Designing Documentation for Visually-Impaired Users  

Preparing 'large-print' texts requires more than changing type size; it involves writing and structuring materials to meet the needs of an audience with varied physical challenges. For large print documents, format considerations include: using appropriate type, line length, and other design elements; setting all material flush left; and using lay-flat bindings. For braille documents, text may also need to eliminate or explain unusual symbols. Content considerations for both may include: replacement of graphics with descriptive text: brief orientation to the physical location and dimensions of objects; and reminders of help services. Cassette tapes offer one alternative to print or braille texts, plus serve other audiences.

Barthel, Brea. STC Proceedings (1994). Articles>Documentation>Accessibility

Designing Effective Single Source Materials  

People often have to create documents for different audiences and for different media, (e.g. web, Help, training). However, timelines and budgets for developing information are often tight. This means we have to find more efficient ways to develop information. One way is to consider single sourcing information for multiple users and media. While single sourcing does take more up-front planning, it can significantly decrease costs and development times once implemented.

Rockley, Ann. STC Proceedings (2000). Presentations>Documentation>Single Sourcing

Designing Effective User/Training Documentation with the Learning Style Inventory (LSI), the User Empowerment Inventory (UEI), and Think-Aloud Protocols  

While there are many instruments that measure the capacity for establishing peer-level communication skills, few exist that evaluate the effectiveness of knowledge transfer in the writer-reader relationship. The Learning Style Inventory (LSI), the User Empowerment Inventory (UEI), and thinkaloud protocols help assess how people acquire new knowledge and process information. The results of such measurements/ observations help determine user requirements. This paper presents a case history of how the LSI, the UEI, and think-aloud protocols helped improve both user and training documentation to a technology-averse audience in a reactive project environment.

LeVie, Donald S., Jr. STC Proceedings (1996). Design>Documentation>Methods>Usability

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 for People: Human Factors for Technical Communicators  

What are human factors? Why do technical communicators care?

Ames, Andrea L. STC Region 7 Proceedings (2002). Presentations>Human Computer Interaction>TC>Asia

Designing for Quality: Visual Devices for Behemoth Systems  

Two of the panelists present visual devices they have used with large, multifunction systems. These devices are effective in presenting information about large systems to users performing diverse tasks and having different levels of experience, and are powerful tools to help writers or developers learn the system. The third panelist shows how these tools are effective in designing for fitness for use—whether you are maintaining legacy software or designing new products.

Bibus, Connie M. 'C.J.', Jennifer Bown and William D. Gearhart. STC Proceedings (1995). Articles>User Centered Design>Visual

Designing for Single Source  

“Single source” has come to mean many things to many different people. The basic distinctions are two: (1) distributing the same content in multiple formats and (2) distributing complementary content in the most appropriate medium. The two concepts are not mutually exclusive, i.e., you may have an information strategy that encompasses both ideas. Each methodology has its own advantages, suitability, and requirements. Distributing complementary content in the most appropriate medium requires research and planning, and often results in more effective documentation.

Florsheim, Stewart J. STC Proceedings (2000). Presentations>Information Design>Single Sourcing

Designing for the Web: Special Considerations for Safety Information  

Manufacturers are currently grappling with determining whether they should put safety information on the Web and if they do how it should be presented. Technical communicators, Web content developers, and Web designers will ultimately be responsible for the presentation of Web-based safety information. This article discusses special considerations that should be given the formatting (HTML, PDF, etc.), design, (font, size, and color), and location of safety information on the Web. Additionally, areas for future research on the issue of Web-based safety information are identified.

Tallman, Lisa A. STC Proceedings (2001). Presentations>Web Design>Documentation

Designing Hypertext: What We Can Learn from Linguistics and Discourse Research  

Hypertext are implied in complex linear texts like literary analysis. These texts 'model' hypertext nodes and links in their linguistic properties and constitute a system of semantic messages and cohesive ties. A conceptual bridge between conventional and hyper-texts can be constructed for technical and scientific applications based on these linguistic properties. Linguistic analysis can also serve as a cohesive construct extending to visual and auditory displays in hyperdocuments. Hypertext instructional designers are challenged to impose comparable mappings as analogues to these cohesive relationships to test memory, distance, and other variables.

Eiler, Mary Ann. STC Proceedings (1996). Articles>Language>Linguistics>Semantic

Designing Information for the 21st Century  

In the past, documentation meant printed books. Then along came online help. Online books soon followed. Now we have the Internet and web pages. Developing a documentation plan today means more than planning how books are going to be structured, reviewed, and printed. It needs to take into account the possibilities that these new media have to offer. Achieve the most effective results by making delivery in these media part of your documentation planning.

Radecki, Steven Lewis. STC Proceedings (1997). Articles>Publishing>Online

Designing Information for the Online Medium  

Well-designed online documentation exploits the medium to make the content more accessible and effective. Knowing who needs the information and understanding when and how much of it will be used are essential for the creation of effective online content. Ideally, online documentation should answer each question with just the right amount of depth and detail. Considering user expertise, information needs, and usage patterns before creating the content or structure results in information that can be scanned, searched, surfed, referred to, read, or printed equally effectively—exactly what people expect from online documentation.

Mehrotra, Rahul and Jane Nye. STC Proceedings (1998). Articles>Documentation>Online

Designing Information-Gathering Forms  

Poorly designed information-gathering forms drive up operating costs. Good design depends on a careful analysis of two users: Form-Fillers and Form Readers. Both types ofform user benefit if the form designer follows four principles of overall design. Guidelines for answer sections and user testing can also help designers produce more effective forms. Evaluation of existing forms can lead to successful revision so that costly mistakes can be avoided.

