Re: Building a web site for documentation

Subject: Re: Building a web site for documentation
From: Sandy Harris <sandy -at- storm -dot- ca>
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Date: Fri, 21 Sep 2001 11:19:38 -0400

"White, Bonita" wrote:
>
> I would like to put together a proposal for creating a web
> site for the documentation.

As others have said, the first question is why. What wiil this accomplish
for your company? Is it useful for marketing? A convenience for your
customers? A time-saver for tech support, just give the customer a URL?

Is there a down side? Would making this material public expose weaknesses
in product or docs and cost you customers? Or give competitors useful
information? Or, heaven forbid, would it be useful to a terrorist wanting
to trash a customer installation?

Also, the question arises of how your dicuments would need to change or
be supplemented to work well on the web.

> My documents are all created in FrameMaker which means that I can save
> them all as HTML docs. And I know how to code in HTML, and also how to
> use FrontPage,

Good stuff, all relevant.

> and I know that I need an IP address to get started;

You need a suitable name, not just an address, but that probably isn't
a problem you'd need to solve. Assuming you are posting from work, a
quick check shows that your company has a web site. Talk to whoever
administers it. Likely they could easily set up everything you'd need.

If I've got the wrong company and you don't actually have a web site,
then methinks you should consider the question of what you want on
such a site. Likely the docs are far from being all of it.

> but I don't know what kinds of things I need to present to
> my boss to make this a feasible suggestion.

Basically, you need to make a business case, costs and benefits for
the company.

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References:
Building a web site for documentation: From: White, Bonita

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