Is Hypertext More Productive?

["Tom Parker [Consultant]" <PARKER_T -at- A1 -dot- WDC -dot- COM>]

In evaluating hypertext vs. traditional manuals I recommend looking
at a Hewlett-Packard example of what on-line manuals are going to
look like very, very shortly:

The HP Laserjet4 Printer Travel Guide (for Windows)

currently shipped with updates or the latest printer drivers for
the HP4.

It is a complete set (stack?) of hypermedia documentation, done very
well in my opinion, with a graphic map of the set, push-buttons to
navigate and a graphic on most of the pages.  On the main hardware
diagram you can select Front View/Top Open/Rear View, for example.

This is a far cry from, say, the MSWord Hypertext maze.

It is interesting that HP outsourced this hypermedia manual -- it was
done by Cognetics Corporation using their Hyperties Browser software.

Please check your nearest HP Laserjet 4 for examples and see if it came
with the updates or printer drivers.  When it shows up it is worth looking
at.

The HP4 Travel Guide is exactly what I had in mind in my previous postings
entitled "When Manuals Go Away."  I think that manuals as we know them are
going to disappear into this new form.

Traditional manuals, however, will disappear very slowly, like the smile
on the Chesire Cat in Alice In Wonderland.  HP ships standard manuals with
the HP4, as well as the travel guide.  Traditional HP manuals are like a
mini gray-wall as far as most users are concerned.  They contain ALL the
information.  But if I can commit heresy on this list, the manuals are
almost useless when printer problems erupt.

Any Cognetics folks lurking on this list who want to talk about Hypterties?

Tom Parker
parker_t -at- a1 -dot- wdc -dot- com