Upset at the prospect of spending so much time loading plastic squares into a computer one by one, I sent the package back. All the documentation had been digitized. After installation, I tried valiantly to read through the online help screens to get acquainted with the software. After a diligent effort, I put the CD back in the box and exchanged it for the diskettes. Now I have a complete set of manuals to mark up, infuse with yellow stickies, and take on the train, bus, plane and into the bathroom.
Electronic information is difficult to navigate.
Without proper signposts, it's very easy to become lost, turned around, and disgruntled. This makes electronic documentation for software difficult to use, and a poorly designed Web site a disaster. People will come, look, and tell their friends not to waste their time. They will never come back. The Useable Web-Be Kind to Your Users points out some of the rules of the road for keeping people from getting lost, getting frustrated, or just getting gone.