Downsizing (literally) the manuals

[Stuart Burnfield <slb -at- FS -dot- COM -dot- AU>]

We went from A4 to A5 and finally to 7 1/2 x 9". I assumed we'd need
to get in stocks of paper from the U.S., but our printers assured me
that the cost of trimming is literally negligable. They get A4 so
cheap that it costs less to print on A4 and trim the waste than to
pay a higher per-page cost for specially-ordered paper.

We decided on the 7 1/2 x 9" format and wire binding for practical
reasons. We have a nice layout with room for white space and text at
a readable size. Our end users are systems administrators, so it's a
plus that the manual that will lay flat from the first to the last,
can be folded in half, and doesn't take up too much space on a desk
or lap.

Our old layout was not fantastic. You're right that doing a new
template and converting old documents can be significant costs, but
IMO the new manuals are much more usable and professional looking.
Most of our sales would be in the $10,000 - $100,000 range, so we
are not so inclined to pinch pennies in this area.

Regards
---
Stuart Burnfield                "Fun, fun, fun
Functional Software Pty Ltd     In the sun, sun, sun. . ."
mailto:slb -at- fs -dot- com -dot- au

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