Re: Is it just me? S/W doc question

Subject: Re: Is it just me? S/W doc question
From: Timothy McNair <mcnairto -at- CBS -dot- FISERV -dot- COM>
Date: Fri, 30 May 1997 13:10:05 -0400

> When you're documenting an application, and it changes,
>is there a procedure in place to notify all concerned? Or
>do you just find out after you've written the chapter, and
>then you have to rewrite it?

We do, but while procedures can solve this problem, hard-pressed
developers often ignore procedures they don't like (which usually
includes anything documentation-related). The only way we could
enforce our procedures was to automate them.

Our testers use a home-grown change-management system to report
bugs; our developers use that same system to report what they did to
fix the bug. Here, the term "bug" includes "not coded to spec," so
design changes get reported as well. We use this change-management
system to identify changes to the documentation during testing.

Similar responses commented on the tedium of wading through hundreds
of bug reports to find the three or four that actually affect
documentation. We've solved that problem by adding a check box to
the system that lets the tester indicate whether they think the bug
affects the documentation. If they check the box, a copy of their
bug report is automatically emailed to the writer in charge of the
project.

Since the testers are reviewing documentation as they test, they have
a pretty good idea of what affects documentation. And when they make
a mistake, it's usually in thinking the bug affects documentation when
it really doesn't. Different environments demand different
solutions, so YMMV. I just know it works for us.

Tim McNair Mgr. - International Product Information
Fiserv Solutions Inc.
mcnairto -at- cbs -dot- fiserv -dot- com

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