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Subject:Re: SME vs. Audience From:"Chuck Martin" <cm -at- writeforyou -dot- com> To:techwr-l Date:Tue, 9 Sep 2003 10:50:45 -0700
Something different.
In his book "The Inmates are Running the Asylum," Alan Cooper describes a
design and development methodology that is ideal for both product and
documentation. That methodology uses carefully constructed personas to
answer design questions. Those personas--you rarely need more than two to
adequately represent your audience--are the yardstick by which you would
measure your content and information design.
Chuck Martin
<twriter01 -at- mindspring -dot- com> wrote in message news:212324 -at- techwr-l -dot- -dot- -dot-
>
> As a technical writer, I would like to be the SME and "one with my
> audience." However, that is not always the case. If you have to pick one
> path, which would you choose: be "one with your audience" and interview
> your SME for information that you know your audience needs, or become an
> SME, and then write for the intended audience, or do something completely
> different?
>
>