Friday

Usability Test a Document

One great way to test a document is to give it to someone who's never seen it before and see how well this person understands what you've written. That's exactly the function I perform today. A co-worker in another department has written a tutorial as part of a feature he was documenting. He asked several technical writers, including me, to install the software and work through the tutorial. He wants us to identify any gaps, mistakes, and/or inconsistencies that a new user would notice.

I install the software and start working through the tutorial. Right away, I notice that he directed me to select a menu item that is not in the software. This kind of thing happens often during a development cycle. The solution is to keep the lines of communication open between you and the developers. Make sure you stay up to date on what the software looks like and how it behaves, and make sure they notify you of any changes that affect your documentation.

As I work through the rest of the tutorial, I notice several issues I am unclear about. He introduces several concepts without explaining them, and I correct a couple grammatical issues. I also suggest he re-order some of the steps. However, I think the overall presentation is great and that users will find this tutorial very useful.

Attend a Deck Party

In between two of NI's buildings is a large multi-level wooden deck, complete with a barbecue pit. Every once in awhile we'll have a deck party with free food and beer. All the employees are invited to attend. We often don't need a reason to have a deck party, but today we had one. Fortune Magazine had recently announced that we were one of the country's 100 Best Companies to Work For. Considering this year was the seventh consecutive year we'd been named to the list, it was definitely time for a deck party!

The deck parties usually involve lots of music and games, and this one is no exception. There's a band playing the whole time, and a team of corporate officers competes with teams of employees to see who can run a small obstacle course the fastest.