Re: Mac Advice

[Garret Romaine <GRomaine -at- MSMAIL -dot- RADISYS -dot- COM>]

> Gven that my manager wants me to create online help for this PC-based
> application, does it even make sense to use a Mac (leaving aside for the
> moment that my manager *says* it does)?  That is, is there some way to
write
> help on a Mac so that it will run under OS/2?  Also, what are the
> compatibility issues?  For example, how will I capture screens under OS/2
> and use them on a Mac? If you were in this situation, what software would
> you choose if you could choose anything?  Or would it be better to plead
for
> a PC?

Dan:  I don't see how you can develop and test your online help on anything
other than the system it is written for. You will burn up a lot of cycles
just moving back and forth from one platform to the other. I can see 25% of
your time devoted to "other-than-work" work, if you're really efficient.

Unless you can lobby your way through this, I would predict that you're
going to end up either putting in a lot of hours or getting very far behind,
until you're the critical path. Through no fault of your own.

Macs are great for graphics and layout, but have no advantage when it comes
to the text used for online help. I would argue that you are going to be
much more valuable to your project if you are using the product on the same
platform as the developers. You can then offer insight into design,
usability, etc. Spending your time on the Mac divorces you from the world
your developers are living in, and I would argue makes you less valuable to
them.

Garret Romaine
Sr Tech Writer, RadiSys Corp.
Beaverton, Oregon
gromaine -at- radisys -dot- com