atw: Re: Screenshots in user doco - Yes or No?

Hi all, 

I have to admit I'm not a fan of screenshots, especially in reference 
material. It comes down to having an idea of how your users relate to your 
material, but it seems to me that a reference manual by definition is used 
as a reference, therefore the user is "usually" looking at the screen 
anyway, so doesn't need that extra visual cue. So localisation and 
maintenance costs aside, I still don't see benefits for printed 
documentation. 

Just because I love contradictions though, I think adding small areas of a 
screen into printed documentation can be effective if you are highlighting 
a process or visually illustrating how to perform a task using annotation 
on the image or a series of images, but this obviously depends very much 
on your audience and the task you are trying to accomplish. I know I have 
had to perform this several times in my work. The added advantage of using 
smaller sections of a screen is that you can sometimes avoid areas where 
text exists in the interface (localisation benefits) or reduce the chance 
that a UI change will affect your small area of displayed screen 
(maintenance benefit). 

So to answer your question Craig, yes it can be more beneficial for a 
novice reader to include screenshots if done correctly. 

Ryan

-----------------------------------
Ryan Baker
Technical Communicator
Moldflow Pty. Ltd.
259-261 Colchester Rd,
Kilsyth 3137 VIC, Australia
Office:  +61 3 9720 2088
Direct:  +61 3 9751 8142



Janice Gelb <janice.gelb@xxxxxxx> 
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03/29/2006 02:04 PM
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atw: Re: Screenshots in user doco - Yes or No?






Craig Bligh wrote:

>
> 
> I've argued that adding screenshots will push the ref guide from about 
> 450 pages to around 650-700, making it less likely that somebody will 
> pick up the doco in the first place. (I did also argue that since 
> screens change every other day, it's a nightmare to maintain.)
> 
> So from a user's point of view, is it more user-friendly to include 
> screenshots for a novice reader?


We provide screenshots for two main reasons: (1) if the
interface is sufficiently busy that an overall view of screens/
pages would be helpful to the reader, or (2) to provide a
graphic view of progress in a task to help readers verify
that the state of their screen is appropriate. However,
under no circumstances do we allow screenshots to
substitute for step-by-step procedural information.

<soapbox>Our style guide also advises against providing screenshots
and a page-by-page, menu-by-menu description of an interface.
We prefer that writers integrate the features of the interface in the
procedures in which the features are used. Very few readers look at
screens/pages or menus in order to see what's on them. Mostly, readers
only care where something is in an interface when they need to use it
to accomplish a task.</soapbox>

-- Janice
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