Newsgroups: bit.listserv.sas-l
Date:         Mon, 14 Sep 1992 08:25:00 EDT
Reply-To:     Sally Muller <UNCSM1@UNC.BITNET>
From:         Sally Muller <UNCSM1@UNC.BITNET>
Subject:      SAS Online Documentation

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SUMMARY:  Mimi Saffer and online "information" from SI.  Summary of
          procs and cons.
E-ADDR:   uncsm1@unc.bitnet
NAME:     Sally Muller
PH/ADDR:  919-962-6501  OIT CB#3455, UNC, Chapel Hill NC 27514
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Hi SAS'Lers!
Last week or so, Deb Cannon started it all off (she keeps doing
that) with posting about IBM's Book Manager and online SAS
documentation.  Great discussion followed about pros and cons of
online documentation -- in particular SAS manuals.  I'd like to
briefly :-) summarize these and tell you what we heard from Mimi
Saffer, SI Manager of Documentation Development, at our August
SAS users group meeting.

First Mimi.  At UNC we have (like Anup K. Roy) the MVS
experimental version of SAS/LOOKUP (online SAS Master Index).
Our users group meeting was a demo of LOOKUP at SAS Institute.
Maybe a future note about that.   At any rate, Mimi Saffer spoke
and eventually got around to talking about SAS and online
"information."  Mimi said that SAS is actively "pursuing R&D in
the area of online information" (does Howard Schreier have ESP or
what?).  She said that SAS/LOOKUP "a hypertext interface for the
master index to SAS documentation" is their first step in that
direction.  Then she said that "in the future, SI plans to make
MORE online information available to SAS users."  Since the
meeting I again talked to Mimi and asked if OK to post something
on SAS-L.  She encouraged me and said to add "We are very eager
to hear from users about their concerns, requirements, and wishes
for online information and documentation.  I invite all of you to
contact me with your ideas on online documentation."
========================================================================
Here are all the people (and "Poops") paraphrased (drastically):
Deb Cannon, Phil Gallagher (COP),  Joe St Sauver, Paul Oldenkamp,
Howard Schreier, Margie Gurwit, Anup K Roy, Walter Davis, Dan
Flaser, J. Phillip Miller, David K. Wall, Marsha Sheperd, Jim
Agnew and Don MacQueen.  Thanks to all....

PROS:
1. Environmentally superior -- savings on earth resources  (DC)
   Savings of up to 6 feet of bookshelf space :-) (PR).

2. Timeliness -- online continuously updated manuals (PG).  Also
   stated as the solution to the chronic problem of the
   proliferation of titles and editions that overwhelms people
   now (HS).  The example was given that the "whole set of
   glossy-covered V.6 manuals no longer completely documents the
   software, and there are a bunch of 6.07 "Changes and
   Enhancements" Tech Reports" (HS).

3. Profitable for vendor (SI) -- "online manual access may reduce
   corporate and vendor support costs by actually encouraging
   people to RFTM before calling tech support" (JSS).  Because
   online documentation is easier to use people would actually be
   willing to pay more for it than paper manuals (PO).  Color is
   expensive to print, just think of what could be added to
   documentation if reporduction was cheap (CD-ROM) (PR).

4. Less expensive for user -- paper manuals can be stolen or
   destroyed.  Example given involved a lab with paper
   manuals -- the whole lot $1,000 versus the lab networked with
   a CD-ROM on the network machine ($400-500 for good with
   controller, $700-800 better) and if need extra disk space
   (typically one IBM manual 1 meg) A 200 meg drive costs about
   $550 and should last for 3-5 years (mean time to failure is
   over 8 years constant use).  Potentially a saving depending on
   the cost of SI online documentation.  " The implications of
   this view is that machine readable documentation is extremely
   cheap to the end user and paper manuals will get more and more
   expensive (a book produced in 20,000 copies may cost $10 a
   volume, same book produced in 2,000 copies may cost $30 a
   volume, setup in printing is a big cost). A CD-ROM now is
   cheap to master and produce in 1,000+ volume (costs may be
   less than $3 per copy).  A cheap CD-ROM drive for $167 (new)
   with a SCSI interface is slow 600ms access but a demonstration
   of the decreasing cost of the hardware (PR).

