TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:Re: Project scheduling software From:Rose Wilcox <RWILC -at- FAST -dot- DOT -dot- STATE -dot- AZ -dot- US> Date:Fri, 30 Jun 1995 17:34:00 PDT
>>D Gardner asks-->
>> OK, how does one geustimate the length of time needed for a doc?
>> Especially if it's a cdrl and all you have is the cdrl description
>> from the sow?
>===============
>I don't know how common CDRL is outside of government contracts,
>so for those wondering, it's "contract data requirements list."
And the answer is... punt!
1) Are you guestimating the time for the contract before it is accepted or
has it been accepted? If it's been accepted, you need input from the
project planners.
2) You want to allow a reasonable amount of time following the final
delivery date for completion of the doc.
3) The things you don't know yet:
A) What books or on-line help appls will be needed.
B) What tools will be used to create them.
C) Who will be the developers and will they be available for research
needs.
D) What specification documents will there be to work from.
E) What access there will be the application as it is being created.
4) The things you know: Who the audience of the document will be. What
the application is supposed to do.
5) Take the two things you do know and extrapolate a likely answer to A).
6) Find out as many of the answers to B, C, D, and E as you can.
7) Make assumptions about the answers to B, C, D, and E if you don't cannot
find out the answers.
8) Create your estimate, based on your deliverables list created in number
5, documenting your assumptions.
In other words, something like this:
*****
The following time estimates are based on the assumption that the writer
will have access to the developers, the specifications, and the application
as it is being developed with adequate data to test its functions. In
addition, the writer will be using FrameMaker to create the hard copy and
online documents, with access to a high-speed, high-quality printer.
User Manual 3 months
Administrator Guide 2 months
Online Help 16 weeks
Quick Reference Card 4 weeks
These estimates are subject to change if the requirements for the
application are altered in any way.
*****
That's the best you can do. If you have to change your proposed "library"
of deliverables after you do your initial estimate, you'll have to get with
your management and project planners. But it's no big tragedy. The
likelihood is that at this point, estimates are expected to be shakey and
you've put a lot of caveats in your explanations.
Good Luck!
Rose A. Wilcox
rwilc -at- fast -dot- dot -dot- state -dot- az -dot- us
