Embed Size (px)
DESCRIPTION
Presented by Nicky Bleiel at Documentation and Training West, May 6-9, 2008 in Vancouver, BCDocumentation deliverables have evolved beyond manuals and online help in recent years, and with the emergence of Web 2.0, things are changing faster than ever. Technical communicators have many more options to enhance the user experience, and developing many of them provide the opportunity to work with other departments to find a more holistic approach to content development and delivery. But there is no one-size-fits-all set of solutions. This session will review the types of analysis you need to do to determine which deliverables are right for your project, your customer, and your company.Other factors that cant be ignored, such as translation needs, staff/time constraints, file size limitations, corporate image and control, and proprietary concerns will also be discussed, including: * Analyzing the Product - Intended audience; delivery method (desktop, web application, etc.); competitor offerings; software development methodology. The UI as part of the Help system. Product Management expectations. * Identifying User Wants and Needs—Preferences and expectations for information; work environment; knowledge and experience levels. * Ascertaining Internal Needs and Opportunities—Working with Training, Support, and Marketing to reduce duplication and provide the user with consistent, useful information. Finding ways to incorporate information from other departments to improve documentation. * Accessing Deliverable Options what is the optimum mix for the product?—The traditional: online help, manuals, embedded help, job aids, forums, web sites, technical support knowledgebases. Emerging trends: wikis, blogs, RSS feeds, software demonstrations, podcasts, and other collaborative tools. They can supplement and/or enhance the traditional. Or, they may be a better fit for internal knowledge management or marketing use. * Optimizing the Library—Single-sourcing; best practices for structuring information; continuous publishing.
Citation preview
Documentation Planning and Library Design in a Web 2.0 World
Ni k Bl i lNicky BleielSenior Information DeveloperComponentOneDocTrain West 2008Vancouver, CanadaMay 7, 2008
What we’ll discussWhat we ll discuss• Analysisy• Deliverables
• TraditionalTraditional• Web 2.0
• Putting it all together• Putting it all together
Bottom Line
What it’s all about …
• Giving customers what they needB l i d d d• Balancing customer needs and company needs
• Driving the deliverables
PRODUCT ANALYSIS
Product Analysisy
• How is the product delivered?p• What is your software development
process? • What are the current library deliverables?
User Wants and NeedsUser Wants and Needs• How they workYour • Where they work• Skill level
audience
• Preferences
User Wants and NeedsUser Wants and Needs• Interview How to find
– Customer Support – Q/A
out
– Training– Power Users
• Read customer forum• Site visits• Surveys
Company NeedsCompany Needs• Corporate ExpectationsYour • Corporate Image• Corporate Philosophy
audience
• Proprietary Concerns
Company NeedsCompany Needs• Talk toHow to find
– Product Mgmt.– Marketing
out
• Look at Intranet– Blueprints– Road Maps– Requirementsq
• Don’t forget IT
Knowledge Management and Reuse• Investigate – discover sources of
information• Find out what can be reused and shared• Let others know what you have available• Drive knowledge management • Encourage consistency
LIBRARY DELIVERABLES
Popular UA Technologies
Source: 2007 WritersUA Skills andSource: 2007 WritersUA Skills and Technologies Survey http://www.writersua.com/surveys/skillstech07/skillstech_techs.htm
The Traditional
• Comprehensivep• Controlled• Defined Organization/Structureg• Taxonomy• Content Authors – One to Manyy
The Traditional
• Manuals• Online Help• Embedded Helpp
The Traditional
• Job Aids• Websites /Intranets • Knowledgebasesg
Traditional/Web 2.0
• Customer Forums• Demonstration Videos
Web 2.0 — Descriptions
“Harnessing collective intelligence”g g— Tim O’Reilly, O’Reilly Media
“The living web”“The active web”“The read/write web”
—Jimmy Wales, Founder of Wikipedia
Web 2.0
• Not Comprehensivep• Not Controlled• Organic g
Organization/Structure• Folksonomy• Content Users –
Many to Many“C d i ”• “Crowdsourcing”
Web 2.0Web 2.0Includes:• Wikis• Podcasts• Blogs• Widgets/Gadgetsg g• Social Networks
… and combinations of all the above
Web 2 0Web 2.0Not everyone contributes equally –y q y• Creators (18%)• Critics (25%)( )• Spectators (48%)But all are important.p
From Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies by Li and BernoffSocial Technologies by Li and Bernoff
WikisWebsites that can be
edited by anyoneedited by anyone• Allow synchronous
collaboration• Great for building
Communities of Practice (COPs)( )
• Keeper of the “Group Memory”E ll t f i t l• Excellent for internal knowledge management
Wikis
Wiki drawbacks• Learning curve• Maliciousness• Adoption
For those who prefer it, Twiki is a structured Wiki.