5. Superior delivery -- if online documentation is intended from
   the start, it need not be restricted to hierarchical
   organization and linear structure but rather authors and
   designers have other options (hpertext, etc.) (HS).  Can
   create a "bookshelf" of manuals.  Then a search uses the books
   in your bookshelf as source. This means if you have 6 of the
   12 products available and look for "hits" on a subject, you
   don't get references to products that you don't have.
   Conversely, searching the complete set of manuals points out
   the solution to problems that can be had by acquiring some new
   product.  "Linking" means you can follow your own path through
   a document.  You can place bookmarks in a document to return
   to later. This is the closest equivalent to having 5 manuals
   open on your desk at one time. I would expect the future
   directions will put each book in a separate window (PR).

6. More on superior delivery -- Accesible by the handicapped --
   software can read documents aloud for the blind or blow them
   up to large size for the visually impaired (and do both over a
   distance too).  Accesible over distance -- dial in from home
   and read the manual on the hard disk of network server, can't
   read a single book at a distance of more than 3 feet.  Can
   make margin notes, personal, workgroup, or completely public
   notes on (PR).

7. Platform independent -- online documentation could be available
   on platforms which are not themselves SAS platforms (eg Macs)
   (HS).  Bookmanager already in binary, all-platform format (PR).

8. Models already  exist -- Sun  has already shown it can be done
   with Answerbook and SunSolve products (PO).  Other examples:
   IBM's Book Manager, Dec's Bookreader, SAS/LOOKUP, interactive
   help under VM/CMS v 6.07.

CONS:

1.  Environmentally wasteful -- online documentation will be
    printed off by users repeatedly each time they need a copy.
    The psychology of the user is that this is "just" a computer
    printout. In contrast, user would not consider throwing out a
    book and/or buying a new one each time s/he needs one. (MG)

2. Financial losses for vendor -- a major portion of SI revenue
   must come from manual sales.  Decline in manual sales would be
   likely to result in further software price increase. (PG)
   Selling documentation is a major source of revenue for SI
   (JSS).

3. Relative high cost to users -- experience has shown that
   online documentation tends to get printed off. (PG MG MS) This
   would have the effect of transferring the cost of the manuals
   from the users to whomever (eg computer centers) pays for the
   printer paper, and other resources.  Charge back systems are
   expensive to maintain.  Besides online documentation the paper
   documentation will also need to exist for many manuals (eg.
   systems manuals) for when the system is down.  In order to
   have documents as close to users as possible, may mean the
   same documents on multiple platforms.  (PR) Other costs, not
   always obvious, include the hardware and software appropriate
   for online documentation, eg.:  CD drives, lots of additional
   disk space, high resolution workstation-quality interface,
   etc.  Also to make online documentation accesible will need a
   great number of machines with necessary hardware/software.
   Facilities for these machines must be provided.  "We only have
   one drive in each (but not every) computer lab.  The manuals
   are cheaper than CD drives."  "If the files were made more
   detailed, they would take up more disk space." (MS)

4. Poor delivery -- accessing online documentation inconvenient
   compared to paper.  Former requires machine and going to
   location of machine and possibly even waiting in line.  In
   contrast, can reach 2 feet behind you to grab a manual off the
   shelf. "And face it, some of us can't give up the need to read
   books wherever we are."  (PR) Past performance of online
   documentation (SAS) indicates inferior presentation of
   material (eg sited 6.07 help files -- "do not contain
   examples, formulas, etc.")  General/casual SAS user currently
   does not use online SAS documentation available and avoids
   reading all documentation when possible, most probable
   expectation is this user will not use new online documents (MG).

5. More on delivery -- paper manuals make a better monitor stand (PO)
   :-)

6. Existing models indicate future performance shakey -- SAS 6.07
   online documentation lacking (MS) and IBM's Bookmanager very
   slow under VM/ESA (MG) "I don't know if it is just our
   isntallation of it and our machine usage is quite high...but
   it is terrible, I couldn't with a good consience recommend it
   to anyone."

--Sally
PS -  In writing this I logged all your message in a e-mail
notebook and then PRINTED OFF.  I read the printoff in the bus,
waiting in line at store, eating, soaking in tub....I highlighted
it in two colors and there are water and food spots all over it.
Theres something to be said for paper documentation......
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