IEEE/ISO/IEC 26512-2011

This International Standard supports the interest of software users in having consistent, complete, accurate, and usable documentation. It addresses both available approaches to standardization: a) process standards, which specify the way that documentation products are to be acquired and supplied; and b) documentation product standards, which specify the characteristics and functional requirements of the documentation. As defined in ISO/IEC 12207:2008 (IEEE Std 12207-2008) and ISO/IEC 15288:2008 (IEEE Std 15288-2008), the acquisition and supply activities comprise the agreement processes of the software life cycle. Acquisition and supply of user documentation and user documentation services are specializations of those processes. User documentation services can be acquired and supplied for any part of the software documentation management or information management process, such as: * documentation or information management; * information design and development; * documentation editing and review coordination; * documentation testing, particularly usability testing; * documentation production and packaging; * documentation distribution and delivery; * advice on the selection and implementation of documentation tools and supporting systems; * documentation process improvement. This International Standard provides an overview of the software user documentation and information management processes which may require acquisition and supply of software user documentation products and services. It applies the Agreement processes (acquisition and supply) to software user documentation, and addresses the preparation of requirements for software user documentation. These requirements are central to the user documentation specification and Statement of Work discussed in this International Standard. This International Standard also addresses requirements for primary document outputs of the acquisition and supply process: the Request for Proposal and the Proposal for user documentation products and services. This International Standard is intended for use in acquiring or supplying either printed or electronic (on-screen) documentation. It is independent of documentation development or management tools or methodologies. This International Standard might be helpful for acquiring and supplying the following types of documentation, although it does not cover all aspects of them: * documentation of products other than software; * multimedia systems using animation, video, and sound; * computer-based training (CBT) packages and specialized course materials intended primarily for use in formal training programs; * maintenance documentation describing the internal operation of systems software; * documentation incorporated into the user interface. This International Standard is applicable to acquirers and suppliers of user documentation, including a variety of specialists: * business analysts who identify the tasks that the intended users will perform with the software; * managers of the software development process or the documentation process; * managers of the acquisition process, and those who authorize and approve acquisitions; * managers and authors involved in proposal preparation. It can also be consulted by those with other roles and interests in the documentation process: * information designers and architects who plan the structure, format, and content requirements of documentation products in a documentation set or web-accessible suite; * experienced authors and editors who develop the written content for user documentation; * graphic designers with expertise in electronic media; * user interface designers and ergonomics experts working together to design the presentation of the documentation on the screen; * usability testers, documentation reviewers, subject matter experts; * developers of tools for creating on-screen documentation.



Revision Standard - Superseded. ISO/IEC/IEEE 26512:2011 was developed to assist users of ISO/IEC 15288:2008 (IEEE Std 15288-2008) or ISO/IEC 12207:2008 (IEEE Std 12207-2008) to acquire or supply software user documentation as part of the software life cycle processes. It defines the documentation process from the acquirer's standpoint and the supplier's standpoint. ISO/IEC/IEEE 26512:2011 covers the requirements for information items used in the acquisition of user documentation products: the Acquisition Plan, Document Specification, Statement of Work, Request for Proposals, and the proposal. It provides an overview of the software user documentation and information management processes which may require acquisition and supply of software user documentation products and services. It addresses the preparation of requirements for software user documentation. These requirements are central to the user documentation specification and Statement of Work. It includes requirements for primary document outputs of the acquisition and supply process: the Request for Proposal and the Proposal for user documentation products and services. It also discusses the use of a Documentation Management Plan and a Document Plan as they arise in the acquisition and supply processes. ISO/IEC/IEEE 26512:2011 is independent of the software tools that may be used to produce documentation, and applies to both printed documentation and on-screen documentation. Much of its guidance is applicable to user documentation for systems including hardware as well as software.