Types of Technical Documentation Ebook

Types of Technical Documents

Contents
Introduction 6
How to Write Effective Documentation 7
Study 7
Plan 9
Write 10
Good and Bad Technical Documentation Examples 13
Lists 13
Screenshots and Images 14
Delivery Speed 15
Consistency 15
Readability Score 16
Types of Technical Documentation 17
By Readers 18
By Industry 19
Education 19
IT 20
Medicine 20
Other Types of Technical Documentation 21
API Documentation 22

Context Sensitive Help 23
Datasheet 24
E-learning Guide 25
Employee Handbook 25
Executive Summary 26
External Documentation 26
FAQ 27

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Hardware Manual 27

How-to Guide 27
Installation Guide 28
Instruction Manual 28
Internal Documentation 28
Maintenance Manual 29
Market Requirements Document 29
Memo 29
Operation and Maintenance Manual 30
Operation Manual 30
Operations Manual 30
Policy and Procedure Manual 31
Press Release 32
Process Document 33
Product Description 33
Programmer Guide 33
Proposal 34
Quick Start Guide 34
Release Notes 34
Report 35
RFP Document 35
RFQ Document 35
SDK Documentation 36
Software Documentation 36
Technical Report 37

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Technical Specification 38

Technical Standard 38
Training Manual 39
Troubleshooting Documentation 40
User Guide (Manual) 40
User Requirements Document 40
White Paper 41
Conclusion 42

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Introduction
Technical writing belongs to the broad field of technical communication.
Technical communicators include technical content developers,
technical editors, technical proofreaders, and other professionals. The
word “technical” here is what matters. Unlike other writers and content
creators, technical writers are like translators: they have a piece of
technology and their task is to explain to a non-expert how to use it in
clear, accurate and easy-to-understand manner.
Unlike other sorts of writing, the main aim of technical writing is to help

users achieve their goals by using a product. It’s possible only through
clear and easy-to-interpret documentation. That's why there are so
many different types of documentation. Whether you’re a novice or
experienced tech writer, you should know the most popular types of
documentation because every type implies different content, style and
so on.
That’s why we create this ebook1. It will be useful for technical writers
who are at the beginning of their professional journey and for
experienced specialists who want to grow and improve skills. Here
you'll find tips on how to write effective documentation, examples of
1
Disclaimer: This e-book is designed for information purposes only. The publisher and the author(s)
is not engaged to render any type of psychological, legal, or any other kind of professional advice.
The content of each article is the sole expression and opinion of its author(s) and publisher. No
warranties or guarantees are expressed or implied with this e-book. Neither the publisher nor the
individual author(s) shall be liable for any physical, psychological, emotional, financial, or commercial
issues, including, but not limited to, special, incidental, consequential or other issues. You are
responsible for your own choices, actions, and results that might arise due to the use or misuse of this
e-book.

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good and bad technical documentation, and, most importantly,

different types of documentation.
How to Write Effective Documentation
The main goal of a technical writer is to create effective documentation
that a user will gladly read. However, how to write high-quality
documentation? Here is a quick step-by-step instruction into creating
effective documentation.
Study
Writing documentation starts with some preparation. There are

basically two main things to study here: the subject of a manual and the
target audience. These two go hand in hand.
To be able to create clear and helpful manuals, technical writers need to
study the subject with great attention to details. With this learning
process comes the understanding of the target audience.
For whom you are creating a document is the key moment, so let's take

a closer look. You should not just know your audience, you must be
able to adapt documentation. Although the basic principles of technical
documentation remain the same - you need to explain your subject in
the most concise, neutral and structured manner - different groups of
readers require a different approach.

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So, you’ll have to figure out the level of knowledge of your target
audience on the subject in question. When creating documentation for
professionals, you need to really go in depth. If you are writing for
novice users, make sure to cover all the key moments and leave out
more complicated stuff that a novice reader won't need and will just
find confusing.
Let’s take IKEA as an example of a novice user manual. IKEA furniture is

bought and assembled all over the world by regular people, only a few
of them are professional furniture assemblers. The IKEA technical
writers have basically created their own language to communicate with
people on a topic their clients might be completely ignorant. The IKEA
documentation specialists needed to develop a user manual that would
be understood by representatives of any field and almost any age.

