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Subject:RE: meaning & practice of a "doc freeze" From:"Jones, Donna" <DJones -at- zebra -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Thu, 8 Apr 2004 09:28:46 -0500
What we're trying to implement/enforce in our writing department with our
engineers is a "content freeze" date (usually 2 months or so before the
scheduled product release date). The SMEs must have made all major decisions
for features and functionality by this date. If they haven't, they run the
risk of having the product release date slip because the documentation can't
be done in time. When you put it to them this way, they understand the
importance of nailing down what they want and tend not to hee-haw around as
much as they might otherwise.
After the content freeze date, writers finalize the documentation and send
it out for final reviews. Our standard process for getting documentation CDs
in stock takes about ten days (faster is possible but costs more), so the
SMEs also know that they can't fart around with making changes to the
documentation during the review process without again risking a slip in the
release date or adding significantly to the cost of the documentation.
What has definitely helped to drive this "content freeze" process is having
a documentation plan where we spell out right from the start exactly how
long we expect everything to take and all dependencies, such as access to
the product at certain times and reviewer availability at certain times. We
don't always put calendar dates in the doc plan, but we use terms such as
"six weeks prior to release" to implant in their heads that what we do takes
time. We just started using doc plans within the last six months, and they
have made a difference.
------------------------
Donna L. Jones
Technical Writer II
Zebra Technologies Corp.
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