Written By: Josh Fechter
This article has been kindly reproduced by Technical Writer HQ
If you want to launch a software product from scratch and guide users to adopt it, then you’ll face challenging and unpredictable variables. The concept of software documentation emerged to keep everyone on the same page and make an otherwise overwhelming journey easier to navigate.
Software development teams, testers, and users alike (and everyone else related to the project) need some guidance to help them with their goals. With adequate documentation, everyone wins.
But that itself is a complicated process, requiring technical writing expertise. Even if you’re not a technical writer, you can learn how to prepare excellent technical documentation for your product. If you’re interested in learning via video, then watch below. Otherwise, skip ahead.
To that end, in this article, we’ll discuss:
Let’s get started.
Software documentation refers to the documents, tutorials, and other material describing a software product’s development, functionality, and use. It is one of the many forms of technical documentation.
The purpose of software documentation is simple: to streamline the communication between all the parties involved with the product.
Within an org where the software is being developed, a technical document can be considered a wiki page – a guiding blueprint that the development team can refer to when working on it. Additionally, it can also help those who use the finished version of the product.
To be more specific, adequate software documentation can help:
Every tech company—from small startups to well-established giants like Microsoft, Amazon, and Google—uses some form of software documentation.
Programmers, stakeholders, and users alike benefit from this form of technical communication.
Before learning how to write software documentation, it’s essential to understand the different types of technical documents you might be required to work on.
They are mainly distinguished based on the specific goals they accomplish.
Depending on the methodology/approach it uses, a company may not use every type of document (those that follow an agile approach don’t usually engage in heavy documentation in the beginning).
With that out of the way, software documentation can be split into two broad categories:
When talking about software documentation, people mainly refer to product documentation.
As the name suggests, this category includes all the documents/material that contain essential details about the product. Of course, it can be for both the software developers and the end-users.
We can further classify product documentation into the following types:
In addition to the above, a document detailing the marketing strategy/research can also be filed under product documentation.
This category includes all the documents describing the underlying processes that bring a product from ideation to launch.
Process documentation aims to break down the software development journey (and provide a vision for all the teams involved in the project).
Process documentation can include:
While product documentation is intended for both internal and external audiences, process documentation is mainly intended for the people developing the product.
Writing software documentation is tricky. While workflows vary from company to company, there are certain best practices that, if adhered to, can make the process a lot smoother (and yield the ideal results).
In 7 simple steps, you can create any type of software documentation, irrespective of its goal(s). We won’t be talking about the use of templates or any documentation tool such as GitHub, Confluence, etc. The steps we’re about to discuss are generic – ones that may only require a basic text editor.
Let’s dive in:
Before anything else, you need to take a step back and ask yourself why you’re about to create the said document.
Since there are so many software documentation types, even the most experienced technical writers are prone to mixing up the main purpose or the audience they’re addressing.
For that reason, you first need to highlight the purpose of your document. A simple tip is to open up a blank doc and type up its purpose as the title.
For instance, if you’re creating a document that conveys the expectations of the stakeholders to the software developers, the title could be something along the lines of: “The Vision for XYZ Software.”
Furthermore, highlight the audience of the document. Go one step further and create personas of the type of people who would read your technical content.
These may sound like trivial things to do, but they help.
Creating a technical document that doesn’t address the pain points or answer the audience’s questions is pointless.
Once you’ve identified the goal and the audience for your technical document, the next step is to anticipate (or better yet, ask about) the questions the readers might have about the product.
This is where your personas will come in handy.
List down those FAQs somewhere. But don’t include them in your main document just yet.
The goal of identifying the questions is to collect your thoughts, design your document accordingly, and provide the most relevant information that delivers maximum value.
Figuring out the outlining process is an essential aspect of writing software documentation.
That is why the next step is to develop an appropriate design for your document.
If you’re writing a particular type of document for the first time, you may need to prepare a structure from scratch.
There is no universal template for every type of software documentation as with everything else. The design and outline of your document will be based on the specific goals you want to accomplish and the comprehension level of your audience.
Here’s what it should include, in order:
You know your audience better than anyone. Include anything else in your outline that might help.
Structure the information in the most helpful way. You may need the assistance of a graphic designer.
You can then use the outline/design as a template for all future documents to maintain the consistency of communication and make minor improvements along the way.
If you’re looking for a more detailed process of writing technical writing documentation, check out our Technical Writing Certification Course.
Depending on your level of familiarity with the subject, you may need to conduct some heavy researching to gather and validate all the relevant information for your document.
This may entail interviewing experts or users, talking to the stakeholders, going through existing documents, and conducting research over the internet.
Process the research data into usable information, compile it over your outline, and provide references wherever necessary to add credibility to your writing (if it applies).
Now that you’ve laid a strong foundation for your technical document, all that’s left to do is to draft it.
If you’ve created a solid outline and gathered all the required information beforehand, the actual drafting process shouldn’t take very long.
Here are some quick writing tips:
While drafting, keep referring to the goal and the audience to stay on track.
After you prepare your draft, you should include a few visuals (flowcharts, illustrations, screenshots, etc.) to augment your document.
If they’re available, you may also choose to add the graphics as you write the draft. Some writers even prefer adding them during the outlining phase. You’re free to do whatever feels correct based on your particular circumstances.
Technical writers can use these visuals to emphasize a point, further explain a technical concept, help the reader, and make your document look much better.
We’re still not done yet.
The only thing left to do now is to edit your technical document.
Depending on your researching, formatting, and writing skills, it can take anywhere from a single to multiple rounds of edits to get the final document.
This entails having an editor (if available), a subject matter expert or just another pair of fresh eyes look at your document for any grammatical, technical, or contextual errors.
The secret of good software documentation—whatever it may be—is comprehensive planning. Like any other form of technical writing, software documentation cannot be rushed.
Furthermore, it’s not always a one-person effort. It requires close collaboration with the relevant stakeholders, software developers, and other parties directly or indirectly involved with the project.
By following the best practices, touching all the pain points, and most importantly, staying within the scope, you can easily prepare excellent software documentation in no time.