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Re: Mosaic as an online documentation viewing engine?
Subject:Re: Mosaic as an online documentation viewing engine? From:Patrick O'Connell <patricko -at- EICON -dot- COM> Date:Mon, 19 Dec 1994 10:35:00 PST
What no one has mentioned so far in this discussion is that you don't HAVE
to use Web browsers *on the Web.* At least, not with some of them (the
original Mosaic and NetScape, a robust successor, are two examples).
Being a complete Nethead and very interested in HTML and such, I've thought
of broaching the subject of Web-based documentation with my manager, but I
can't make a case yet. The big problem with Web-based delivery of
honest-to-God documentation for real-world products can be summed up in one
word: LATENCY.
Most people in their homes are running at 14.4K, 28.8 if they're lucky, and
I don't think the majority of companies have high-speed Net connections
either -- not yet, at least. This means LOOOOONG waits for large (Web)
pages, but the user who's always been able to pluck a manual off her/his
shelf isn't likely to sit still for the download of ANY individual document.
Even with a multimegabit / multigigabit infobahn with lanes into every
workstation (or home for telecommuters), there could (depending on the
technologies used) be delays resulting from congestion and simple breakdowns
in physical media that cut product users off completely. "Naht guhd! Bad,
BAD, BAAAHD!"
Never mind the FIRST hurdle: getting people weaned from paper-based, bound
docs. Hell, *I* still prefer the heft and presence of bound manuals; how am
I supposed to convince *users* that online docs are better?
PatO'
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|\| Patrick Brian O'Connell ! Intermediate Writer,Eicon Technology|
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