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How’s that for a task? This is a great example of working with the target

audience.
Plan
Planning is very important. Poor planning can cause implementation

delays or, sometimes, due to sloppy planning the whole project
requires re-doing. Certainly, we wouldn't want that.
So, what’s the best approach here? A documentation plan! In short, a
documentation plan is a document containing all the necessary
information for reference when working on a manual or guide, such as:
general information about the project, tools used, timeframes,
workflow details, etc.

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The idea behind such a plan being - all the people involved in the
project will have access to all the info they might need. First and
foremost, this approach provides consistency and definitely saves time.
The planning part also includes structuring future help topics. It is very
important to organize everything into a system prior to actual writing.
Some documentation projects include hundreds of topics. Just imagine
the pain of restructuring the whole thing later!
Write
At this stage, the actual technical writing is done. How can one improve
this process? In the quite recent past, technical writers worked with
basic text editors, and some companies still do.

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This can be easily explained - when you have a steady workflow, you’ve
been using for years, you might be reluctant to change it. But, the thing
is, the market of tech writing tools has been around for a while now and
has much to offer.
Help authoring tools are tailored specifically for technical writers’ needs.
They are meant to make the technical writing process more efficient
and enjoyable.
The most useful help authoring tool features would be:
● Single-sourcing techniques that allow you to create different

outputs of the same documentation using conditional content,
variables, etc.
● Teamwork and workflow options (including roles, topic completion
statuses, etc.)
● Pre-made elements (warning and information boxes, quick
navigation elements)
● Numerous import/export formats (this will make the initial
process of migrating to a help authoring tool easier, as well)
● Ready-to-use templates. In tools, such as ClickHelp, these
templates are created with design trends and tech writing needs
in mind. Check out this post on design tips for online
documentation and see for yourself.
We’ve mentioned just a few features you might find useful for your
documentation project. In reality, online documentation tools have a lot
more to offer.

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So, these are the main phases of an average documentation authoring
process. It is highly important to think every project through thoroughly
to receive great results. Be consistent and never underestimate
planning. To become more efficient at creating documentation try using
help authoring tools.

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Good and Bad Technical Documentation Examples
Are your user manuals good or bad? Let’s run them through our quick
checklist. Don’t get discouraged if it turns out to be not perfect, this
topic contains a lot of ideas to follow that can change your user
manuals for the better!
Lists
In bad user manuals, lists of steps for instructions are not-ordered.
Simple bulleted lists are used instead. This is very inconvenient to follow
such a list when you are trying to use some instruction.
Good user manuals always feature ordered lists of instructions. This
works great for readers and support engineers as lists make it so much

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easier to refer to steps when they are numbered. Here’s an article on
using lists correctly in technical documents that will help you avoid
many common mistakes.
Screenshots and Images
Bad technical documentation has few or next to no images in it. First,
this just looks lazy. Second, it makes understanding harder for readers.
Another way to ruin a help topic is to add screenshots/images without
proper text descriptions - these are very annoying to decipher.
Good documentation has plenty of images. Any screenshot is always
followed by some description. Also, two screenshots never appear next
to each other without an individual capture.
It is a good practice to keep in mind the image size (when we are talking

about online documentation). Ideally, your images should be of decent
quality, but quite light at the same time. Heavy images lead to slow
page load and high traffic consumption.

