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Subject:RE: You Don't Need to Know How From:Jim Shaeffer <jims -at- spsi -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Wed, 25 Jul 2001 15:30:24 -0400
One often overlooked aspect of "know thy
audience" is knowing where they are in the
"technology adoption life cycle."
Early adopters need to be able to debug everything
and tweak every setting to suit their needs.
Late adopters won't think about the product. Don't
give them any options, don't give them any choices.
Just give them the tried and true steps.
Unfortunately, we tech writers:
1. Often write great step-by-step manuals for
products being bought by early adopters who would
rather learn by discovery.
2. Often write the more complete "technical"
documentation later in the adoption cycle because
by that time we've figured it out ourselves (and
have found some time in the schedule).
3. Often try to address customers at all points in
the adoption cycle at the same time, because our
salespeople are trying to sell to all points in the
adoption cycle at the same time. (Pundits on the
topic say this situation is disastrous for any
company that's in it.)
Tangential to the technology adoption cycle:
Sometimes, our technology is just a tool to do
things that are and must be done a certain way.
Documenting how accountants can do things that
were never thought of in designing the software
would not be good documentation. The software (and
its documentation) should enforce the rules.
Moore's _Crossing the Chasm_ is the current classic
on the technology adoption life cycle.
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