Creating a Hypertext Help System for a GUI-Based Client/Server Application  

We are currently in the second phase of development of a large Windows online help system. This paper reviews the major decisions we had to make during the first phase of the project, and lists some project evaluation results that have helped us plan for subsequent phases.

Asher, Betsy, David E. Lasecke and John Wenstrom. STC Proceedings (1994). Articles>Documentation>Online>Help

Creating Help in the Web 2.0 Age

This is a presentation titled 'Creating Help in the Web 2.0 Age' that Neil Perlin gave to the Suncoast Chapter in Tampa, Florida in February 2007. Neil talks about what Web 2.0 is, and how help can be delivered on the fly according to specific user requests.

Perlin, Neil E. Tech Writer Voices (2007). Presentations>Documentation>Help>Podcasts

Creating Online Help in a Multiplatform Environment  

With the explosion of online help authoring tools (primarily in the Windows® environment) companies are clamoring for the ability to produce online help on multiple platforms. This demonstration presents one solution to the problem of creating online help in a multiplatform environment. We will demonstrate the process of translating FrameMaker™ files from the Macintosh® to Windows NT®, and ultimately, to UNIX®.

Shelton, Jan D., Anne Navarro and Robbie Fontenot. STC Proceedings (1996). Presentations>Documentation>Help>Adobe FrameMaker

Using DocBook to Generate WebHelp

A brief tutorial on creating cross-platform WebHelp (similar to that produced by RoboHelp) using DocBook.

Nesbitt, Scott. DMN Communications (2004). Articles>Documentation>Help>DocBook

Critical Elements in the Design of Help and Hypertext Systems  

The demand for help and hypertext systems has created a problem for many documentation departments, particularly those in smaller companies and inexperienced in creating these forms of online documentation. The scarcity of existing literature compounds this problem. This document provides writers in small companies with limited resources some suggestions to facilitate hypertext project management, planning, design, editing, and usability testing. Also discussed is how to select a hypertext package.

Wasserman, David C. STC Proceedings (1993). Articles>Documentation>Hypertext>Help

The Critical Role of Local Support

Adapting new equipment to your complete array of jobs, and leveraging your new investment to help your business grow and become more competitive, is part of an ongoing process that is much more important that the initial implementation. It's a process that requires an on-going partnership and several levels of support from your technology vendor-- beginning with basic maintenance and repair and optimally evolving to a true interactive partnership.

Raus, Bob. On Demand Journal (2004). Articles>Documentation>Help

Customer Support on the Web

Customers avoid web-based customer support if information is not relevant, out of date or hard to find. Without a business commitment to addressing these issues, customers will continue to prefer contacting a service representative by phone.

Szuc, Daniel and Gerry Gaffney. Apogee (2005). Articles>Documentation>Help>Online

Customer Support on the Web: Don't Call Us, We'll Call You

Sometimes, when a customer looks for contact information for Customer Support, it is hidden from view or buried beneath layers of menus. Some companies even deliberately hide their contact information, because they simply don't want customers to contact them. So, what factors should you consider if your goal is providing more optimal customer support on the Web?

Szuc, Daniel. UXmatters (2007). Articles>Web Design>User Centered Design>Help

The Death of Paper Manuals

I'll pay $20 for a manual. I'd even pay $30-40 for a manual (grudgingly...). But $65 for a manual that should be in the damn box to begin with? Sorry... NO.

DealMac (2003). Articles>Documentation>Online>Help

Delivering Training and Support Using Windows Help  

The Windows Help utility is familiar as a tool to provide context-sensitive and procedural help for people using a software application, but it also a highly effective tool for providing many kinds of desktop-based training and support within an organization. During this session, we look at a variety of systems built using Windows Help and explore why this was a good choice for the particular project.

Deaton, Mary M. STC Proceedings (1997). Articles>Documentation>Online>Help

Design Checklists for Online Help

Online help systems have evolved over the past 20 years to meet the needs of our users. Designers must consider the content, format, presentation, navigation, and access methods of online help systems. A series of design checklists based on the past 20 years of research are presented in this paper, which summarizes a journal article currently being considered for publication. The latest trend in online help system design is embedded user assistance, which includes integrating information into the interface and including an embedded help pane within that interface to display a context-sensitive online help system.

Corbin Nichols, Michelle. WritersUA (2004). Articles>Documentation>Help>Online

Designing a Software User Assistance System

This article looks at a methodology for developing a software user assistance (UA) system in a structured manner. The software UA system could have both paper-based user manuals and online help systems.

Ferris, Tamara. Indus (2006). Articles>Documentation>Online>Help

Designing a Supplementary Web-Based Online Help System: A Case Study  

Computerized Medical Systems, Inc. (CMS) has implemented an extensive online help system based on HTML for its FOCUS radiation therapy planning system. Netscape Navigator was selected as the browser because FOCUS is based on the UNIX platform and Netscape was the only HTML browser available for UNIX.

