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Yes, my experience is the same as Jim's -- this is
a commonly-used term in software engineering. The
development life cycle describes how you create a
product -- from formulating the idea to maintaining
the completed product -- including milestones,
procedures, scheduling guidelines, etc.
Having tech writers involved is good not only because
the odds are that the document will be more usable when
it's done, but also because documentation and online
help and other information products are part of the
product -- and that should be reflected in the description
of the development life cycle.
However, as always, remember that development methodologies,
whether software or documentation, should be useful, not
just another red-tape hoop through which to jump. Use common
sense here.
>----------
>From: Jim Purcell[SMTP:jimpur -at- MICROSOFT -dot- COM]
>Sent: Monday, July 28, 1997 3:27 PM
>To: TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU
>Subject: FW: Buzzwords & secret handshakes
>
>> Actually, "system development life cycle documentation" is an
>> inelegant but well-understood term in software engineering circles.
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