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>> My coworkers and I have been wondering if the word 'help' is
>> still a appropriate name to use for online information. [...]
> Indeed, it isn't, and I doubt it ever was. People use that
>word for many things, including online quick-reference, online
>tutorials, and computer-based training. Sometimes people do online
>documentation - visually and organizationally identical to the printed
>document, just delivered electronically with some minimal viewer
>technology - and call that online help.
Personally, I'd be leary of changing on-line information from 'help'
to something else. My reason has more to do with conventions than
anything. I believe that users have learned that 'help' is where
to go when they have a problem.
I think that if the industry changes that on them, then people
will be more confused than anything else. Being a cynic, I'd look
at it and think "Oh, the trendy thing for the year. This won't
last." Whether I'm right, I think that people would generally
regard changing 'help' to something else unless the industry adopted
a change as the standard and implemented it in all packages.
Just look at Wordperfect. They used to have the Help key as F3, now it's
F1 just as with most other products. People already know where to go
when they are looking for information.
Still, even if industry inplemented a change, I find American consumers to be
mini-conspiracy theorists. If I'm right about 'help' being commonly
accepted among American consumers, then this market may react to a change
much as it did to the metric conversion attempt of the late 70's. Heck,
people in Massachusetts got miffed when the state changed Stop signs
to Yield signs on rotaries!
Changing 'help' is probably fertile ground for a study somewhere.
--gk
Greg Kushmerek
gkushmerek -at- acctg -dot- fin -dot- tufts -dot- edu
