Something to chew over: what if the class broke into three teams of two for the purposes of writing tutorials. Each team of two could write a series of 3-4 related tutorials that centered on a single project. In fact, we could organize the tutorials by project. For instance, one set of tutorials could focus on using transform tools (and maybe throw in text and layers and some filters). It could start off with two beginner tutorials in a sequence, then move to a slightly longer and more difficult intermediate tutorial, and finish with a longer tutorial that showcased a few advanced techniques. Users who stopped at any stage would still learn something. Users who were already advanced could actually open the image created in the last tutorial so that they could skip the intros.

What are you thoughts? James, you're coordinating tutorials, how does this idea strike you?

BTW, if we did adopt this method, I would always have AT LEAST two beginner-level tutorials for every intermediate/advanced tutorial. Beginners are our main audience.

These are some questions that I think we should ask as we "workshop" future tutorials and procedures.

Questions for Sample Tutorial

• Is the title appropriate? Does it announce the topic in task-oriented terms? Is it inviting?
• Is there any context or overview? Does it preview the types of skills learned in this tutorial? Does it explain any knowledge the user must already have or any steps the user must have already taken? Does it clue them in on the likely duration of the tutorial?
• Is the first step appropriate (i.e. Is it too basic – unrelated – or does it assume too much knowledge)?
• Do the steps of the tutorial adhere to a “pattern of exposition”?
• Is the look of the tutorial intimidating (how many pages is it)? If so, how can we fix that?
• Is the tutorial appropriately paced? I.e. is it too long, does it maintain a more-or-less constant level of detail? Does it distract with too many alternatives?
• Is there appropriate emphasis given to warnings, tips, notes, etc.? Is there a consistent and obvious style mechanism for explaining the interface (for instance, bolding or italicizing the names of buttons, menu commands, and other official interface names? Are we using the correct names (according to the interface) and are we using likely user synonyms?
• Are illustrations effective? I.e. is the emphasis of the illustration clear and obvious? Are there distractions in the illustrations? Are there enough/too many illustrations?
• Is the structure of the tutorial easy to follow? Is there one sequence of steps or several? Why?
• Is the technical level of the tutorial appropriate (and for whom)? Does the tutorial help the user to find other assistance? Does the tutorial invite users to explore on their own?

Questions for Sample Procedure

• Is the title appropriate? Does it announce the topic in task-oriented terms? Is it consistent with other procedure titles?
• Is there any context or overview? Does it preview the types of skills learned in this tutorial? Does it explain any knowledge the user must already have or any steps the user must have already taken? Does it preview any notes or cautions that the user should be aware of?
• Is the first step appropriate to this task (i.e. Is it too basic – unrelated – or does it assume too much knowledge)?
• Do the steps of the Procedure adhere to a “pattern of exposition”?
• Does it distract with too many alternatives?
• Is there appropriate emphasis given to warnings, tips, notes, etc.? Is there a consistent and obvious style mechanism for explaining the interface (for instance, bolding or italicizing the names of buttons, menu commands, and other official interface names? Are we using the correct names (according to the interface) and are we using likely user synonyms?
• Are illustrations effective? I.e. is the emphasis of the illustration clear and obvious? Are there distractions in the illustrations? Are there enough/too many illustrations?
• Is the structure of the procedure easy to follow? Is there one sequence of steps or several? Why?
• Is the technical level of the procedure appropriate (and for whom)?