Copy and Documentation Review

[Admin note: I’ve pulled some posts added to some old topics into a new discrete thread to allow the community to have better discussion of this interesting idea]

i’m excited to share that i finally took the plunge this weekend and started my first document. we have a problem at work due to new legislation and i need to work through the copy we use in-app and in support articles.


side question: is anyone aware of people using tinderbox to manage ui copy such as error messages, banners, dialogs, and so on? as a ux writer, we have an increasing need for some sort of ui copy textbase, and perhaps tinderbox would work. for example, i like the idea of creating an error message prototype formatted with red so they stand out in what is likely a ginormous map. (presumably i’d stick each type of ui copy in a container.)


it doesn’t seem a far leap from working out a problem with nomenclature to analysis. from fiction to nonfiction to grammars (latin and greek), the idea of prototypes and links that can be “coded” (?) as “disagree,” my text world is opening up in exciting ways! not yet sure how to reconcile this tool with a zettelkasten or omnioutliner, or the soon-to-be released nvultra, but how exciting to have so many powerful tool from which to choose!

apologies for hijacking a meetup thread with off-topic prather, but i really am excited. and perhaps it’s not drastically off topic to share the excitement in a thread setting up a meetup with others who share the same excitement for tinderbox!

Sounds very doable. The UI copy is, after all, just a collection of texts, which is what Tinderbox excels at working with.

I assume that means you would need to share the document with others?

It’s a good use case so I suggest moving your question over to a separate thread, or ask @mwra to move your post to a new thread. Readers frequently search the forum looking for use cases like yours and it’s best if they can find intact threads.

(I also suggest moving your related post into the new thread.)

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interesting thread! :grinning:

the suggestion for some kind of task-based material that walks users through different use cases sounds good to me, as does the suggestion that we come up with ten to twenty use cases first.

i think a fantastic place to start might be beck tench’s videos as she works through understanding a book.

i’m starting a very tiny nomenclature dive as an effort to figure out how to provide precise definitions and instructions that doesn’t run afoul of new legislation.

i’m also wondering if it’s time to start assembling content for a latin grammar which is presented through stories.

these are all very…?…text-y. would people in marketing find this useful? what about developers (API documentation?). speaking of, i’m always thinking about whether or not tinderbox might be a good “textbase” for documenting ui copy such as error messages, dialogs, banners, and other in-app ui copy.

do these use cases start to provide a path for task-based documentation?

If that big, a Map-based approach—at least via a single map, may not be ideal. No problem as other view types are available. Big map limits are as much about having screen real estate to see enough of the map at a time as it is to do with any technical considerations.

It might help the community a bit if you could explain a bit more about the practicalities of your task, beyond managing lots of pieces of text.

That ‘coding’ is simply assigning a link type to a link. The link type does not need to be visible on a map and can also be used to filter a note’s in/outbound links when analysing connections using action code.

Whilst this is perfectly logical question, in fact people use Tinderbox in a great variety of ways such that people doing the same task do it in differing ways attuned to their own needs. Experience shows it’s more fruitful to look for people doing the same functional tasks regardless of the over-arching workflow. So what are the functional tasks you need to do for your analysis.

Tinderbox’s inheritance and prototypes (also see) are great! I’m glad you’re engaging with this aspect early on, it is a real productivity enhancement.

A good point here. It is not possible, currently to export a map except as a picture. You might want to think, in your process planning about how you will share the information with colleagues not using Tinderbox (or are using non-macOS PCs). You needs to share you work may have an effect on how you report your outcomes so this is worth bearing in mind.

Such ‘which is best’ considerations pop-up quite regularly but generally as a form of decision avoidance. Or, worse for progress, trying to make app B work like A, ‘because app A’. There are lots of good tools out there that work well but use different design assumptions. If using app X but preferring app Y’s design assumptions, it might be best to use app Y. Or so experience would indicate.

You might want to start a new, discrete thread on this. It wasn’t entirely clear, when you posted onto an old thread whether you are still looking at the Bay Area for a meet-up, or more widely. Either way, if a thread is months old, unless on a very narrow topic, it’s generally best to start a new thread - not least as human nature seems to make us more included to engage with the new over the continuing.

Anyway @Sylvaticus, I hope we can help you get started with some productive use of Tinderbox. :grinning: