I'm a novice and not yet a listowner, still learning and exploring, but
Doulgas Winship's (new) aside brought up a point that has been growing in my
awareness.  I don't know how technical writers are trained -- I am not one --
but a problem that seems consistent with almost all manuals I have ever read
(SPSS being the notable exception, and that does way back to the early main-
frame days), manuals are organized in terms of every possible command in every
module of every program or package, and you are given specific instructions on
how to use each command.  This sounds perfectly rational, but any user new
enough to the program to need a manual will tell you that's not how they think.
New users think in terms of functions, of tasks that they need to perform, and
they do NOT know the name of the command to do it.  If they did they would
have tried it!  EXAMPLE:  I want to make an exact copy of a screen so I can
put it into my text. What do I look for -- Copy? Snapshot? Printscreen?Capture?
etc. I would like to be able to llook under screen and screen image etc. and
be led to the right command. My point is, it is often the expert user, who is
familiar with the program in its real-life functions, who can make the best
manual writer. I think it's a great idea, and I would love to see L-Soft and
lots of other companies experiment with it.  We might revolutionize Ye Olde
Manual that most users stare at with equally blank expressions, cover open or
closed.
   Just a thought, but I think Douglas is onto something.
       Cindy H-G
 
Dr. Lucinda Hart-Gonzalez
Foreign Service Institute
National Foreign Affairs Training Center
U.S. Department of State                   (speaking for myself not my agency)
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