Most manuals are reference sources that readers will refer to from time-to-time to answer specific questions, guide the reader through a task, or solve a problem—they are seldom read from cover-to-cover like novels. Most readers will pick up the manual, and by using the index and table of contents, attempt to find the information they’re looking for. Once they have located the right chapter or module, they will usually scan the headings, occasionally skimming through the text. Unlike textbooks, which are read carefully in sequential order, manuals are read in a more random or haphazard way. As a result, you can’t becertain where a reader will start reading, or how thoroughly they have read other parts of the manual.
Studies have also revealed that most readers will spend only about five minutes looking for information before giving up and trying something else. Few readers will spend longer than this looking for information in a manual.
These findings suggest several things about the structure and organization of manuals:
