How much content can you actually re-use when you move to single sourcing?

One of the challenges when considering moving to a single sourcing authoring environment, such as DITA, is determining the Return on Investment. This often boils down to a key question: how much content can you actually re-use? Organisations typically attempt to answer this question in a number of ways: Conducting a semi-manual information audit of the… Read more »

Need content written? Need a Technical Author?

Need content written?  Cherryleaf’s Content Development Services team can help: clear information, written for you, simply and efficiently: Need a Technical Author? Cherryleaf’s Recruitment Services team can help: the specialist recruitment service for permanent and contract Technical Authors.  

Nine myths about technical writing

“We can design away the need for a user manual and online Help” The idea of a product that totally is intuitive to use, the product that sells itself, sounds terribly attractive. Often these are called commodities, and consumers tend to go for the cheapest one, or the one with the best brand image. There… Read more »

Technical Authors and the reverse classroom movement

It’s “back to school” time, and, in the UK, it’s a time when the way schools teach and test students is being debated to a great extent. The “reverse classroom” or “flip teaching” is a new approach that is being promoted as a way to teach in this Web-savvy, “always on” age. According to Wikipedia, the… Read more »

Measuring the value of Help in desktop applications

One of the challenges for Technical Authors is quantifying the value of what they produce. For example, how can you tell how many people are reading online Help when the software is installed on someone’s desktop computer? One application mentioned in passing as last week’s UAEurope conference, ApplicationMetrics, might be able to provide the answer. ApplicationMetrics… Read more »