Examining documentation and help systems since 2002.
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Gordon R. Meyer
Copyright 2002-2008
Changing writer's mindsets
In Helping the Strugglers: Thoughts About Making the Leap from Linear Books to Linked Topic, Aviva Garrett writes about methods for helping writers who are struggling with leaving their linear/book models of information behind. Garrett writes:
It has been my experience as a writer and manager that most writers (and managers) are so grounded in the idea of writing books, with pages, cross-references, and indexes, that they can’t wrap their heads around the idea of writing modular or topic-based documentation that is connected by hyperlinks, and supports findability through a search engine.
In my experience, too, part of helping the writers change is to carefully manage the way you talk about the new paradigm, and ensuring that you continually relate new terms to older patterns in ways that help people get assimilated. Ultimately, however, as the article notes, there will always be strugglers who cannot make the leap and they must be moved into a new role within the department or elsewhere.
Posted: Friday, April 20, 2007 link to this item, respond to this item