The prevailing perception of printed documentation is that it’s a goner. Because of the work I’ve been doing on quick reference guides lately, I disagree; I think people don’t necessarily want everything online, but at the same time they just don’t want a thick manual they’d sooner use as a booster seat for their toddlers at the dinner table.

Some users want something to hold in their hands. That’s how they learn. Seeing something on the screen just doesn’t cut it for them. Additionally, a disadvantage of online help systems and wiki pages is that users can rarely have them sitting open next to the application they’re using. They have to click back and forth between the two to get things done, and that can get annoying. (Microsoft products have a narrow help system setup, but sometimes that makes for a lot of scrolling.)

Believe it or not, some users want something they can take notes on. Others tack things up on their cubicle walls so they don’t have to dig through file folders to find the procedure or see the quick facts they can’t quite memorize.

Fortunately, distributing by PDF is a nice meetingplace; you send it out electronically, and those who want to print it can. Some will view it on-screen and won’t mind clicking back and forth a little. Others will print it out, but that’s what a PDF is for. So you folks who get a thrill out of document design, don’t despair—there’s still room for that creative side.

Related entries (auto-generated):

I’ll Have the Printed Color Surprise, Please

Some Observations from Documentation Usability Testing

Dropdown Hotspots: A Solution for Cumbersome Help Topics

Five Skills for Managing Documentation Projects in an Agile Environment

An Interaction Designer Who Understands the Need for Documentation