12.4 Preparation of Online Facilities

• Information is available whenever the computer is available
• Users do not need to allocate work space to opening up manuals
• Information can be electronically updated rapidly and at low cost
• Specific information necessary for a task can be located rapidly if the online manual offers electronic indexing or text searching
• Authors can use graphics, sound, color, and animations that may be helpful in explaining complex actions and creating an engaging experience

• Displays may not be as readable as printed materials.
• Displays may contain substantially less information than a sheet of paper.
• The rate of paging is slow compared to the rate of paging through a manual.
• The display resolution is lower than that of paper, which is especially important when pictures or graphics are used.
• The command language of help systems may be novel and confusing to novices.
• The extra mental effort required for navigating through many screens may interfere with concentration and learning.
• Splitting the display between work and help or tutorial windows, reduces the space for work displays.
• If users must switch to a separate application then the burden on the user's short-term memory can be large.
• Users lose their context of work and have difficulty remembering what they read in the online manual.

• Successively more detailed explanations of a displayed error message
• Successively more detailed explanations of a displayed question or prompt
• Successive examples of correct input or valid commands
• Explanation or definition of a specified term
• A description of the format of a specified command
• A list of allowable commands
• A display of specified sections of documentation
• A description of the current value of various system parameters
• Instruction on the use of the system
• News of interest to users of the system
• A list of available user aids

• Make the help system easy to access and easy to return from.
• Make help as specific as possible.
• Collect data to determine what help is needed.
• Give users as much control as possible over the help system.
• Make help messages accurate and complete.
• Do not use help to compensate for poor interface design.