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It sounds like the boss is making the assumption that users will be
reading this book in linear fashion, from start to finish. While there
are some propellerheads about who like to do such things---I do this
with all manuals out of professional curiosity---I have found in my vast
experience that about 95% of the readers of technical information do NOT
do this. They look in the TOC or index and attempt to go straight to
the section that will tell them how to get from A to B. Some dispense
with actually looking things up and just try to get by looking at the
index before calling customer support.
Case in point: once in the distant past I put an easter egg in the
front matter of a manual and sent it to reviewers, then forgot about it
and it went to 30 or 40 customers. Not on purpose---well, maybe a
Freudian slip. It was sufficiently funny that it should have been
caught immediately by anyone reading the material. Not a single word of
feedback.
In my opinion a well-written manual, e.g. reference manual, programmer's
guide, etc., is completely independent of whatever glitzy goo appears at
the beginning. The manual answers questions, one at a time. It is not
meant to be an exciting read.
Now... armed with this opinion, take a hard look at the document itself
and figure out what question it is trying to answer. Then, as others
have said, go back to the boss and find out what they want, in a
non-confrontational way that belies your desire to do the job right.
Best of luck!
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