Bonni Graham Gonzalez began noting that agile is all about letting people be good at what they do.
There's a definition of "agile" and there's how everyone does "agile." It's a group of software development methods based on iterative and incremental methods where requirements and solutions evolve through collaboration between self-organizing and cross-functional teams.
Extreme programming and rapid application development are variations on agile. Then there's "FrAgile," where we've thrown requirements out the window and everyone just hurries a lot. Also known as "kill the developers."
Where does content fit in? Ideally, in from the beginning. Should be in stand-ups and scrums.
The advantages of agile is that it's inherently iterative. Things change so quickly so we know the content we create first won't be what we end up with. It can be easier to create embedded documentation (if you're in the early user story creation stages).
So many error messages admonish the user instead of trying to help the user.
There are challenges. You MUST practice minimalism. You must start layering and prioritizing of information.
When people go to any type of content, they have questions. But they don't wake up in the morning thinking that they want to read documentation. Those questions boil down to four key elements. What is it? How do I do it? Why do I care? What just happened? These questions give the opportunity to prioritize content creation based on what you know about your users. You can add more layers later. They don't have to be all in place all at once.
If users understand why they are invested with a feature, they will muddle through.
Buyers are dumber than we think they are, but users are smarter.
Other challenges include not often being able to "touch" working software before we get started, at least for the first few sprints. And team burnout. If you're working in an environment that you need downtime between releases, it's exhausting.
It's not necessarily bad for docs to not start until the second sprint.
We're all making agile up as we goo along. Even the teams who do it really, really well.
Monday, October 8, 2012
Rethinking Content From Paper to Tablets, Mobile Screens and ePubs
Adobe's Maxwell Hoffmann began by going through a bit of writing and content history, noting that early writing forms were on tablets. And in a way, we've come full circle. But the question is, will the information on modern-day tablets last 3000 years like that engraved on cuneiform tablets now in museums.
We don't always catch on to how things have changed. Mobile phones have surpassed landlines. Yet, for example, political phone polls call only landlines. What are they missing? Who are they missing?
Any time you can get something cheaper, quicker, faster, they will ditch quality in a heartbeat.
A re imagining of computing devices. "Then," we had desktops and notebooks. "Now," we have tablets and smartphones. Tablets are terrific devices for delivery, but don't think they will take over for content creation, at least for now.
There's a concept of "leapfrogging." Areas of the world that have no electricity, no cable or Internet connectivity, yet they have cell phones and smart phones. They will order from Amazon on their smartphone and then go home to their kerosene-lit room.
The landscape has changed for content creators. Readers have less time and have shorter attention spans. They expect the latest and greatest version of your content, and they want it ASAP. There are fewer writers and artists. We have less time from shorter delivery schedules--and the workload is 2-3 times more than just a few years ago. There's an increased pressure to serve a global audience. We have "fat" legacy content and less space for it.
How did we as technical communicators become a "page-based" lens for content? Page size or laptop/computer screens have long been the :lens" through which we visualized delivered content. And we write words to fill up those spaces.
How do you write content that's small enough for small screens? Use alternate templates that simulate screen and font sizes.
We don't always catch on to how things have changed. Mobile phones have surpassed landlines. Yet, for example, political phone polls call only landlines. What are they missing? Who are they missing?
Any time you can get something cheaper, quicker, faster, they will ditch quality in a heartbeat.
A re imagining of computing devices. "Then," we had desktops and notebooks. "Now," we have tablets and smartphones. Tablets are terrific devices for delivery, but don't think they will take over for content creation, at least for now.
There's a concept of "leapfrogging." Areas of the world that have no electricity, no cable or Internet connectivity, yet they have cell phones and smart phones. They will order from Amazon on their smartphone and then go home to their kerosene-lit room.
The landscape has changed for content creators. Readers have less time and have shorter attention spans. They expect the latest and greatest version of your content, and they want it ASAP. There are fewer writers and artists. We have less time from shorter delivery schedules--and the workload is 2-3 times more than just a few years ago. There's an increased pressure to serve a global audience. We have "fat" legacy content and less space for it.
How did we as technical communicators become a "page-based" lens for content? Page size or laptop/computer screens have long been the :lens" through which we visualized delivered content. And we write words to fill up those spaces.
How do you write content that's small enough for small screens? Use alternate templates that simulate screen and font sizes.
Keynote Panel Discussion: The Content Revolution
Monday's LavaCon opened with a panel discussion with Tom Aldous, Adobe Systems; David Ashton, SDL; and Nolwenn Kerzreho, Componize, moderated by Scott Abel, The Content Wrangler.
Scott suggested today is a "time of recognition." Customers are in control. Everyone is a publisher.
4 out of 5 "traditional" publishers produce eBooks.And the majority publish more than half their catalog as eBooks.
But they still think they sell books. They don't They sell content, and a content experience. Because, they still employ a print-based editorial, publishing, and marketing workflow. It's not scalable. They need to learn from us, to learn how to do things better, faster, quicker.
The first question that the panel tackled what the most important innovative change is and why. Tom mentioned that smartphones have made it possible for many people to access information. It's an opportunity for us to communicate with them. David agreed, adding that it gives us the ability to deliver dynamic content.
