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Subject:Re: Contents at a Glance From:Beth Agnew <bagnew -at- INSYSTEMS -dot- COM> Date:Wed, 16 Jul 1997 08:53:06 -0400
>Salan Pazurik <salstu -at- SMARTT -dot- COM> asked:
>---snip---
>>The table of contents extends over six pages. Should I place a one-page
>>Contents in Brief before the Contents in Detail?
>---snip---
I'd start with some visual cues as to the manual's contents -- you've
mentioned divider tabs -- make them deliver information, rather than simply
stating "Chapter 1" etc.
With a softbound publication, most people start at the back, flip through
the index, and then fan the pages of the book from back to front until they
get to the TOC. With a binder, that's impractical, so they look at the
cover, and then open the cover and look at the first page. That's where I'd
put a "site map" -- not a list of the entire contents but a graphic or table
perhaps that shows the main areas of information in the publication. What
are the top 6 things people reading that publication would want to know
about? If there are particular questions that recur frequently, include the
locations to the top four answers in your front page map. Keep it short --
about 10 entries is plenty for most people to handle. What about putting
tabs on the areas your readers are going to need most -- whether they are at
the front of a chapter or in the middle? Flipping a tab is the fastest way
to get to that part of the manual.
You don't necessarily want to give them the Contents as an idea of whether
their particular need is met by the manual, and where to find that
information. To my mind, an exhaustive Table of Contents is much less
effective than about a dozen other ways of conveying information.
--Beth
Beth Agnew
Senior Technical Writer, InSystems Technologies Inc.
bagnew -at- insystems -dot- com Tel: (905) 513-1400 ext. 280
Fax: (905) 513-1419
Visit us at: http://www.insystems.com
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