Who you are writing for.
WHY IT DETERMINES EVERYTHING
The same information explained for two different readers produces two different documents.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH
Who will read this What they already know What they are trying to achieve What context they have What they will do with the information
WHY EXISTING KNOWLEDGE MATTERS MOST
The commonest failure in technical writing is assuming knowledge the reader does not have.
WHAT THAT PRODUCES
A document that appears complete to the writer and is unusable to the reader.
WHY IT HAPPENS
Expertise makes it impossible to see what is not obvious.
WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT
Have someone without the knowledge attempt to use it.
WHY THAT TEST
It is the only reliable way to find the assumptions.
WHAT TO IDENTIFY
Terms the reader may not know Steps that assume prior configuration Decisions the reader cannot make without more information
WHAT TO ESTABLISH ABOUT READER TYPES
Whether one document serves all of them.
WHY
Documents attempting to serve beginners and experts simultaneously serve neither.
WHAT TO CONSIDER
Separate documents for separate audiences.
WHAT DIFFERENT READERS NEED
- Beginners: context, explanation and complete steps
- Experienced users: reference, and only what differs
- Administrators: configuration and consequences
- Developers: precise specification
WHAT TO ESTABLISH
What the reader is actually trying to do, not what the product does.
WHY
Documentation organised around features rather than tasks forces readers to work out which feature they need.