Next, Scott asked if structured XML content still needed today. David said yes, reiterating his dynamic content theme, noting that technology hasn't really been able to meet the need. Nolwenn noted that structured XML content can increase modularity and decrease time to market.
Next, panelists were asked for advice on how to face the challenges creating content in a new global economy. David noted that everyone who you want to deliver content to is unique. And that;s what DITA and structured content is for. Nolwenn asserted that translation of content brings you new customers. Tom recognized that it's not about just translation, but about cultural differences, and that rich media can bridge that gap. Nolwenn piped in that you have to be very careful when using images.
Turning to content production, where is opportunity hiding? Nolwenn talked about the concept of minimalism, where you can save money in translation.Tom agreed; it's low-hanging fruit. Terminology management is also critical.
Value comes from eliminating waste and saving time. What are important time savers? Reuse was the theme in answers here.
Scott suggested today is a "time of recognition." Customers are in control. Everyone is a publisher.
4 out of 5 "traditional" publishers produce eBooks.And the majority publish more than half their catalog as eBooks.
But they still think they sell books. They don't They sell content, and a content experience. Because, they still employ a print-based editorial, publishing, and marketing workflow. It's not scalable. They need to learn from us, to learn how to do things better, faster, quicker.
The first question that the panel tackled what the most important innovative change is and why. Tom mentioned that smartphones have made it possible for many people to access information. It's an opportunity for us to communicate with them. David agreed, adding that it gives us the ability to deliver dynamic content.
Next, Scott asked if structured XML content still needed today. David said yes, reiterating his dynamic content theme, noting that technology hasn't really been able to meet the need. Nolwenn noted that structured XML content can increase modularity and decrease time to market.
Next, panelists were asked for advice on how to face the challenges creating content in a new global economy. David noted that everyone who you want to deliver content to is unique. And that;s what DITA and structured content is for. Nolwenn asserted that translation of content brings you new customers. Tom recognized that it's not about just translation, but about cultural differences, and that rich media can bridge that gap. Nolwenn piped in that you have to be very careful when using images.
Turning to content production, where is opportunity hiding? Nolwenn talked about the concept of minimalism, where you can save money in translation.Tom agreed; it's low-hanging fruit. Terminology management is also critical.
Value comes from eliminating waste and saving time. What are important time savers? Reuse was the theme in answers here.
Sunday, October 7, 2012
And Then Everything Changed
Adobe Evangelist Tom Aldous began by going through a long history of content development, from drawings on caves to more "mobile" methods of stone tablets. There then came a time where people began to understand that if you control the information, you control the population.
Once we began to use paper, more people could communicate. This was dangerous because it was harder to control communication. The printing press added speed, reduced costs, and made information very easy rto disseminate and difficult to control.
As we progress, people will want to hold you back. Don't let them do it. Question everything. Where were moving, HTML5, DITA, content management, it's all good for the enterprise.
Once we began to use paper, more people could communicate. This was dangerous because it was harder to control communication. The printing press added speed, reduced costs, and made information very easy rto disseminate and difficult to control.
As we progress, people will want to hold you back. Don't let them do it. Question everything. Where were moving, HTML5, DITA, content management, it's all good for the enterprise.
DUH! x 3: Maintaining Accessibility While Multichannel Publishing
Char James-Tanny opened by giving some statistics about disability, different types, how they can affect people of different ages.
But it isn't always possible to accommodate 100 percent of the people 100 percent of the time.
Many disabilities aren't visible. Many people with disabilities are online, for example in gaming. And no one knows they are disabled.
More benefits than just making documents and web pages accessible. It makes your content more searchable,
30 percent of mobile searches are for restaurants. And what do I want when I'm searching? Your location, your hours, and your menu.
Everything that is good for localization and translation is good for accessibility.
Interestingly, char talked about things such as formatting of content. But typographic consistency and alignment is important because dyslexics can have trouble reading otherwise.
Contrast is important. But the best contrast, black on white, can cause some people trouble when reading online. One solution is to make the background off-white. For example, instead of #FFF, try #FFD or #FFC.
If you want to test for colors, print in grayscale and see how much contrast you have. If you don't have any, that's what many color blind people will see.
Why are headings important? Screen readers can pull out headings. (Also why you don't want to use more than one h1 per page.)
It's important to understand that there are many types of disabilities, which include vision, hearing, speech, physical/motor, learning, psychiatric, cognitive, and intellectual.
But it isn't always possible to accommodate 100 percent of the people 100 percent of the time.
Many disabilities aren't visible. Many people with disabilities are online, for example in gaming. And no one knows they are disabled.
More benefits than just making documents and web pages accessible. It makes your content more searchable,
30 percent of mobile searches are for restaurants. And what do I want when I'm searching? Your location, your hours, and your menu.
Everything that is good for localization and translation is good for accessibility.
Interestingly, char talked about things such as formatting of content. But typographic consistency and alignment is important because dyslexics can have trouble reading otherwise.
Contrast is important. But the best contrast, black on white, can cause some people trouble when reading online. One solution is to make the background off-white. For example, instead of #FFF, try #FFD or #FFC.
