[Sigia-l] Instructive Interaction vs. Contextual Help vs. Print Documentati on

[Shep McKee]

(A quick search of SIGIA-L and CHI-WEB archives came up short, so I'll ask
the lists... )

I'm intrigued by the concepts introduced (to me, at least) by Constantine &
Lockwood in the Winter 2002 issue of "User Experience" - a similar article
is online here: 
http://www.foruse.com/articles/instructive.pdf

My quick summary: Users ignore classic methods of documentation and help
until completely necessary. They (we've) been trained not to put much faith
in help/documentation. Solution: don't isolate help, but instead integrate
help within the flow of a task in an application - specifically using
techniques that guide a new user through a task, but also will not be
intrusive to an expert user. Don't be afraid to create novel interaction
when it is the best solution to a particular task - but be prepared to
proactively guide the user through the process... (not the best description,
still trying to get my head around it, sorry)

Anyone familiar with these concepts in production or pre-production?
Web, client-server, free-standing - any format?
Does this concept scale well?
Anyone have any first-hand knowledge?
Pros?
Cons?

WHY? I've been researching the ROI of print/pdf documentation vs. contextual
help; particularly the issues that arise when trying to implement and
maintain BOTH across a large platform, (including internationalization) and
beginning to wonder if I should be considering other alternatives.

--
Shep McKee
Usability & Interaction
webMethods, Inc.
703.251.7122