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Thursday, May 5, 2005
"What's
New in Online Help?"
By Linda Urban
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Program
Description
If you're asked to develop "online help" today,
what will you create, and how will you create it? The possibilities
are broader than they used to be. The help deliverable itself
can vary, from a standard Windows help file (.chm or .hlp),
to an html-based solution that works on multiple platforms,
to help text that's embedded right in the user interface,
to interactive demos and simulations.
In addition to determining the appropriate deliverable, a
number of factors are having quite an impact on online help
development:
- The increase in Web applications
- The push to single-source information for print and online
- The wish to provide users with updated information in
a timely manner
- An increase in the number of products being localized
for international markets
- Evolving tools and methods for developing and distributing
information
This presentation provides an overview of what it's like
being a help author today, and what skills and knowledge you
should develop to stay current in the profession.
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About our Presenter
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Linda Urban is
currently working on two different help systems that
have completely different deliverables, and is using
different tools for each (Robohelp and DreamWeaver for
one; FrameMaker and WebWorks Publisher for the other).
Linda has been an independent technical communicator
for over 20 years, and has been developing help systems
since 1989. She also teaches in the Technical Communication
program at UC Berkeley Extension, where her classes
include "Developing Online Help," "Principles
of Information Architecture," "Usability Testing
for Technical Communicators," and "Technical
Communication I." She has presented at the WritersUA
(WinWriters) conference several times.
Linda also works on product usability and user interface
design. Her company website is http://www.urbancreations.com.
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