The end-user documentation or HelpHub will go through a transformation, both in the design and the site map.
The refinements in the template will improve the user experience while searching for information. These improvements include one landing page for end-user and developers documentation that will be called Documentation. This is the entry port to both HelpHub and DevHub. Although this article focuses on HelpHub, there will be changes for DevHub in the future.
Better search
The new site map includes 4 main categories and subcategories under each. This will improve search and allow new articles to be added into the existing categories without creating a ‘miscellaneous’ category.
New features
Documentation will have a new header. The team is dropping the word ‘Support’ and replacing it with ‘Documentation’. This area of the website will contain reference information rather than be a place where users interact with the Support team as described in the Renaming WordPress.org Support to Documentation.
A changelog was added to keep historic information on each article. The user will have a better idea of how recent the information is.
Other features that will help searching are the breadcrumbs, a new documentation submenu to the categories, a more prominent table of content and, a highlighted link to Support Forums.
Another new feature was the retirement of the hash character at the end of the headlines as they were an accessibility issue and caused visual noise. The hash has been replaced by a link icon.
Documentation on mobile
The mobile version offers faster access to the specific topic in the article by using accordions to navigate long articles on mobile. The breadcrumbs, search and table of contents will remain at the top of the article.
The design
The design follows the style set by the News redesign. It is cleaner, jazzier and the new template opens the canvas to improve readability. Using also the same typography connects this design to the redesign of WordPress.
The color palette is simple and muted so as to not interfere with the multiple videos and screenshots used within the articles.
The work started at WCEU 2019 Contributors Day in Berlin. The following articles describe the work previously done.
- Findings in the reclassification of WordPress.org documentation
- Exploration of a new classification for end-user documentation
- Requirements for a new design for the article pages in end-user documentation
- Update on the revision of documentation
- The hashtag and its future in documentation articles
- First review on the new site map for HelpHub
- Reclassification of end-user documentation
Props to @milana_cap, @kenshino, and @atachibana for their direction on this project.
Props to @tobiasfeistmantl, @fmellitzer, @davidvie, @majaloncar, @pendraq, @igorel, @nobnob, @marcio-zebedeu, @chaion07, @netpassprodsr, @bph, @timohaver, @dmivelli, who contributed to the reclassification project.
Props to @melchoyce, @karmatosed, and @beafialho for their design guidance.
Props to @webcommsat and @marybaum for reviewing and editing help of this article.