stuff. It also shows lack of understanding the end user and his
needs.
Aside: I did a short contract last year at a company that had a stylesheet
that was six pages long. One page described the dozen or so WORD styles to
be used and the remaining pages were a list of the specific terms and
language I'd need to use in the document. One doesn't need a large
stylesheet or style guide to write a good, useful document.
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