Imagine you are an IT manager for an organisation that has been implementing new IT systems. You have now reached the point where you need to create and document the new IT policies and procedures. The organisation already has some general policies for IT in its staff handbook, but you need to provide more detailed… Read more »
Category: manuals
Topic-based authoring: The undiscovered country
Many software companies, when they start out, provide user documentation as downloadable PDFs or as web pages. As they develop more products and versions, and as they expand into countries that use different English spellings, the amount of documents can grow until it becomes hard to keep all of these documents up to date. It’s at… Read more »
Case study: Creating an easy to use Listener Guide for the Samaritans and the Prison Service
Through its Listener Scheme in prisons, Samaritans provides emotional support to prisoners who are struggling to cope, are self harming or are feeling suicidal. Guidance for Samaritans volunteers that run and support Listener schemes was contained in a hard copy manual (the Guide to Prisons) which was cumbersome to update, difficult to navigate and not… Read more »
What can a Technical Author learn from a historical fighting manual?
The Wallace Collection recently held an exhibition on The Noble Art of the Sword, where visitors could see range of beautiful fencing manuals written during the Renaissance. So could a Technical Author learn anything from the way historical fighting manuals were written? I have practiced aikido, a Japanese martial art, since 1992, so the thoughts… Read more »
Case Study: Samaritans procedures clarified and put online
Samaritans is a charity that provides confidential emotional support 24/7 to those experiencing despair, distress or suicidal feelings. The service is provided by over 20,000 volunteers from 202 branches. The Samaritans Operations Manual explains in detail the policies and processes which volunteers must follow when delivering the service. This new online manual will replace four… Read more »