User Guides that Get Used

Summary:
This course will provide the student with the conventions and the techniques to write user guides that are a pleasure to read and that achieve the desired result of letting the reader get on with the job of using the softare, assembling the hardware or simply enjoying the product, rather than studying the manual endlessly.

Duration:
3 Days/Lecture & Lab

Audience:
This course is designed for those involved in writing of user guides, including technology professionals who document their hardware or software products for a large and varied user community, managers and editors who routinely review documentation written for end users.

Topics:

• Apply the user guide writing process to improve quality and reduce time writing
• Distinguish the reader's perspective from the system designer's
• Plan user guides according to their use in the field
• Conduct a task analysis to determine what the user will actually do with the document
• Design and format the contents of the user guide for the reader's quick reference
• Apply current conventions for page and document design
• Employ five fail-safe methods for structured procedures
• Save time while drafting your document
• Troubleshoot your manual to ensure that it is readable, accurate, complete, and usable

Prerequisites:
There are no prerequisites for this course.