Product Specification
Lists of both features that are included and those that were rejected for a new version of a product, with background material and a "You are here" map
Last modified: 10/3/98
This style of document presents many items (in this case, new features) and lets the reader drill down to see details and related material. It also shows all items that were considered, even if they were rejected. A map is provided as a navigation aid.

Business uses of this type of document include:
•   Product Specifications: Internal use or during presentations
•   Other Plans: Marketing plans, new process implementation plans

You can publish the information to an intranet or you can use the document as part of a presentation in a meeting about the status of the project. By keeping information in a variety of categories, such as features considered that will be in the next version and features that won't be put in the next version, you can move a product feature from "In" to "Out" and then publish the updated information without losing information that may be needed if you change your mind, or that explains why it was excluded.

The map lets the readers get a feel for the entire document, as well lets them navigate quickly to known pages. Studies show that people remember where pages are, even if the pages do not all have labels that show. See the Technique "Use Maps".

Goals of the design and how they were met:

The design was to be helpful to a product manager who is constantly juggling the decisions between many features for a new version of a product.

NOTE: This document was designed for at least an 800x600 screen.

Start a "guided tour" of the document

The individual stops on the tour: The Map   |   In and Out Lists   |   Detailed Lists   |   Item Details   |   Background Material   |   Framed Material   |   Schedule

Start reading the document without comments (NOT a tour)

You can browse the full sample itself without the tour comments.

You can return to this page by clicking the "Return to Sample Overview" link in the map.

Comments:

Comments we've received about this design (none yet, since we just put it up online).

Alternative designs:

None, yet.

How the sample was created:

The sample was created using Trellix 2.0. It is included in the Trellix 2.0 package as a sample. It is based on the real product specification for Trellix 2.0 created by Wayne Foster, the Product Manager for the 2.0 upgrade to Trellix 1.0. Trellix makes it easy to modify this document. For example, to move a feature from "In" to "Out" you just drag its page icon in the map from one list to another and re-export to HTML. The map and all lists and links are updated automatically.