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Delivery Speed
Bad documentation takes a lot of time to be delivered. This can happen

due to many factors including the absence of a help authoring tool.
Online documentation tools make content creation swift and easy.
Good technical documentation is reusable and takes less time and
effort to be created. Taking advantage of a HAT's functionality can be a
game changer. Technical writing tools help to organize teamwork, reuse
content with single-sourcing techniques, write help topics faster with
powerful WYSIWYG editors.
Consistency
Bad user manuals look and feel inconsistent. This happens because
often many technical writers can be working on the same project and

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this can lead to diversity in texts. Like, different terms can be used to
describe similar processes, page layouts can look entirely different, etc.
Good documentation teams have a style guide and a documentation

plan. These two are used by all team members, and they ensure there
are no noticeable differences in style throughout the whole
documentation project.
Readability Score
Bad user manuals are hard to read. You really need to put some effort
to understand all the terms and break down long complex sentences.
Terms are not explained, text contains just a few links/references.
Good user manuals are checked with readability score tools. This
means that the content runs through different tests and it gets a
readability score based on various algorithms (word length, sentence

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length, frequency of word usage, quantity of terms in a text). If the
score is not satisfactory, user manuals are re-written.
There are many differences between good and bad technical

documentation. Often, the devil is in the details and smaller things like
poor font choice or too many abbreviations and neologisms or even
bad screenshot quality (we are not only talking about their resolution
here) can put people off.
Types of Technical Documentation

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In this topic we will describe how documentation types can be classified

and provide examples.
By Readers
Depending on who your readers are - customers or employees, two
types of documents can be identified: internal and external.
Internal documentation describes information on how the review

process works. It includes release process checklists, schedules, and
style guides. For developers, internal documentation may consist of
details on which tools to use for development, which coding practices to
follow, how to use the build process, etc. It may also include details
about what to do to deploy or release a product.
External documentation includes a detailed description of the design,

implementation of the program features, or installation of the particular
software. This type of technical documents is usually developed for
customers.
The main difference between internal and external documentation is

that internal documentation explains how the code works, while
external technical documents describe how to use the final
product/deliverable.

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By Industry
Technical documentation is used in different industries and it can be
classified according to these criteria:
Education
The education industry usually involves guides; for example, an

eLearning guide is a comprehensive document that contains
information and requirements for creating standardized guides to
e-learning. It may include audio, video, and interactive elements, so all
members can use one standardized book to create eLearning guides
throughout the whole e-learning process.

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IT
Technical writers, who work in IT, usually create API documentation,
software documentation, guides and so on. For example, software
documentation is written material that can include images or video
instructions that come with computer software. As a rule, software
documentation explains how to use a program or a service.
Medicine
However, not only technical writers create documentation; you can be
surprised but nurses, for example, also can be considered technical
writers because they should record a detailed history of a patient’s past
illnesses, chronic conditions, treatments, medications, surgeries,
therapies, and hospitalizations. This type of documents is called medical
records. Medical records are critical to ensuring that patients receive
proper care, so nurses must have excellent writing skills to do
recordkeeping perfectly.
Moreover, typical technical documentation types like user guides,

manuals are also created in this sphere to help medical personnel use
new pieces of equipment correctly.

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Other Types of Technical Documentation
The number of classifications and lists of technical documents is
endless. So, you’ll find more types of technical documents further.
Administrative Guidance
An administrative Guide is a list of non-binding recommendations that’s

developed by the administrative agency. It describes how to comply
with a particular regulation or law. Guidance is used to interpret a
nonspecific or vague requirement or law.
Usually, guidance documents include standards or expectations which

are part of a requirement or rule. Administrative guidance documents
also explain internal practices or policies to simplify an organization's
interactions. For example, a guidance document could explain how to

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write a report, what information it should contain before submitting a

complaint.
API Documentation
API (or Application Programming Interface) refers to a set of rules
(functions, variables, classes, protocols, etc.) that specific systems
(applications, libraries) use to communicate with each other.
The API documentation is a technical writing deliverable, containing

instructions about how to effectively use and integrate with an API. It’s
usually supported by tutorials and examples with details about the
functions, classes, return types, arguments, and more.
The basic requirements for API documentation are the same as for any
piece of technical documents: it should be easy to learn, easy to follow,
hard to misuse and always be up-to-date.
Programmers often generate API documentation with different tools,

but this approach has its cons against professional technical writing
solutions. Many programmers think that auto-generated docs are
sufficient, but in most cases, it’s not true. Advanced solutions for
technical documentation allow formatting, designing your code