If you want to test for colors, print in grayscale and see how much contrast you have. If you don't have any, that's what many color blind people will see.
Why are headings important? Screen readers can pull out headings. (Also why you don't want to use more than one h1 per page.)
It's important to understand that there are many types of disabilities, which include vision, hearing, speech, physical/motor, learning, psychiatric, cognitive, and intellectual.
When Worlds Collide: Improving the User Experience by Applying Progressive Information Disclosure
Andrea Ames points out that Jakob Nielsen has been talking about this notion for years: "Progressive disclosure is the best tool so far: show people the basics first, and once they understand that, allow them to get the expert features. But don't show everything all at once or you will only confuse people and they will waste endless time messing with features they don't need yet."
For information, provide just what they need where they need it.
It assumes a "competent" to "proficient" performer, not novice, not expert. If you put text in the UI aimed at novices, that text will be there "forever."
You reduce complexity by revealing only the essentials for a current task in the UI, and the offer more as users advance through tasks.
Layers build on each other. Progressive disclosure reveals information in an ordered manner. It provides only the necessary details for the context. It provides information that's necessary, not to simply create information to cover everything. We are fixated as an industry to writing information for everything. Don't repeat information. For example, don't repeat labels in hover text.
Doing this right means a fundamental understanding of user goals. That's hard work.
The process of helping users reach their goals is "a guided journey, not a scavenger hunt."
Design for the absolute best experience. Then when you have to negotiate what you can do, you'll know what the most important things are.
Job #1 is the user task. So we should be writing user task oriented content.
At IBM, progressive disclosure doesn't begin with writing. It's first about making the UI clear. And if it's going to take a lot of words to describe it, it's probably wrong.
Customers never read documentation. Reading documentation is never a business goal.
Goal: think more, write less.
For information, provide just what they need where they need it.
It assumes a "competent" to "proficient" performer, not novice, not expert. If you put text in the UI aimed at novices, that text will be there "forever."
You reduce complexity by revealing only the essentials for a current task in the UI, and the offer more as users advance through tasks.
Layers build on each other. Progressive disclosure reveals information in an ordered manner. It provides only the necessary details for the context. It provides information that's necessary, not to simply create information to cover everything. We are fixated as an industry to writing information for everything. Don't repeat information. For example, don't repeat labels in hover text.
Doing this right means a fundamental understanding of user goals. That's hard work.
The process of helping users reach their goals is "a guided journey, not a scavenger hunt."
Design for the absolute best experience. Then when you have to negotiate what you can do, you'll know what the most important things are.
Job #1 is the user task. So we should be writing user task oriented content.
At IBM, progressive disclosure doesn't begin with writing. It's first about making the UI clear. And if it's going to take a lot of words to describe it, it's probably wrong.
Customers never read documentation. Reading documentation is never a business goal.
Goal: think more, write less.
Giving Customers What They Want: Integrating Content in the Customer Lifecycle
Naz Urbina found himself a back-to-back talk, this one with more of a tech comm focus.
Tech comm isn't about manuals, single sourcing, or even content. It's about transferring contextually relevant product knowledge to staff and customers. This increases customer satisfaction and increases business.
The notion is customer lifecycle. A lifecycle is both cyclical and evolutionary, not linear.
More and more in the software world, getting asked for embedded user assistance.
Rather than have one large system, can have web content management system, component content management system, and document management system, as long as they all communicate with each other. All province metadata, search, etc. If you call things consistently within all 3 systems, they can integrate.
The benefits of embedded user assistance. It doesn't break user context; it's within the experience. It's fast. It's a learning tool. That learning is both for the user and for you. Analytics can tell you what content users use.
The customer does not care about your org chart.
How do you get where you want to go? Map the customer journey. Map the content model and assets to that journey. Do a gap analysis. Build a modular model to bridge the gaps. And then build a cross-silo strategy to fill the information architecture and taxonomy standards and process.
Content strategy has to be driven by user and task analysis.
You can't assume that the content being dynamically delivered is good. You still have to check, to make sure the content is accurate at the point of use.
Tech comm isn't about manuals, single sourcing, or even content. It's about transferring contextually relevant product knowledge to staff and customers. This increases customer satisfaction and increases business.
The notion is customer lifecycle. A lifecycle is both cyclical and evolutionary, not linear.
More and more in the software world, getting asked for embedded user assistance.
Rather than have one large system, can have web content management system, component content management system, and document management system, as long as they all communicate with each other. All province metadata, search, etc. If you call things consistently within all 3 systems, they can integrate.
The benefits of embedded user assistance. It doesn't break user context; it's within the experience. It's fast. It's a learning tool. That learning is both for the user and for you. Analytics can tell you what content users use.
The customer does not care about your org chart.
How do you get where you want to go? Map the customer journey. Map the content model and assets to that journey. Do a gap analysis. Build a modular model to bridge the gaps. And then build a cross-silo strategy to fill the information architecture and taxonomy standards and process.
Content strategy has to be driven by user and task analysis.
You can't assume that the content being dynamically delivered is good. You still have to check, to make sure the content is accurate at the point of use.
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