A few weeks ago, we were traveling on a road trip for our annual vacation, far from home and computers. We didn’t take laptops, but we had our iPhones. Perfect, I thought. My little computer-in-a-pocket. I’d be able to access the Internet and email and everything else with that handy device. Which was true. However, [...]
Think Outside the Computer: Touchscreens, HTML5, & Flash
May 5, 2010 By 1 Comment
Touchscreens are here to stay. Computers as we know them are gone already. Really. It’s time to fast-track the planning for delivering docs and content to these types of devices. Forget a laptop or netbook. I have a computer I can fit in a pocket. That would be my iPhone. I look at it as [...]
Cut, Cut, Cut your Content and Procedures
July 20, 2009 By 7 Comments
Sure. We’ve been reducing word count in procedures for some time. It’s time to do more, however. As noted in an earlier post, we have to think mobile. Think small screens and small devices. Screen real estate will be at a premium. With that in mind, I’m offering some suggestions on how to cut back. [...]
Might We Become Walking Computers?
July 7, 2009 By Leave a Comment
What do an article in Wired magazine about attaching a sensor to your running shoe and uploading it via iPod for data analysis, a camping trip, an article about wearing video screens, a scientist husband, a discussion about wildlife parks, office work, and work by a W3C working group have in common? If you can [...]
Think Mobile When You Write
July 1, 2009 By Leave a Comment
Always keep the small screen in mind when you’re preparing your docs. There are some W3C “mobileOK” guidelines to consider to ensure that your content meets requirements. Here are some highlights: Tables – No nested tables – Tables must have more than one row and more than one cell per row Page Titles – There [...]
Use of Flexible Screens in Documentation
June 8, 2009 By Leave a Comment
Lately, I’ve come across two articles about flexible screens. One is for small touch screens, the other is about video. What’s particularly interesting about the video flexible screens is that the article in Technology Review states that there is a possibility that such screens could be “worn on wrists, and plastered on clothes.” Now imagine [...]
