Writing User Manuals from the Middle Out
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Rice, William H. IV
WilliamRice.com
2001

Abstract:

You need to write the user guide for a complex product. There must be a dozens of functions and hundreds of tasks that can be performed with the product. Where do you begin? How to start writing? Conventional wisdom says: start at the beginning with an introduction to the product, and work your way through each function or task in the order the customer will use them. Don't! Here's a tip I learned the hard way after my ninth or tenth year tech writing: start in the middle, and work your way outward. This article presents a method of writing user documentation that you may find easier and more effective than starting at 'Chapter 1.'