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Your e-mail raises a few interesting questions as follows:
1. Should technical documentation leverage our products in the field both from a product support and marketing viewpoint?
2. What do customers want?
In answer to the first question, I feel that in a time where an economic downturn has left many companies struggling or downright collapsing, doing more in the technical literature to sell our products could actually be a responsible thing to do. However, a line such as "Welcome to the ..." is hardly a coherent marketing strategy either. In fact the line, as much as it may be the only "feel good" movie of the summer (or line in the manual), sounds cheesy. "Hi I'm Troy McLure!"
Question 2 buttresses answer 1. Customers need the information and preamble adds a less than rhetorical approach to getting it. There are other ways to introduce technical subject matter. Perhaps, illustrate which step in the overall user process they're in, "You are about to start the installation process my friend."
Have fun with it Andrew.
Logendra
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