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snippets and the whole look of the docs, creating advanced navigation
and using search as well as many other opportunities. You don’t need
to create a website or a Wordpress page with API docs - many modern
content management systems offer a hosted online documentation
portal.
Context Sensitive Help
Also known as CSH or Context Help. This is a type of Online Help, but it
is delivered in-product, providing assistance depending on the current
state of the application (context).
As a rule, context help is not available as a single document for all
application functions. Each piece of this document relates to a specific
application state and extensively describes that state.
The idea behind the concept of context help is that most of the users
are reluctant to turn to a user manual right away when they start
working with new software. Unless some really deep and complex tasks
need to be performed, a user would rather go the easy way and try to
figure out everything without reading documentation. So, context help
becomes a great solution.
Context help can be implemented in different ways:
● tooltips with plain text;

● context-sensitive links to specific topics that open in a new
window;
● floating popup elements with rich text, images, and links;

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● assistant panels with more content, step-by-step UI tutorials, and

even videos;
● full-screen light boxes with rich content.
Context help is also one of the most efficient techniques of case
deflection. The thing is - a user gets help right on the spot, without the
need to go elsewhere to search for answers.
Locating context help elements is very important. Some research or
survey needs to be carried out beforehand to find out the most
confusing or complex spots in the app. And, this is exactly where you’d
want a tooltip or a pop-up to go.
Another important thing for context sensitive help is design. Of course,
approaches differ depending on a context help type since there are so
many. Some tools for creating technical documentation, like ClickHelp,
allow configuring context help to your liking.
Context sensitive help improves the user experience, helps your clients
achieve their goals easier, improves the conversion rate for the trial
version users, deflects support cases. The content for the context help
element may be created by software developers or by professional
technical writers.
Datasheet
A datasheet is a document that’s usually used for technical

communication to describe and summarize the performance and

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technical characteristics of a product, material, component, machine,

and so on.
Usually, a datasheet begins with an introduction that describes the

main idea of the document, and content depends on the type of
datasheet. It can be:
● Material safety data sheets

● Chemical data sheet
● Data sheets for automobiles
● and more.
E-learning Guide
An eLearning guide is a guide that contains information on e-learning. It

may include audio, visuals, and interactive elements, so all members of
the e-learning process can be on the same page throughout the
eLearning course.
Employee Handbook
Employee handbook (employee manual, staff handbook) is an

instructional deliverable given to employees by an employer. It is an
example of internal documentation that may contain the following
types of information:
● General information about the company - its mission, goals,

values.

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● General rules and regulations - all sorts of policies not required by

law.
● Case-specific information - company rules and procedures.
Executive Summary
An executive summary (it’s also known as management summary) is a
short document describing an extensive report so that readers can get
its main idea quickly. It usually contains background information, a brief
statement of the issue, analysis, and conclusions. An executive
summary is used as an aid to decision-making by managers, and it’s
used as a part of the business plan.
The difference between an executive summary and abstract is the
following: an abstract is usually shorter and consists of an overview, but
an executive summary is a part of a document.
External Documentation
External documentation usually consists of user guides and sometimes

includes a detailed description of the design and implementation
features of the program. The documentation team usually develops
external documentation for the customers. The main difference
between internal and external documentation is that internal
documentation explains how the code works, while external technical
documents describe how to use the final product/deliverable.

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FAQ
FAQ stands for Frequently Asked Questions. It’s a list of commonly
asked questions and answers denoted to a particular topic. Here is how
FAQ looks like:
You can create FAQ in online documentation tool, in ClickHelp, for
example. You can easily create FAQ using documentation templates
and publish them.
Hardware Manual
A hardware manual is a technical communication document intended

to assist people in using hardware. Most hardware manuals contain
both a written guide and images.
How-to Guide
A how-to guide is a piece of writing that provides readers with
step-by-step instructions which a user should follow to complete a task,
or gives instructions to a user on how to use a device, for example.

