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Subject:"Making the Most of Service Manuals" From:"Dan Goldstein" <DGoldstein -at- riverainmedical -dot- com> To:<techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Wed, 9 Apr 2008 17:05:32 -0400
The article I just read isn't available for free online, so you'll have
to take my word for it. It was published in the Association for the
Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) publication "Biomedical
Instrumentation & Technology."
Among the points raised in the article:
* Apparently, some customers actually read the manuals!
* The technicians and engineers who use medical devices create and share
online lists of available service manuals, in order to have access to
up-to-date documentation.
* Expensive, advanced medical equipment is often sold with a single
printed manual (and no electronic backup). Resold equipment often has no
manual at all.
* Some companies charge their customers separately for manuals, instead
of including them for free with the medical device. (Personally, I think
this is short-sighted.)
* Some companies provide manuals online as public, unencrypted PDF
files. Others provide manuals only to technicians who have attended
training sessions.
* The disadvantages of electronic (vs. print) publication seem to affect
the company more than the user.
Since there are some STC officers on the list... Having read the
article, I highly recommend that STC offer to pay AAMI for the rights to
reprint it in an STC publication.
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