Re: UA documentation

I agree here, but there are certain types of learning that compell one to
have a "book" available as they work through the steps to using a product.
If the subset approach is taken, it would have to include more than just
the accessability features to help beginners get off the ground as al
pointed out.  A side benefit to putting the whole thing in plain text is
that it would provide a chance to see if it relly reads the way it should.
Often, we do things differently for the html (hypertext environment), then
we would for text which can cause disastrous results for the reader.  We
actually, I am willing to forgo the ease of using the html during the
reading of the text document just to get a handle on what's there and how
it works.  I'll use the hypertext to click where I'm told to go for this
and that much better once I already know where I'm going.
so not to put to fine a point on it, if you put it in plain text and
review it from that standpoint, you may decide to change the hypertext
version because of things that jumpped out at you while reading the text
version.  Considder the following:
"the brown fox Jumpped over the (click here).".
Thanks!


On Mon, 15 Jun 1998, Al Gilman wrote:

> to follow up on what Kathy Hewitt said:
> 
> > Then maybe instead of putting the entire online documentation
> > under the umbrella of providing it in plain text, it should
> > just be those parts relating to accessibility?
> 
> I would want to hear how David feels about this.  
> 
> However, for myself, I would be inclined to believe that it could
> be a subset.  While this subset is correlated with the
> accessibility features, that is not exactly how I would frame it.
> 
> I would look at learning the UI as a progressive learning
> experience and frame a bootstrapping sequence which prioritizes
> skills.  One can probably isolate a core set of skills that
> ensures you can manage the rest of the course materials.  The
> first bit of the course needs to be extremely robust to be sure
> to get everyone on board the lifeboat.
> 
> That is an area where Microsoft has scored big with the general
> audience: the first step is _not_ a big one.  But it may be
> necessary to walk through "the first step" in _several_ different
> adaptive-tech modes to be sure that the ease of getting started
> is there for everyone.
> 
> That is how it strikes me.
> 
> Al
> 
> PS: a very accessible, access-smart installer is on my Christmas
> list.  That seems to be one of the process steps where
> independence goes right out the window.
> 

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Received on Monday, 15 June 1998 16:38:40 UTC