User Manual Critique of Apple iPad 2
Harold “Kip” Thompson
ENG221 Technical Writing Fundamentals
June 16, 2011
Eric Wright
Apple iPad has become a very popular device. This paper is a critique of the Apple iPad 2 User Manual. The manual will be critiqued in five areas; attractiveness, organization, practicality, simplicity, and efficiency. Both positive and negative examples will be pointed out in all five areas. The manual can be found at this link, http://manuals.info.apple.com/en_US/ipad_2_user_guide.pdf
ATTRACTIVENESS
Positives: The manual is a good looking piece of online literature. Apple has put a lot of time and effort into the manual and has used several illustrations throughout. Having illustrations gives the manual a more personal feel and aids in its eye appeal.
Negatives: While the manual has illustrations and sample pages it would be much more attractive if the author had used illustrations with brighter colors. Bright colors catch the reader’s attention and help keep them focused on what they are reading. There are also several pages with a lot of white space. Some of it is necessary, at the end of a chapter for example, however some of it could be eliminated.
ORGANIZATION
Positives: The manual is very well organized. The Table of Contents is large and has sub-topics under each heading. This allows the user to find exactly what they are looking for. With 22 chapter headings it is easy to find the information without a lot of searching. There is also an appendix and index at the end of the manual, this is a great resource for the end user.
Negatives: The information is not in the order that I think a novice user would want it. Some advanced information is put ahead of some basic operational info.
Practicality
Positives: The manual is very practical. A user can easily take the information provided and use it. The author has not filled it with fluff, it is truly hands-on information. The manual is...