Included are pdfs containing:
- My novice thumnail
- A rough outline for the HTML frame structure for the novice thumbnail
- My advanced thumbnail
- My sample graphics
My manuals with both use HTML frames, so I want to specify the width as half the width of the computer screen and make the height scollable across the entire height of the computer screen. These parameters will be challenging in HTML, but it will be easier than trying to get the rough thumbnail version to adhere to them. For the thumbnails I figured the width at about 6 inches and allowed the height to be as much as needed. The reason behind this sizing is to allow the user to view the instructions and screadsheet simultaneously.
The novice manual immitates the basic structure of Excel, with a cellular orgnization and tabbed links to the instructions for different spreadsheet types (the tabs will link to different HTML files). This manual will also include a front "home" page with large picture buttons for each sheet type, as shown on the frame thumbnail.
The advanced manual uses a more modest HTML structure, with a line of links to different Excel formulae near the top of the page. This, too, will link the user to separate HTML files.
Zig Zags
I was very impressed with your rough draft layout. I thought that the blue and white shades made a huge difference in how the eye traveled in the document. I also think that doing instruction manuals on excel spreadsheets is a good idea because there is a lot more that excel can do besides add numbers. It is a great tool that people sometimes consider a skill. I think the only thing that I thought you could fix was that some of the pictures were pixilated. I am sure you already knew that but when looking at smaller spreadsheets the words always seem to look like ~~.~,~~. The novice thumbnails were great and should be used in your final draft. Goof job.
Graphics and Thumbnails instructor feedback: TANoNati
Overall these documents seem like a fine start. I'm curious to see how they develop. I'm not sure I can totally visualize what they will look like and how they will work in their intended format, but perhaps the rough draft will clear things up for me.
It's true that some of the images are a touch pixilated, but if these are intended for web delivery, as they seem to be, that shouldn't be an issue. Also, it can be tricky to get good screenshots. As is mentioned elsewhere, the procedure for creating screenshots is easy, but they are at screen resolution (72 dpt), which will cause pixilation when printed.