TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:Re: Format Advice From:Barbara Karst-Sabin <barbara -at- QUOTE -dot- COM> Date:Thu, 8 Oct 1998 18:42:29 -0700
They aren't and shouldn't be mutually exclusive. When I was taking an
Information Mapping course, we were encouraged to make the design as
attractive as possible. Anything that helps make the content more
useful and more appealing will help the users. Stark black and white
isn't bad, but it's boring. If you have the capability to do color or
halftones, that can be part of another technique for grouping types of
information.
This is one time when you can have everything with a little care and
planning.
BJ
Dennis Crowley wrote:
>
> All,
>
> I am about to began the process of determining a format for our user guides.
> They are paper documents on 8.5 x 11 standard paper. There are basically two
> schools of thought.
>
> One group of writers wants to use a format that "looks good" but has no
> basis in instructional design........................
>
> The other group leans more to the IMI school of thought (lots of white
> space, labeling, chunking, accessible graphics, etc.).