MacNealy, Mary Sue. STC Proceedings (1994). Articles>Document Design>Forms>Usability

Designing Installation Manuals Used in Various User Environments  

Manuals normally contain information regarding all the functions of a given product. Therefore, there are cases when information required by one user is useless to other users. As a typical example, for users, performing a version upgrade, the upgrading procedure is important, but the procedure for new installation is useless information.

Shimosaka, Yuji. STC Proceedings (1999). Articles>Documentation

Designing Lotus Notes Databases for Global Collaboration  

Notes databases can provide versatile environments for developing and sharing knowledge globally through both client-based and Web-based applications. In this panel discussion we explore some of the issues facing information designers as they enable communication and collaboration in work groups. We will focus on how to determine if Notes is an optimal solution, how to translate information needs into effective design elements and functionalities in Notes, and how we can help ease the transition to the world of Notes for new users.

Knodel, Elinor L., Donald J. Green and Faye Smith. STC Proceedings (1999). Articles>Collaboration>Databases

Designing Minimalist Principles Into User Interfaces  

Designing a user interface using minimalist principles for guided exploration can reduce the amount of paper and text necessary to document the system. Graphics in the interface can help the user grasp the concepts of the system, while dialog boxes, status information, and error messages can aid in recognition of success and recovery from errors. Online help can then be used as a backup for users if they get stuck. Reducing text and paper can reduce translation and printing costs, making this process very attractive.

Elser, Arthur G. STC Proceedings (1994). Articles>User Interface>Usability>Minimalism

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 Multilingual Documents: Some Principles, Observations, and Guidelines  

This paper summarizes some basic problems associated with designing, producing, and delivering multiple languages within one document, and our approach to resolving those problems, 'Multilingual in this context is defined as containing one or more languages within a page design, as opposed to 'internationalized' (containing universal symbolic or pictorial text) or 'serially translated' (repeated translated content) documents.

Lorence, Paul. STC Proceedings (1995). Articles>Language>Localization

Designing Policies and Procedures Information  

The policies and procedures (P&P) developer must address more than format and style issues in designing policies and procedures information. There are at least five levels of design for policies and procedures information. Level 1 concerns the architecture in which the information resides. Level 2 concerns the type of relationship that exists among documents within the architecture. Level 3 concerns the approach used in designing and developing the information content within a policies and procedures document. Level 4 concerns the writing methods to use. Level 5 concerns the various writing techniques for presenting information in units individually and collectively within a policies and procedures document.

Urgo, Raymond E. STC Proceedings (2000). Presentations>Documentation>Policies and Procedures

Designing Products for the International Environment – a Practical Guide  

Most companies are moving quickly beyond their local market to succeed on a large global market. Companies are developing mass market products instead of products for a single customer. All this poises new challenges to everyone in the company. This panel will address the following.

Vatovec, Bogo, Carol Peterson, James V. Romano and Allen Strand. STC Proceedings (1999). Design>User Interface>International

Designing Responsive Hypermanuals  

The responsive hypermanual is a new method of delivering documentation that orders the contents of an online manual in response to the user’s current task. It uses hypertext modules controlled by an SQL database for managing the development, and presentation of modular documentation to provide a uniquely usercentric system. their needs. When the user asks technical support for help, they delegate the effort of assembling material scattered throughout the document into a meaningful answer.

Lettvin, David W. STC Proceedings (2000). Presentations>Documentation>Interactive

Designing Search Pages  

Many web sites and applications include a search feature. Often they provide an extremely simple search interface consisting of a single text box and a "Go" button. Sometimes, however, the users' tasks call for more sophistication, and guidelines for complex search interfaces are difficult to find. This paper details four levels of search interface, and it provides heuristics (guidelines) to use when designing complex search interfaces. Different solutions are appropriate, depending on the users' motivation and knowledge of their subject, experience using search interfaces, and search goals. Finally, PubMed serves as a useful example to illustrate how these guidelines can be used to analyze existing search interfaces.

McDaniel, Scott M. STC Proceedings (2004). Design>Web Design>User Interface>Search

Designing Single Source Materials  

Timelines for developing documentation are getting shorter and budgets are getting smaller. This means that we have to find more efficient ways of developing documentation. One way is to consider single-sourcing your information for multiple media (paper, online), multiple types of documentation (user documentation, Help, training), multiple users and reuse of information for multiple products. While this process takes a lot of up-front planning it can significantly decrease your costs and development times. This session looks at the process for designing and creating single-source materials for multiple media, users, or types of documentation.

Rockley, Ann and JoAnn T. Hackos. STC Proceedings (1999). Presentations>Content Management>Single Sourcing

Designing the Interface for an Electronic Document  

Interfaces are more than skin deep. To create a successful electronic documentation project the structure of the information, the navigation and the visual design must all work together. Research Publications' American Journey series of CD-ROMs on topics in American history is a good example of an interface designed from the inside out.

Quesenbery, Whitney. STC Proceedings (1995). Design>User Interface

Designing the Out-of-the-Box Experience: A Case Study  

To improve your product’s out-of-the-box experience, you must first define the experience that you want your users to have. The next challenge is to design the specific elements that will achieve that experience. These elements must be designed harmoniously with each other and with the functional improvements planned for the product. By enhancing those improvements, the overall experience will draw the customer into the product. If designed appropriately, these elements can improve not only the out-of-the-box experience but also the marketability of the product.

Kowalski, Lee Anne. STC Proceedings (2001). Design>User Centered Design>User Experience