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>
> We integrate a number of third-party applications/technologies into
our
> product and part of the integration process is re-labeling the
> documentation (switching product names, updating screen shots, etc).
For
> example, our application integrates technology Nifty from Groovy Techi
> Corp. We receive the Nifty source documentation and go through and
make
> content and formatting changes to make it consistent with our own
> documentation.
>
[snipped]
Sean, I have to perform a similar process for 3rd party product
documentation that we use. As a service provider, we buy hardware from
many vendors and incorporate it into the service we provide commercial
and residential customers. The majority of my documentation is
non-external customer facing, but several different departments need to
know different parts of the product operation. For example one team
configures the routers, broadband modems, and other devices while
another team goes into the field to perform the installation at the
customer's home or business.
So what I wind up having to do is often re-write entire sections of
vendor documentation, giving my reader only the information he or she
needs to perform their job function (and integrating
non-product-specific procedures relating to network settings and
corporate policies). I'm fairly new in this company, so I haven't seen
how rapidly our vendors update and upgrade their hardware. I would also
be interested in what people do to track such changes, especially since
in my case it may prompt edits or re-writes of several documents for
several end user audiences.
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