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Installation Guide
Installation guide is a technical communication document intended to

assist people on how to install a particular program. An installation
guide may include the following information:
● The first part of the guide may give general instructions.

● Information on the minimum system requirements.
● Installation methods.
● The last section may contain a list of appendices that provide
more detailed installation notes.
Instruction Manual
An instruction manual is a traditional form of user assistance. It can be
in a printed form or electronically. Usually, an instruction manual
includes installation procedures, a guide on how to use software, the
licensing, and details of a helpline.
Internal Documentation
Internal documentation includes information on how the review

process works, style guides, schedules, release process checklists, etc.
For developers, internal documentation may consist of details on which
tools to use for development, how to use the build process, which
coding practices to follow, the process to release a build to QA for
testing, etc. It may also include details about what to do to deploy or
release a product.

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Maintenance Manual
A maintenance manual is a technical communication document

intended to give recommendations and information necessary to
maintain the system effectively. A maintenance manual may include a
definition of the software support environment, roles, and
responsibilities of the maintenance personnel, regular activities
essential to the support team, and so on.
Market Requirements Document
Market Requirements Document (MRD) is a technical document that

expresses the customer's wants and needs for the product or service. It
usually explains who the target audience is, what products are in
competition with this one, why customers are likely to want this
product.
Memo
A memo is also known as a memorandum, and it’s a communication

note that describes events or observations on a particular topic as it can
be difficult to write all the information in the simple email or
information can be confident. A memorandum is usually used in the
business sphere. Here are some types of memos:
● Directive Memos
● Field Report & Trip Report Memos
● Status Memos, and more

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Operation and Maintenance Manual
Operation and maintenance manual (O&M Manual) is a type of

technical documentation that describes how to use a product correctly
and/or how to troubleshoot problems. They are also known as
operation manuals, operation and installation manuals, operation and
maintenance manuals, setup manuals and so on.
Operation Manual
Operation manual is a technical writing deliverable that instructs the

end-user on the documented product: what it is, what its purpose is,
how to use it safely and how to troubleshoot problems.
It is a kind of deliverable that goes, for example, with any piece of
technology. Imagine that you’ve bought a new printer. When you do the
unpacking, there’s always a user manual included in the package. In
case of a printer, from the operational manual you may find the
description of the product and its functionality, learn how to maintain it,
how to connect it to your PC and so on.
Operations Manual
Operations manual (not to be confused with operation manual) is a
type of technical documentation that is assigned to the employees, and
that instructs them on how to perform their tasks efficiently and safely.
Operations manuals are not training materials - they are employee

handbooks, and their purpose is to remind experienced and qualified

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staff on how to carry out their duties and reduce human errors. It is an
internal knowledge base of the company that may contain the following
information:
● Hierarchy of the company

● Job descriptions
● Documented processes
● Safety instructions
● Emergency procedures
● Contacts
There’s no need to spread printed copies among the staff. Operations
manuals are a part of the internal documentation of the company, and
they can be stored online for quick and easy access. Modern
documentation tools also provide hosted online documentation portals
that allow you to store information in a password-protected place
safely.
Policy and Procedure Manual
Policy and procedure manual is a type of technical documentation that
states business goals and policies and communicates appropriate
standards of action and behavior for the employees.
It contains the company’s best practices, descriptions of the key
business processes, methods, and standards of how work is performed.
Useful manuals provide methods and instructions for staff
communication and their interdepartmental interactions.

