How to format a manual for printing.

[IanF]

Hi Guys
I am trying to be proactive with this, we get a lot of manuals which aren't correctly formatted so instead of moaning I wanted to get the ball rolling on how to format a manual. I have also put this on my blog
Please let me have your comments.

Here is my contribution to help customers (current and future) to set up their manuals for optimal reading and printing.

First before you start make sure your page size is set to A4 portrait. Margins for all pages before binding including those on which illustrations, photographs, tables and diagrams are printed should be,

• Inner margin 40mm (4cm)
• Outer margin 30mm (3cm)
• Top and bottom margin 25 (2.5cm)

The text of the manual should be printed in 12 point type(minimum) in 1.5 or double line spacing. You should try to fit your tables, illustrations and photos on an A4 page within the margins. If necessary, large tables and illustrations may be placed on an A3 sheet, and then folded by us so that it opens to the right. Advise us of the existence of these A3 sheets, to ensure that the folds are not cut during binding.

Each page should be numbered. The title and index pages are normally numbered in lower case roman numbers counting from the title page (i.e., i, ii, iii, iv …), although the number on the title page is not shown. The rest of the manual should be numbered in numerals (i.e., 1, 2, 3 ,4 …) . All diagrams, photographs, tables and illustrations should be included in the numbering sequence, as should the appendices and bibliography.

The content and layout of the content is up to the author.

Copyright is a legal issue and professional advice should be sought if it is important to you. As I understand copyright vests in the author for 50 years from when the work is first published and is denoted by (c) symbol and the year. Where the author is employed to write then the copyright vests with the Employer.

If you have anything to add to this leave a comment or send me an email
Thanks
Ian Franks
mobile@printimage.co.za