See www.wikimatrix.org for list of wiki tools
Podcasts
Downloadable audio files• Informal; can be very useful for certain audiences• Very easy to create/inexpensivey y p• Can be used to deliver training• Can post to iTunes (Technology: Software How To category) as freeSoftware How To category) as free downloads.• Keywords in podcast title will increase findabilityincrease findability.
Listen to Tech Writer Voices podcasts on Tom Johnson’s blogon Tom Johnson s blog http://www.idratherbewriting.com/
Podcasts
Challengesg• May not work for your audience• Generating material frequentlyg q y• Gathering talent
Blogs
Originally “weblogs” or online g y gdiaries• Can increase Search Engine O ti i ti (SEO) fOptimization (SEO) for your company/ product• Can be used to promote/educate Blog & Comments = aCan be used to promote/educate customers about product features• Management can blog to
l
Blog & Comments = a Conversation. Listening required.
employees Have something to say… be ready for feedback.
Widgets/Gadgetsg g
Mini-appspp• Updated weather, etc.• Used on
webpages/social networking profiles
• Can be used toCan be used to broadcast any information
Social NetworksInteractive communities that
share interests/informationThe usual suspects:
MySpace.com, Facebook.com, LinkedIn.com
News bookmarking:• Reddit.com, Digg.com,
Fark.com, Mixx.comWebsite bookmarking:• Stumbleupon.com• Del icio us comDel.icio.us.comBlog bookmarking:• Technorati.com
The Content Wrangler Community http://thecontentwrangler.ning.com/
RSS Feeds
RSS Feeds drive Web 2.0
• Really Simple Syndication• Makes it possible for usersMakes it possible for users
to receive a notice every time information is updated.
• RSS Aggregators gatherRSS Aggregators gather feeds and make information easier to keep track of.- Google ReaderGoogle Reader- Bloglines
• Makes Web 2.0 a “push” rather than a “pull” systemrather than a pull system.
Putting It All Togetherg g
• Have solid UA as a foundation• Supplement as is logical• If Web 2.0 initiatives embraced, monitor and
nurturenurture– You are the expert; don’t ignore it– Goals beyond doc– Goals beyond doc– Use Google Alerts to follow your industry
You are not alone
ALL Information professions are pchanging…
• Journalism• Public Relations • Marketing
A final thoughtg
This is EXTREME continuous publishingThis is EXTREME continuous publishing …
Y “b k” ill b fi i h d! )Your “book” will never be finished! :-)
More InformationBooksGroundswell: Winning in a World Transformed byGroundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by
Social Technology by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff
Wiki tt b St t M dWikipatterns by Stewart MaderWebsite: wikipatterns.com; Blog: ikiw.org
Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes gEverything by Don Tapscott and Anthony D. Williams
The Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less byThe Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less by Barry Schwartz
The Wisdom of Crowds by James Surowiecki
More InformationMore InformationArticlesSTC Intercom Web 2.0 issue Sept/Oct. 2007
http://www.stc.org/intercom/index.0910.2007.aspThe Wisdom of the Chaperones by Chris Wilson
Sl t htt // l t /id/2184487Slate.com http://www.slate.com/id/2184487What is Web 2.0: Design Patterns and Business
Models for the Next Generation of Softwareby Tim O’Reillyby Tim O Reilly http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html
What do you want from Social Media?What do you want from Social Media? Socialmediatrader.com
http://socialmediatrader.com/what-do-you-want-from-social-media/
More Information10 Best Intranets of 2008 (Jakob Nielsen)( )
http://www.useit.com/alertbox/intranet_design.htmlWeb 2.0 Neglecting Good Design
(Jakob Nielsen/BBC)( )http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6653119.stm
5 Uses for a Wiki at Work (Chris Brogan) http://www lifehack org/articles/technology/5-uses-for-a-wiki-at-http://www.lifehack.org/articles/technology/5 uses for a wiki atwork.html
SharePoint: Wiki While You Work (Mauro Cardarelli)http://technet microsoft com/en us/magazine/cc162514 aspxhttp://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/magazine/cc162514.aspx
Company Blogging 101 (Matt Cutts)http://www.mattcutts.com/blog/company-blogging-101/
More Information
The Content Wrangler Community g yhttp://thecontentwrangler.ning.com/
I’d Rather Be Writing blog (includes TechWriterI d Rather Be Writing blog (includes TechWriter Voices podcasts) http://www.idratherbewriting.com/
Conferences
Web 2.0 Summit (annual) ( )http://www.web2summit.com/
WikiSym International Symposium on WikisWikiSym – International Symposium on Wikishttp://www.wikisym.org/ws2008/index.php/Main_Page
SOBCon – Biz School for Bloggershttp://www sobevent com/http://www.sobevent.com/
