This article discusses how technical communicators can use Contextual Inquiry (a field research method) to gather information about their audiences and their specific needs for online and hardcopy documentation. Inquiry is based on three principles: 1. Data gathering must take place in the context of the users' work. 2. The data-gatherer and the user form a partnership to explore issues together. 3. The inquiry is based on a focus; that is, the inquiry is based on a clearly defined set of concerns, rather than on a list of specific questions (as in a survey). This article includes a description of Contextual Inquiry as we have used it at Digital Equipment Corporation and examples from our experiences as technical communicators and usability engineers on various projects that have used this method.
Readnocute tests and summary tests aremethodsfor evaluating the usability of parts of your documentation. Readnocute tests measure the effectiveness of navigational cues such as index entries and headings, and the clarity of the prose. Summary tests measure the comprehensibility of infomation. This article explains how to conduct both types of tests and how to apply the results to your and MARY ELIZABETH RAVEN (603) 881-2430 documentation. Digital Equipment Corporation 110 Spit Brook Road NaShua, NH 03062-2698 0-7803-0788-7/92 $3.00 0 1992 IEEE.
In his article "Object-Oriented Documentation," Johannes Sametinger describes a successful case study of creating object-oriented documentation. It is clear, however, that of the three types of documentation that he identifies, system documentation is the only one suited to this application. We argue that system documentation can afford to behave like the system it describes, but that user documentation needs to be organized according to the tasks users will do instead of according to how the system is structured. On the other hand, using a brother definition of object-oriented documentation presents technical communicators with a powerful model for information development that is beneficial to both the writer and the reader.
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