The pay-off from investment in documentation depends on how effective it is. Does your documentation contain the information that readers need? Is it organized so that they can find the information quickly? Or will readers instead have to call your tech support staff?

We know how to find and collect the technical information that already exists within an engineering organization. We suggest this three-phase process for creating documentation that's effective:

Detailed Outline—Define goals, decide on the main topics, specify the order of presentation.

Manuscript—Using the outline as a guide, collect and evaluate source material, write text, prepare preliminary illustrations, technical review.

Final Copy—Incorporate review comments, format text and page layout, add final illustrations, prepare final copy for reproduction.

• Focus on Essentials—Keeping the goals in mind at all times guarantees that primary topics get higher priority than secondary ones.
  
• Don't Reinvent the Wheel—Look for existing documentation (schematics, drawings, text files) to adapt or use as is, and create original material only when absolutely necessary.
  
• Keep It Simple—Aim reading level at low end of target audience, and keep in mind that some readers might not be native speakers of English.
  
• A Picture is Worth 1000 Words—When dealing with complicated topics and procedures, don't rely on words alone.
  
• Refer to Archives—For reminders about what works best in publications, refer to an illustrations scrapbook and collection of examples from manuals.
  
• Put Technology to Work—
  For quality results and timely delivery, use up-to-date equipment (Pentium PCs, PostScript laser printer, image scanner with OCR) high-end software (FrameMaker, Word, WordPerfect, Corel Designer, PhotoPaint), and the Internet.
  
  

Added VALUE
During work on your publications we also add value in the following ways:

• Design for Update—We incorporate publications design features that make later updating much easier.
  
• Project Management—We handle scheduling of writing tasks and include detailed summary reports with invoices.
  
• Back-up Files—Along with print copy we also supply back-up files on disk.
  

List of Projects
To view a list of our completed projects, click here.

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MARTIN PUBLICATIONS CONSULTANTS
3178 Tully Road
San Jose, CA 95148-2054

Phone (408) 274-0203
e-mail: martin@martinconsult.com