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Subject:Re: Additional new features From:"Chris Morton" <salt -dot- morton -at- gmail -dot- com> To:techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com Date:Mon, 6 Oct 2008 10:08:57 -0700
On Mon, Oct 6, 2008 at 10:08 AM, Chris Morton <salt -dot- morton -at- gmail -dot- com> wrote:
> I couldn't agree more. In my 24 years of using PCs, training delivery,
> and documentation, I've seen very few users ever access online help. This is
> certainly *not* an obvious place to learn about new features.
>
> I would suggest either an online newsletter to which users can subscribe,
> or a printed delivery piece such as a "What's New" brochure or booklet. For
> one company, I produced a couple of Getting Started pieces, each imcluding a
> two-page spread with screenshots and bursts announcing the new features.
>
> > Chris
>
> On Mon, Oct 6, 2008 at 9:48 AM, Ronald Schwarz <RSchwarz -at- cosmocom -dot- com>wrote:
>
>> My Product manager wrote the official Documentation Plan for the new
>> product release. He included What Additional Features are Available in one
>> of the user documents. In my ten years of experience in other companies,
>> this was put either in the Release Notes or the installation document.
>>
>> What are some good reasons for not putting such a section in a user
>> document? The main output will be online help. The print version will be a
>> secondary distribution. It seems this "what's new" section will hardly ever
>> be read by someone using online help to solve a problem in the use of the
>> product.
>>
>> Ronald Schwarz
>>
>> Senior Technical Writer
>>
>> CosmoCom, Inc.
>> 121 Broad Hollow Road
>> Melville, NY 11747 USA
>> Phone: +1 (631) 940-4320
>> Fax: +1 (631) 930-3252
>> EMAIL: RSchwarz -at- cosmocom -dot- com
>> URL: http://www.cosmocom.com
>> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>>
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^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
ComponentOne Doc-To-Help gives you everything you need to author and
publish quality Help, Web, and print content. Perfect for technical
authors, developers, and policy writers. Download a FREE trial. http://www.componentone.com/DocToHelp/
True single source, conditional content, PDF export, modular help.
Help & Manual is the most powerful authoring tool for technical
documentation. Boost your productivity! http://www.helpandmanual.com
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