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>Could embedded assistance completely replace paper manuals and online help?
No, as for example installation instructions obviously cannot be
embedded. Also, it is very difficult, to put it mildly, to describe tasks
in an embedded form. (For example, how would you embed instructions to
make a backup in Windows?)
I believe your statement "Studies have shown that users don't read paper
manuals or online help" is inaccurate in a way that confuses the issue:
Not all users are equal and have the same habits of using documentation.
_Many_ users probably do not read paper manuals or online help cover to
cover, but a lot of those still consult the for individual issues. And
some do read manuals cover to cover or at least large parts.
>If so, would single sourcing have any value?
Single-sourcing menas having one source document for several different
deliverables. If you'd only create embedded assistance, you'd have only
one deliverable, which by definition would make single-sourcing impossible.
Regards
Jan Henning
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Jan Henning
ROSEMANN & LAURIDSEN GMBH
Am Schlossberg 14, D-82547 Eurasburg, Germany
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