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pdfs vs Video Documentation

by thunderbird
9 replies
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When I want a quick answer to something, it is really tiresome to have to go to a site, login, and sit through a video to get it, as is the case with some products. When it comes to documentation, I really sometimes prefer a pdf over video so I can do a quick search to find the answer quickly.
  • Profile picture of the author KimW
    I want pdfs for documentation too.
    I also hate forced membership sites.
    I am also not a video fan, unless it is something that NEEDS to be demo'ed to make it easier to understand/follow.
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  • Profile picture of the author Halcyon
    I'm still trying to figure out who all these video lovers are. Everyone is saying that video is the way to go but I find it extremely annoying and most of the people I encounter prefer pdf over video.
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    @Kim- Thanks. Now I'll be singing Sly and the Family Stone songs for the rest of the night.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
    I've always preferred PDF's. It's a lot easier to find something you want to go back and reference. I can see video for some things, but most of the time I think people just make them because they can . . . and because they feel better justified in charging more for the same information.
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    • Profile picture of the author kenmichaels
      Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

      I've always preferred PDF's. It's a lot easier to find something you want to go back and reference. I can see video for some things, but most of the time I think people just make them because they can . . . and because they feel better justified in charging more for the same information.
      See now i thought maybe it was because, they thought saying a few words on video
      was a lot easier then typing it all out, being grammatically correct
      looking for typos, formatting ect..

      I have tested videos, vrs help files. its always come up
      about 50 -50 for me.

      i will say. its a whole lot easier to make a video, vrs a good
      help file. And 10 years ago, i had super duper, every possible angle covered
      help files... now.. i just make a quick video.

      but, i know i am lazy... when i can be, and that is all it is.... for me
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      • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
        Originally Posted by kenmichaels View Post

        See now i thought maybe it was because, they thought saying a few words on video
        was a lot easier then typing it all out, being grammatically correct
        looking for typos, formatting ect..

        I have tested videos, vrs help files. its always come up
        about 50 -50 for me.

        i will say. its a whole lot easier to make a video, vrs a good
        help file. And 10 years ago, i had super duper, every possible angle covered
        help files... now.. i just make a quick video.

        but, i know i am lazy... when i can be, and that is all it is.... for me
        Ken, you're right. I'm sure that's part of it too. I'm sure there are a lot more reasons than I offered. It wasn't an answer that I'd thought through. My bad.
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        • Profile picture of the author John Durham
          Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

          Ken, you're right. I'm sure that's part of it too. I'm sure there are a lot more reasons than I offered. It wasn't an answer that I'd thought through. My bad.
          Dennis, you made it out of the Holler? Good to see you on the other side. I thought we were both goners, and you had disappeared somewhere down deep in the cockleberries of the forest.
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          • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
            Originally Posted by John Durham View Post

            Dennis, you made it out of the Holler? Good to see you on the other side. I thought we were both goners, and you had disappeared somewhere down deep in the cockleberries of the forest.
            Hey John, it was a tough fight getting out of there, but with sheer determination and grit, not to mention a little moonshine for an extra big kick, I made it.

            That Thad, he's getting plum ornary with his dadgum rules. Don't tell him I said that, he'll probably cut my tabacky ration.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dan Grossman
    I put all support documentation on the web whenever possible. It's more content to bring in search traffic. PDFs or videos don't have that benefit; technically Google can index a PDF but someone that sees a link to it is either not going to click or will bounce.
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    • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
      Originally Posted by Dan Grossman View Post

      I put all support documentation on the web whenever possible. It's more content to bring in search traffic. PDFs or videos don't have that benefit; technically Google can index a PDF but someone that sees a link to it is either not going to click or will bounce.
      Dan, why not do both and get the best of worlds. You can submit the PDF's to sites like Scribd and Docstoc and get some nice link juice and traffic from those sites. And Google, Bing and I think Yahoo can index them as well. They do quite well.
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