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Recently I had the occasion to write Perl code for the first time. I got
some help from the ubiquitous on-line stuff that lurks on the internet,
but my best source was a bug-laden hard-copy manual from about ten years
ago!
In my own warped mind, there's something about hard copy that makes the
task easier than on-line. Perhaps it's context, in that one can read a
whole chapter of closely related material, instead of wandering afield
in a sea of links. (Yes it's a mixed metaphor.) Perhaps it's that the
open book serves as an additional screen so I have more "windows" open
at once. Perhaps it's the excellent index to which I can add entries if
need be,
Programmers (IMHO) generally find screen shots to be of marginal or even
negative utility. If I get a book and later discover that it's full of
screen shots for coding Hello, World, I feel I've been cheated. Sshots
can be helpful in finding obscure widgets or in distinguishing between
two screens that should have been designed to look somewhat less identical.
Johnson, Joyce wrote:
> Hi All -
>
> What should be included in a software manual?
>
> This may seem like a simple question, but a colleague of mine has a very
> different opinion than mine on exactly what the contents of a software
> manual should include, so I'm asking the experts.
>
> How do you feel about screen captures in a software manual? Are they
> essential or can you do without them?
>
> Do you think online help can replace a software manual?
>
> Thanks for your help!
> Joyce
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