RE: Writing tasks for online help. Specific vs. General

["Kathy Mizell" <KathyMizell -at- mfpoer -dot- com>]

Our manuals, but not help files, are written similar to your method.
Chapter 3 in all user guides/manuals provide a quick step-by-step guide
to a very specific task or action.  Chapters 4 to ?? provide details on
a semi-task/screen process.  For a quick reminder, folks use Chapter 3.
For a detailed explanation of what the task entails, screen descriptions
and requirements, and basic procedures, they use the remaining chapters.
All help files are written for AS400 proprietary software and are screen
specific. 

Kathy Mizell
kathymizell -at- mfpoer -dot- com 


-----Original Message-----
From: Diane Evans [mailto:DianeE -at- LOCKSTREAM -dot- com]
Sent: Monday, August 06, 2001 11:12 AM
To: TECHWR-L
Subject: RE: Writing tasks for online help. Specific vs. General

I recently wrote a help file with two sections.  The first was a
step-by-step method of the average process (Planning a doohickey,
building a
doohickey, publishing a doohickey).  The second is an alphabetical
listing
of every item on a menu or contol bar.  The user can follow one section
for
a step-by-step tutorial, or search in the other section for a specific
question. (I suppose a good index would have worked, too, but this is
the
way they wanted it.)


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