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If it is written for the end-users of the software (or hardware, or widget,
or tennis shoe, etc), and it guides them on how to use the product, I would
call it a User Guide. My philosophy is that a User Guide should cover the
information necessary to make using the product as easy as possible. It
doesn't need to tell them everything under the sun. Some things are truly
obvious ("to cancel, click Cancel"), and other things belong in a
trouble-shooting guide or administration guide.
That's my (perhaps heretical) opinion.
Regards,
Kevin Cheek
----- Original Message -----
> Hi everyone,
>
> Dilemma: I'm almost done with my first document. It's 20 pages long. I
called it
> a user guide and sent it for review. Then I realize, I didn't really cover
> absolutely every aspect of the software. I covered about 75%. The
important 75%.
> Is it okay to have called it a user guide? Is there a rule that says when
> calling a document a user guide it has to cover 100% of everything? Or
does it
> depend on what the company/team/department has deemed "user guide" for
> consistency?
>
> Rhina
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