[Grovenet] Outsourcing Computer Tech Support

[Jeff Howden]

> From: Katie Allnutt
> 
> If the computer and software people would simply write good manuals
> they could save a ton of money on tech support....

Writing good manuals only works for the small percentage of users who will
actually read the manual.  Of that percentage, some will only read it to
find the toll free number to call support.

Well written manuals won't work for the percentage of people who run up
against unexpected results or plain-old errors caused by bugs in the
software.  Part of the problem is that due to development/delivery
timelines, the manuals must be written while the software is being written.
Provided the project managers absolutely do not permit deviating from the
specification, you will end up with a product that has a manual that's
relatively accurate in describing the product's capabilities.  However, if
quality control doesn't catch deviations from the spec or the project
manager permits feature creep during development, then the manual written
for the product may not even closely resemble the actual product it's sent
with.

Jeff