On-line documentation vs Hard copy

Subject: On-line documentation vs Hard copy
From: Bob Gembey <bob -at- SUPERNOVA -dot- NL>
Date: Thu, 29 Apr 1999 03:25:41 -0500

There is a clear trend developing in software products to minimize the hard
copy documentation provided with a product, replacing it by on-line
versions.

I don't think that it is satisfactory to take the existing hard copy manuals
and just add the necessary hyperlinks to allow for jumping from one topic to
another. IMHO, reading on-screen and reading a book are different
experiences, and readers have different needs that must be met. A manual,
although not a novel, does have a certain continuity in it, and readers tend
to browse through it looking for information. On-line they have other
expectancies, which we must fulfill. Is it enough to just provide a search
engine in addition to the electronic index, or a tree-view to show the
structure of the documentation in addition to TOC's and introductory
sections? Are there changes we must make to the document content and
internal structure?

I would appreciate exchanging ideas with others who have already or are
presently going through this process.

Bob Gembey
SuperNova Technology
bob -at- supernova -dot- nl

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