Spectrum Bookshelf

[Stuart Weenig]

In case you haven't noticed that CA Support revamped the product support pages into a useless search engine, CA Support revamped the product support pages into a useless search engine.

 

I went looking for the #spectrum #bookshelf and couldn't find it. I searched for bookshelf, install guide, admin guide, and still couldn't find it. I eventually found a related bookshelf book and noticed that within the book there was a link to go back to the bookshelf. If you're looking for it, here it is.

[kiran_diwakar]

Hi Stuart,

Was this addressed? Are you still looking for some more info?

Regards,

Kiran Diwakar

[Stuart Weenig]

Not to my satisfaction. Support squirrelled away the bookshelf in favor of a poor search. I'll probably start a document containing all the direct links to the bookshelves.

[Renato Orgito]

I thought this was very frustrating too.

[kiran_diwakar]

Hi Stuart, Renato,

 

I am sorry, I am confused. The link Stuart has is for 9.3

https://support.ca.com/cadocs/0/CA%20Spectrum%209%204%200-ENU/Bookshelf.html

 

We have a similar link for 9.4:

https://support.ca.com/cadocs/0/CA%20Spectrum%209%203%200-ENU/Bookshelf.html

 

This is the bookshelf format for the last few releases. Before that we had individual PDF guides that needed to be searched through for content. The current bookshelf has clear categories, a broad search capability across all the documents, some use case driven scenarios and a lot more. We were looking forward to a web based doc structure like this.

 

With this said, are you folks suggesting that the new bookshelf format is not helpful? Can I please request you to elaborate a bit? I would request other members to chime in as well because this would be critical feedback on an important change we have made consciously, If it is not working out well, we need to know.

 

Regards,

Kiran Diwakar

[Stuart Weenig]

The bookshelf is actually the most handy part about this whole thing. I've grown accustomed to the way the bookshelves are organized. It's nice to have a similar format for every product. Unless i use the links that take me directly to the bookshelf (like the link I provided and the links you provided) I have to go to the support site and search. That's when I usually go to 'Product by Support' and try to get to the Spectrum home page (or for whatever product). However, since the most recent change, when I go to the product support page, instead of getting to a page that links to all the bookshelves like it used to, I get to a search page. I tried searching on that page for 'adminstrator guide' and got this, which is the admin guide for 9.2.3. I would be happy to get in a screen sharing session and show you what I mean.

 

My frustration is not with the bookshelf itself, but finding the bookshelf, which is why i posted the direct link. Now that you've posted the link to the 9.4 bookshelf, i'll have that bookmarked as soon as we start upgrading (instead of my bookmark for the 9.3 bookshelf).

I see that both URLs you posted are different, but after clicking on both, they both say 9.3 in the big grey bar at the top. Typo?

[kiran_diwakar]

I see what you saying Stuart. Let me check with the writers.

By the way, I interchanged the 9.4 and 9.4 links above Sorry for that.

Regards,

Kiran Diwakar

[kiran_diwakar]

Ok Stuart, here is the current analysis:

 

There are 2 different ways to access the bookshelf:

1. The way you access. Per our team that is not the best way - but it should work. There is an issue with the search on support site (that led to your frustration). We already have a ticket with our GIS to look into that and fix this, we will keep you posted.

 

2.    This is the most optimal and recommended by our internal teams:

          1.       Log in to https://support.ca.com/.

          2.       Select Documentation from the left panel.

          3.       Select the bookshelf from the Select a Bookshelf drop down list, and click Go. This step will take you to                    the bookshelf—the direct link.  You will see bookshelves from 9.2.1.

 

And ofcourse you have the direct links from me

 

We will work towards the search issue with the first and keep you posted once it gets resolved, so you can continue to use your convenient mechanism.

Regards,

Kiran Diwakar

[Stuart Weenig]

I'll take option 2, very easy just not very intuitive.

 

In option 1, are you referring to trying to find the bookshelf from the product support page? That is the most logical place I would look as a new customer for the bookshelf, so it should (IMHO) be the easiest, however today it's not. The search doesn't have an option to filter by version number. It's got the option to filter by year, but who wants anything from any year other than the current one? That filter control should be replace with a version filter control.

[Anon Anon]

Most of this site is very poorly laid out / designed to be honest.

 

I assume CA have taken the big corporate approach of giving each section (support, community, education, documentation etc) to different teams with no interaction with each other and then just welded all the sections together?

 

Trying to find my learning plan took me so long I considered asking CA to develop a course on how to navigate the website.

[kiran_diwakar]

Hi Socky,

Thanks for the critical feedback, we appreciate your time for this.

 

Here is how it works for us.

We do have a central team that looks after the overall web-design and maintenance of the page (not content).

All the products need to follow this layout and only populate content where the central team allows you to do.

 

So in a way you are right, that there are different teams like support, tech-writing, legal that use different sections of the support page and populate their content.

Do note that all the content needs to be reviewed and I personally am the gating point to publishing most content, so essentially there are strict reviews.

 

Having said this, I have already forwarded Stuart's and now your concern to the centralized team as well as our tech-writers. As I assured in my earlier update, I will get back to this team with a response for search not working and also the views of our central web-team about your difficulties and what can be done.

 

If I may, what would be an easy solution according to you?

 

@Trying to find my learning plan took me so long I considered asking CA to develop a course on how to navigate the website.

Good one

 

Regards,

Kiran Diwakar

[Anon Anon]

Probably no such thing as an easy solution with a site with as much content as this, but I find the overall flow of the website very poor. From using the site you'd know it's a collection of sites jumbled together into one 'portal' - The support section flows perfectly, the communities section seems to drown in the amount of content there and the learning portal is like a puzzle.

 

 

Thanks for your reply

Tim