I have over 20 years of experience authoring and delivering technical content in the form of the following deliverables:
- Product Guides
- Online Help (with Context-sensitive Help)
- Documentation Portal
- API/SDK Documentation
- READMEs & Release Notes
- Process and Procedure Manuals
- Documentation Plan & Schedule
- Help Project Specifications
- Training Modules
- Wiki Topics
- Data Sheets & White Papers
- FAQs
WRITING/CONTENT SAMPLES
Excerpt from: XHQ Installation Guide
Target Audience: XHQ System Administrators
Deliverable Format: PDF
Tools: MadCap Flare, Microsoft Word
References/SMEs: Product Manager, Software Developer, Customer Support
With the target audience in mind, I created the following table format to display both Minimum and Recommended system requirements. I wanted to make sure the System Administrator installing this product could easily determine, for example, the recommended memory requirement for the HTML5-based XHQ Solution Viewer.
Excerpt from: XHQ Installation Guide
Target Audience: XHQ System Administrators
Deliverable Format: PDF
Tools: MadCap Flare, Microsoft Visio
References/SMEs: Software Developer, Customer Support
The XHQ installation procedure was complicated. I created the following flowchart so that the System Administrator installing XHQ could effectively visualize the installation process, whether it was a new install or an upgrade. To enhance user experience, each process step was clickable and linked to the given topic within the guide.
Excerpt from: XHQ Solution Design and Architecture
Target Audience: Solution Architects
Deliverable Format: PDF, HTML5 Online Help
Tools: MadCap Flare, Microsoft Word, PaintShop Pro
Reference/SME: Product Manager
Excerpt from: XHQ Performance Management Users Guide
Target Audience: eLog User
Deliverable Format: PDF, HTML5 Online Help
Tools: MadCap Flare, PaintShop Pro (to capture screenshot)
References/SMEs: Software Developer, Product Manager, UX Developer
An “eLog” is a web-based application that enables the operator to log and generate shift reports. The following topic describes the single log entry interface.
Excerpt from: XHQ Reporting Services Guide
Target Audience: Application Engineers
Deliverable Format: PDF, HTML5 Online Help
Tools: MadCap Flare, PaintShop Pro
References/SMEs: Product Manager, Marketing
Excerpt from: XHQ Solution Viewer Users Guide
Target Audience: Novice XHQ User
Deliverable Format: PDF, HTML5 Online Help
Tools: MadCap Flare, PaintShop Pro (to capture screenshot)
Reference/SME: UX Developer
Procedures geared towards novice users are detailed and screenshots are often used to provide visual support to the given task.
Excerpt from: XHQ Integrated Data Gateway Guide
Target Audience: Advanced XHQ User
Deliverable Format: PDF, HTML5 Online Help
Tool: MadCap Flare
Reference/SME: Software Developer
Tasks geared towards the experienced user are succinct. Keywords and/or phrases are in bold, which allows advanced users to skim over the text and quickly determine what to do.
Excerpt from: XHQ Reference Guide > Chapter 4 | Methods
Target Audience: Content and Solution Developers
Deliverable Format: PDF, HTML5 Online Help
Tool: MadCap Flare
References/SMEs: Software Developer, Product Manager
