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Subject:RE: another Acrobat question or three From:"Dan Hall" <dhall -at- san-carlos -dot- rms -dot- slb -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Tue, 12 Jun 2001 14:52:42 -0500
<snip> You may never win that one, esp now that Jakob Neilsen's made the
statement
that pdf hinders readability by about 300% (www.useit.com) </snip>
Yes, but...
Neilson (a self-proclaimed usability expert) frequently makes statements
(like this one) that are unsubstantiated by hard data. While pdfs aren't
necessarily ideal for online reading, they're not unusable. This is
especially true if you have a TOC and hyperlinks. Frankly, I've seen more
screwed-up, unusable "web help" than I have pdfs. Done right, pdfs are
usable. Done incorrectly pdfs have the same usability issues as any other
form of poorly done documentation. Generalizations like this don't help
writers decide what is the best choice for document distribution.
Neilson's design ideas focus around the new user, not the more realistic
"perpetual intermediate." This is the focus that lead MS to hide
"infrequently used" menu items in Word 2000, a feature that is frequently
denounced. This is a ongoing issue among designers and UI folks. And BTW, if
you saw Neilson's old web site, you know he's no usability guru.
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