Longest user manual you have been involved in writing???......... - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / projects

author: Smokey
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2016, 03:46:24 am
content: I'm up to 71 pages now and I think I'm about 2/3 done. I know this is nothing compared to the 2000+ page TI DSP technical references I've seen.So the question of the day is:What's the longest (most pages) user manual you have actually written some aspect of?Bonus points if you did the whole thing.Bonus Bonus points if your boss was constantly confused why writing a SIMPLE MANUAL was taking so damn long....

author: calexanian
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2016, 04:16:44 am
content: We design our products to be very simple to install and operate. The longest one we have ever made was a small booklet 12 pages long. 6 pages folded and stapled basically. Most are simply to double sided 8.5 X 11 pages. Then again, our products are very simple.

author: Rerouter
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2016, 04:40:02 am
content: I have written countless installation manuals intended for people that i cannot trust to hold a screw driver correctly,Longest so far was 24 pages, making sure everything was as idiotproof as possible, with clear diagrams for all steps,Highlighting of key areas, wire numbers, colours, pin locations and plug numbers for a complex fitting to a truck.The devices get shipped out to pretty much the middle of no-where, and first reply i get back is none of them work,I asked them if they read the manual, they say yes, i spend half a day nutting out where they went wrong,and of cause they had skimmed the first page of the manual and ignored the rest... then when something didnt work, rather than read it they would just ring me instead...

author: MK
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2016, 09:12:41 am
content: Longest Manual was 200+ pages for each sub module in the system, I was involved with about 6 sub modules, so about 1300 pages of manual.

author: Towger
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2016, 09:45:59 am
content: Approx 120 pages by myself.Last one was farmed out to a technical writer. Management wanted lots if screen shots in it, against my advice. Something I had slowly removed from other manuals, until the only graphic was on the front page. They then started complaining it needs constant updates ever time a screen changes... :palm

author: KJDS
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2016, 10:10:21 am
content: I've worked in the space industry. The documentation for a switch stood about eight feet high. It was a fairly complex switch, but a switch nonetheless.The good thing about the space industry is that management are aware of the requirements for lots of documentation before the project begins, so understands that 80% of the engineering effort will be putting together the paperwork.

author: diyaudio
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2016, 11:12:06 am
content: Isn't product manuals created by Technical Writers ?

author: razberik
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2016, 11:25:32 am
content: KJDS - Is it true that 1kg of flight equipment = 50kg of documentation ?

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2016, 12:01:15 pm
content: No, more like each part has 50kg of documentation, each module has another 50kg, then each plug in part has the same, and then each block has 200kg, of which 100kg is a reference to the smaller blocks of paper. Then all this is stored in a document store for at least 3 decades, half is lost and then it is sent to the incinerator or the scrap pile. Then the whole thing is cancelled.

author: KJDS
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2016, 01:28:39 pm
content: Quote from: SeanB on October 22, 2016, 12:01:15 pmBack in the days of pen plotters, a friend had a pile of over 9000 plots from one complex multiplexer. There were still another 5000 to take before qualification was complete when the job was cancelled.

author: calexanian
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 26, 2016, 03:14:32 am
content: Quote from: diyaudio on October 22, 2016, 11:12:06 amNot at smaller companies. Large companies have whole departments for documentation. Just depends on where you sit in that spectrum. At our company for example the guy who writes up our manuals also does technical support and service. Convenient when he has to help customers over the phone.

author: Neilm
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 26, 2016, 06:34:42 pm
content: I'm currently writing a service manual for a reasonably complex instrument - currently it is at 70 pages. For some reason, the company I work for decided that the Technical Writer should do the user guides and not touch the service manual.

author: Smokey
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 27, 2016, 12:43:05 am
content: Field Service Manual:1) Is it plugged in?If "Yes" proceed to step 2.....2) Does it work?If "No" Proceed to step 3...3) Send back to factory for repair....You're welcome

author: metrologist
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 27, 2016, 05:52:36 am
content: Quote from: diyaudio on October 22, 2016, 11:12:06 amYes! Everyone here is a tech writer, me two

author: juanfermed
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: November 06, 2016, 11:51:27 pm
content: Longest is 80 pages long, written all by myself, including scope screenshots, device screen screenshots, block diagrams, equations ,etc.... 3 weeks total...none of the technicians for who I wrote it actually reads it.

author: Neilm
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 07, 2016, 08:37:58 pm
content: Quote from: juanfermed on November 06, 2016, 11:51:27 pmThey never do

author: juanfermed
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: November 13, 2016, 08:16:42 pm
content: Sad because I even cared about writing it in a tutorial form, so they not only understood the device operation, but also principles behind it...