Watson, Frank. STC Proceedings (2000). Presentations>Documentation>Online>Help

Designing an Online Help System Before the Interface is Ready  

Developing a Windows online help system that clients can use effectively and bringing it in on time and within budget is a challenging task. You can dramatically improve your chances of success by doing the following: Develop help as sofnvae is being developed (and even before!); Chunk information for easy reading and to facilitate reuse by other writers; Create design and style guidelines to cut down peer review and editing time; Develop and use information webs to cut down on technical review time; Integrate the information web and the user interface to complete your help system.

Henselmann, Mary Anne. STC Proceedings (1997). Presentations>Documentation>Help

Designing Embedded Help to Encourage Inadvertent Learning    

What do we do when a legacy help system has trained the users not to use it? How do we design a solution that not only lures users back to the user assistance, but also encourages users to learn more about the product? This article follows the decision-making process of a design team that had to solve these problems. Additionally, the design team had to craft solutions for an application that imposed extreme limitations on those solutions, both in help system implementation and information design.

Mobley, Karen L., Clinton Knight and Timothy Meserth. Technical Communication Online (2003). Design>Documentation>Help

Designing for Interactivity: Role Models, Guides, and Coaches  

This paper presents three methods of user assistance: role models (simple demonstrations), guides (structured walk-throughs), and coaches (active assistants). After a brief introduction, potential uses, available development tools, and additional information sources are discussed for each method.

DeLoach, Scott. STC Proceedings (1998). Articles>Documentation>Help>Interaction Design

Designing Help Text

In an ideal world help text would be unnecessary - users would never get stuck in an application or site. It should be enough to provide clear design, carefully chosen titles and labels for the various functions, appropriate field prompts when user entry is required, helpful feedback, a glossary, and 'embedded' help such as default values, example input, on-screen step-by-step instructions and explanatory text next to fields or functions. Help features should certainly be a last resort. Anyone embarking on adding it to an application or site should be sure that they have already followed the best practise listed above. In most cases (certainly online) a help option should not be necessary.

Farrell, Tom. Frontend Infocentre (2001). Design>Documentation>Help>Online

Designing Multi-Platform Online Help: A Demonstration  

Designing multi-platform online help can be made more efficient by placing special effort in the design of the development plan. If the development plan is broken up into four key elements the resulting multi-platform design will yield a great amount of latitude for both maintenance and future enhancements. During the demonstration we will discuss our use of these elements to design both online and hardcopy documentation to support both a mainframe and a windows interface.

Taylor, Shhonn D. and Pat Straw. STC Proceedings (1996). Presentations>Documentation>Help

Designing Online Help for Pocket PCs

Advances in technology in the last ten years have created an emerging category of portable online computers (Pocket PCs or PPCs) that offer a wide range of product features comparable to Personal Computers (PCs). Improvements in PPC hardware specifications and the growing numbers of compatible software applications are resulting in an increased (and multi-faceted) user base. Increasing technical capabilities, advanced product features, and a diversified user base are creating new challenges to design online Help systems that can satisfy user needs and requirements effectively.

Natarajan, Prashant. Usability Interface (2004). Articles>Documentation>Help>PDA

Developing an Embedded Help Solution    

As we grow up, we learn to develop our independence and to ask for help less and less. No wonder that, when confronted with a problem, so few users click the Help button. Standard help systems have several common issues: help is separate from the product; users have to leave the task they are performing to get help, and they return and try to remember what they were doing; users cannot find the required information; users get lost in the help.

Mueller, Paul. Technical Communication Online (2003). Design>Documentation>Help

Developing Help for the Web: Designs, Trends, Strategies  

Zubak reviews the current state of Web-based help technology. Her article prepares technical communicators for upcoming challenges in this increasingly important field.

Zubak, Cheryl Lockett. Intercom (2001). Design>Documentation>Help

Developing HTML Documents and Help System  

This document explains necessary tips for providing product information in digital form, giving specific examples of choosing the suitable media, classifying information, appropriate linking, file organization, etc. through our experience (in Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.) during the development of the software product called Web PrintVision.

Ito, Sachi. STC Proceedings (1998). Articles>Documentation>Online>Help

Developing Online Help for OS/2 Applications  

One of the biggest problems facing Help developers is that of providing users with adequate methods of navigation through what can be huge amounts of information. After more than a two or three jumps, users can find themselves in topics that might be useful, but with no clear indication of how they got there or how to return to where they started. OS/2 gives the Help developer extraordinarily flexible tools for creating online documentation that can prevent this situation and provide users with a clearer path through online information than many other platforms can provide. However, this enhanced usability is not without its cost.

Radecki, Steven Lewis. STC Proceedings (1993). Articles>Documentation>Online>Help

Developing Online Help in Lotus Notes  

If you are a technical writer or manage technical writers and have been asked to document Lotus Notes applications, this workshop will give you a jump start. You can use the features available in Notes to create an effective help system as a Notes database. This help database can either be a view in an existing Notes application or a stand-alone database linked to the application. In this workshop, you will learn the basics of creating help systems in Lotus Notes.

Gross, Jacqui, Faye Smith and Steve Charles. STC Proceedings (1998). Articles>Documentation>Help>Online