[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-639846-105":59,"doc-detail-639846-en":129},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":122,"head_meta":124,"extra_data":126,"updated_unix":128},105,"en","user-documentation-do-we-even-need-this-stuff","User Documentation - Do We Even Need This Stuff?","","This document explores the fundamental role and necessity of user documentation in product development. Written by UX writer and designer Kristen Faiferlick, it defines user documentation as tools designed to help users comprehend product functionality, capabilities, and impact. Drawing on historical context, such as Geoffrey Chaucer's 14th-century manual for the astrolabe, the presentation addresses the common skepticism regarding whether documentation is actually utilized, referencing research by Brigit van Loggem to demonstrate its continued importance for complex or unfamiliar products. It serves as a guide for creators to improve user experience through effective instructional content.",{"@graph":69,"@context":121},[70,84,104],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":30,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/technology/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/user-documentation-do-we-even-need-this-stuff/639846/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":98,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":99,"interactionStatistic":100},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/user-documentation-do-we-even-need-this-stuff/639846.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"BAd apple","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-22",true,{"@type":101,"interactionType":102,"userInteractionCount":4},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":103},"ViewAction",{"@type":105,"mainEntity":106},"FAQPage",[107,113,117],{"name":108,"@type":109,"acceptedAnswer":110},"What defines user documentation?","Question",{"text":111,"@type":112},"User documentation is any tool provided to help a user understand what a product is, what they can do with it, how to perform tasks, and how the product impacts them.","Answer",{"name":114,"@type":109,"acceptedAnswer":115},"Did Geoffrey Chaucer write a user manual?",{"text":116,"@type":112},"Yes, in 1326, Chaucer wrote one of the earliest known technical manuals in English, which served as a guide for using an astrolabe.",{"name":118,"@type":109,"acceptedAnswer":119},"Do users actually read documentation?",{"text":120,"@type":112},"Research suggests that while people may not read every word, documentation is consistently consulted, especially when users encounter complex or unfamiliar products.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":123,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":125,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":127,"site_id":62},639846,1792705651,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":130},{"doc_id":127,"user_id":131,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":132,"doc_module":4,"category_id":29,"category_name":30,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":133,"file_id":134,"file_url":135,"file_type":136,"file_size":137,"view_count":4,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":138,"language":139,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":140,"faqs":141,"seo_title":142,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":128,"read_time":143},19241458193282,"https://us-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_a8503ba1806abce46bf441b54a3ca4cd","User  \nDocumentation:  \nDo We Even Need This Stuff?  \nKristen Faiferlick  \nUser Experience (UX) Writer & Designer  \nA few assumptions about you...  \nYou build things .  \nYou want your users to be able to use those things effectively and efficiently.  \nWhat is User Documentation?  \n4  \nWhat is User Documentation? (slide 2 of 5)  \nAny tool provided to help the user understand…  \nWhat the Product Is  \nWhat the User Can Do With It  \nHow to Do Those Things  \nHow it Impacts Them  \nWhat is User Documentation? (slide 3 of 5)  \n(This is a pretty broad definition.)  \nWhat is User Documentation? (slide 4 of 5)  \nWe’ve been doing this for a while .  \nThe first known “technical manual” in English was written by Chaucer in 1326 when he described to a young boy how to use an astrolabe (a guide to the stars) .  \nWhat is User Documentation? (slide 5 of 5)  \nUser documentation can take many, many forms .  \nAs technology advances, we’ll see more and more forms of user documentation .  \nIs It Actually Used? (slide 1 of 6)  \nAnyone who has created products has run into the unfortunate situation of users asking questions that are answered—clearly and concisely—in the user documentation .  \nWhich leads us to ask…  \nIs It Actually Used? (slide 2 of 6)  \n“  \nA handful of research studies have previously been carried out to determine whether users are indeed reluctant to consult the documentation that is delivered with a product, and these are surprisingly unanimous in their findings . ... However, they invariably conclude that—at least for complex and unfamiliar products—the documentation is consulted; even if it is not read, marked, learned, and inwardly  \ndigested  \nin  \nits entirety.  \n”  \n“Nobody reads the documentation”: true or not?  \nBrigit van Loggem  \nOpen Universiteit, Heerlen, the Netherlands, September 2014","cbCaihOYMu8ppMnE","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaihOYMu8ppMnE","pdf",15411413,51,"English","# What is User Documentation?\n## Definitions and Historical Context\n# Is It Actually Used?\n## Research Findings on Documentation Usage","[{\"question\":\"What defines user documentation?\",\"answer\":\"User documentation is any tool provided to help a user understand what a product is, what they can do with it, how to perform tasks, and how the product impacts them.\"},{\"question\":\"Did Geoffrey Chaucer write a user manual?\",\"answer\":\"Yes, in 1326, Chaucer wrote one of the earliest known technical manuals in English, which served as a guide for using an astrolabe.\"},{\"question\":\"Do users actually read documentation?\",\"answer\":\"Research suggests that while people may not read every word, documentation is consistently consulted, especially when users encounter complex or unfamiliar products.\"}]","User Documentation - Do We Even Need This Stuff? | PDF",129]