Technical documentation is a general term for information about hardware or software products that are used by engineers and technicians. Technical documentation includes instruction manuals, reference manuals, tutorials, and software and hardware specifications or other documents which guide the user in understanding, using and servicing a product.
Technical documentation is an essential part of the life of the technicians, engineers and end-users, and is needed to facilitate the complex processes of planning, engineering, designing, developing, manufacturing, testing, marketing, operating, servicing and maintaining. Technical documentation is also considered to be a form of knowledge management and must be kept up to date in order to ensure its accuracy and relevance.
Technical documentation covers many topics and formats. Manuals can provide detailed information on specific topics such as passwords, networking, images, video, audio, software, hardware and security. Tutorials can provide specific instructions on how to use a certain feature or technology. Design documents are typically used to describe the functionality and the overall architecture of a system, while requirements documents may be used to specify high-level business needs such as the acceptance criteria of a certain feature.
Technical documentation can also help to reduce the amount of time spent on technical issues, helping speed up development cycles and allow engineers and technicians to focus on more important tasks. It can also increase customer satisfaction by providing clear, comprehensive instructions on how to troubleshoot a product. In addition, it can provide user feedback and suggestions for product improvement.
Technical documentation should include information related to the product in question, such as version numbers, compatibility, platform requirements, usage scenarios, and performance metrics. Additionally, it should include clear instructions on how to set up or use the product, along with troubleshooting and linking to additional resources when appropriate. Furthermore, it should be updated often to reflect changes in the product and its use.
