User Input: My Little Dream
Technical Writing and Wikis
I think a lot of technical writers are sort of steeped in the past. Even if we’re not personally refusing to move forward, a lot of our companies tend to think of training and documentation as that little group of people in the basement. Let’s get the facts to them last and cut their budgets constantly. I experienced it as a cubicle and office dweller. As an independent contractor, many of my clients find me because they realize – at the last minute – they need some sort of documentation. My best clients allow me to document as the software is being developed, factoring the documentation into the life cycle of the product. I’d like to take it one step further.
Currently, I might create a Help system. Despite prodding, most of my clients are still attached to basic CHM files. I’m currently using Flare to develop Help systems. Because Flare is XML based, it single sources my content. I create User Guides in Word 2007 (Beta) directly from the Help. Because Word 2007 is also XML based, the transition is seamless. Once the Help and User Guide are developed, my job is done until the client decides to issue an update to the software, usually a year later.
I don’t want my job to necessarily end when the release date comes around. My little dream is to post my Help (or User Guide) topic by topic on a Wiki hosted in the same spot as the product knowledge base. Maybe the customer support reps for the software have access to the Wiki; maybe the consumers access it as well. Regardless of who accesses it, the minute someone does, it becomes a live document. Users post to the topic, mentioning what was forgotten or a tip or trick that they learned. When the time comes for the next generation of product and documentation, I can refer to the Wiki to learn what else really needs to be in my Help/User Guide and what extraneous information needs to be removed.
User input into the documentation.
Learning, and understanding, how your documentation is used.
For underappreciated technical writers, what more could they ask for?
Oh yeah, the budget to do it. Well guess what, there are a lot of open-source and free wikis out there that are either hosted or that you can host. (TiddlyWiki is a favorite of mine, partially because of the name, I admit.)
Wikis have amazing uses beyond just user documentation. I’ve attended conferences where the session discussions are continued for month by accessing wikis. My husband uses wikis extensively, as a live compository of knowledge in his workplace and as an interactive guide for a role-playing game.
Web 2.0. The technical writers are ready. We just need to bring our employers/clients along with us.
Technorati Tags: technical writing, wikis, Madcap Flare, documentation