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Policy and procedure manuals are an essential management tool. This
document should always be within reach of every employee so that
they could consult it anytime. There’s no need to have a printed copy
for everyone - modern documentation tools allow hosting
password-protected online documentation portals that can be used as
a storage of internal company documentation.
Press Release
A press release (it’s also known as a news release, press statement,
media release) is a document or a video that aims to announce news
about a product. Usually, it’s faxed, mailed, or e-mailed to editors or
journalists at radio stations, television stations, newspapers, magazines,
etc. Press releases are just a page long - two pages.
Here are the usual structural elements:
● Headline
● Dateline
● Introduction
● Body
● Close
● Contact information

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Process Document
These describe the development, testing, maintenance and

improvement of systems. Process documents are used by managers,
engineers, testers, and marketing professionals. These documents
contain technical terms and industry-specific jargon. Examples of this
type of documents include API, SDK and code documentation; internal
development documentation, etc.
Product Description
A product description is a piece of writing that describes the benefits
and features of a product to a customer. The goal of a product
description is to provide enough information to encourage customers
to buy the product. If you want to write a product description that
converts, it should be concise and answer the following questions: what
problems your product solves, what benefits a customer will get from
using your product, why a customer should buy your product. You
should not write just how your product is great. Product descriptions
should contain useful information.
Programmer Guide
A programmer guide is a document that’s written for programmers. It’s

most commonly associated with computer hardware, electronic goods,
and software but they can be written for any product. A programmer
guide can describe information about an application, debugging, and so
on.

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Proposal
A proposal is a document that aims to persuade the reader to approve
a proposed project or implement a proposed plan. It may contain
recommendations, results of surveys, technical background,
information about feasibility, and so on.
Types of proposals:
● Internal and external. Internal proposals are created for

someone within your organization. An external proposal is usually
written for people that are not members of a company.
● Solicited and unsolicited. A solicited proposal is a document that
a recipient has requested. Usually, a company sends out requests
for proposal (RFP) via email, for example. Unsolicited proposals
are those in which the recipient has not requested proposals.
Quick Start Guide
A quick start guide (QSG) is a shortened version of a manual. It aims to
make a buyer familiar with a product quickly. Usually, it describes steps
of using a product so that a buyer can use it without any delay. Also,
QSG can include installation steps. A quick start guide most commonly
focuses on easy instructions with featured illustrations. Concerning the
format, it can be a single A4 sheet, a folded card or a booklet.
Release Notes
It’s a document that describes what has changed in a product. It can
contain description of the new features, bug fixes, upgrade guides and

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so on. Usually, a technical writer creates release notes according to the
information of marketing advisers, product managers, engineering
teams and other subject matter experts.
Report
A report is a document with information that’s written for a specific

audience and purpose. Reports may refer to specific periods, events,
occurrences, or subjects, and may be communicated or presented in a
written or oral form. The standard structure of a report is the following:
introduction, methods, results, and discussion. Reports may feature
tables, graphics, images, and other visual content to make complex
issues more accessible.
RFP Document
RFP stands for a request for proposal. It’s a document that is usually
written by an organization, often a government agency or large
enterprise to get a response from potential vendors for the desired IT
solution. It includes aspects what a customer is looking for and criteria
on which a vendor's proposal will be assessed.
RFQ Document
RFQ stands for a request for quotation. It’s a document that an
organization submits to potential suppliers to elicit quotations for a
product or service. The main goal of RFQ is to get information about
prices for something, for example, hardware. Read about a request for

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proposal. It’s another type of documentation that’s created when an
organization's requirements are more complex.
SDK Documentation
SDK (Software Development Kit) Documentation is a complete set of

APIs that allows you to perform almost any action you would need for
creating applications as well as other tools. All SDKs are/contain APIs
but not all APIs are SDKs.
Software Documentation
Software documentation is written material, images, or video

instructions that come with computer software. As a rule, software
documentation explains how to use a program or a service.
However, there may be different types of software documentation,

depending on the audience it is created for. Here are some examples of
the software documentation types:
● Requirements documentation. Typically created in the beginning

of a software development project. Has the goal to clearly and
precisely specify the expectations in regards to the software being
created. May include functional requirements, limitations,

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hardware or software requirements, compatibility requirements,

and so on.
● Architecture documentation. Defines the high-level architecture of
the software system being created. May describe the main
components of the system, their roles and functions, as well as
the data and control flow among those components.
● Technical documentation - Documentation of the software code,
algorithms, APIs. Written for the technical audience like software
developers.
● End user documentation - Refer to User Guide.
As a rule, there’s a special team in a company occupied with technical
writing - the documentation team. Although, workflows can differ. In
some companies, support, dev or QA can do documentation authoring.
Technical Report
A technical report is a document that describes the progress, results, or

process of scientific or technical research. A technical report may also
include some conclusions and/or recommendations of the research.
Technical reports are considered to be "non-archival" publications so
that they can be published elsewhere in peer-reviewed venues with or
without modification.
Here are types of technical reports:
● Report-length proposal.
● Technical specifications.
● Technical-background report.

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● Primary research report.

● Feasibility, recommendation, and evaluation reports.
● Instructions.
● Business prospectus.
Technical Specification
A technical specification is a type of the technical standard that includes

a set of documented requirements to be satisfied by a product, design,
material, and so on.
There are different types of specifications:
● Requirement specification. It’s a set of documented

requirements.
● Functional specification is a kind of requirement specification
that can include some functional diagrams.
● Design specification describes the features of the design
solutions for the requirement specification.
Technical Standard
A technical standard is a formal document that establishes

requirements in regard to technical systems. It can include uniform
technical or engineering criteria, processes, practices, methods, and the
like.
Technical standards may exist as:
● Public documents, so anybody on the Internet can read them.

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● Private documents owned by an organization; only members of

the organization can read them.
● Controlled documents that contain classified information.
All these types of standards can be created and stored by means of a
help authoring tool that allows content creators to password protect
documents.
Training Manual
A training manual is a booklet or a book with instructions that aim to
improve the quality of a performed task. Usually, training manuals are
used as:
● a general reference document

● an outline during training
● an introduction to the subject matter
● a subject after training
A training manual may be also used as an important part of the training

programme, or it can include information about skills, processes, and
other necessary information that should be gathered in one place.

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Training manuals can be designed as self-paced guides, handouts,

workbooks, job aids and so on.
Troubleshooting Documentation
First of all, what is troubleshooting? Troubleshooting is a process of
searching for the source of a problem in order to solve it. So,
troubleshooting documentation is a technical communication
document intended to give a user or customer information on how to
solve and prevent those problems. It’s commonly written for computer
hardware, electronic goods, and software but they can be written for
any product.
User Guide (Manual)
User guide is a document or a set of documents that give assistance to
the users of a particular system. Most commonly used in the computer
industry - written for computer software or hardware.
User Requirements Document
User Requirements Document (URD) (User Requirements Specification)

is a technical document that specifies what users expect the software to
be able to do. The information documented in a URD is meant to spell
out exactly what the software must do, and becomes part of the
contractual agreement. A customer cannot demand features that are
not in the URD, whilst the developer cannot claim the product ready if it
misses an item of the URD.

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White Paper
A white paper is a report or guide that addresses a particular topic, for
example, help readers understand an issue, make a decision, or solve a
problem. The main goal of a white paper is based on facts and
evidence, but it’s not a marketing document, it’s not about why people
should buy your product. It usually includes a title page, table of
contents, short executive summary, introduction, body with solutions,
and a conclusion. It also can feature images, charts, and so.

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Conclusion
Technical writing may seem difficult because it requires many efforts
like to do research for a particular type of a document, write text that
will be relevant to the document type, style this document to make it
user-friendly and help your readers get the main idea quickly.
However, you can ease your working process to make all these aspects
not so frightening. ClickHelp was made for this purpose to help you
write effective and readable documentation. Also with ClickHelp, you
don't need to style your documentation manually. We have all the
necessary templates for all these types of documentation, so your
technical writing will be enjoyable and easy. You can examine how our
templates were implemented by our users in our Portal Gallery.
For more stories for technical writers, web developers and web
designers willing to grow subscribe to our blog and follow us on
Facebook, Twitter, Medium, Telegram.

Good Luck with your technical writing!
ClickHelp Team

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Types of Technical Documents

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