of vital material. Don't put a huge amount of time, resources, and energy into something only to lose it. Always keep at least one hard copy in a safe place, and back up all files in whatever way your office has set up to do so.

5. Tell the masses. When you're finished with your manual, let employees know, and not only your new hires

Putting together a computerized training manual for your workplace can be a wonderful step towards a paperless office. It can also be a tricky proposition. Here are a few helpful hints for putting together computerized training materials for your place of business:

1. Get organized. Oftentimes, there are a number of people working on training materials to go into the manual. On a shared drive -- if available -- create one file folder to contain all materials. Make additional folders within the main folder to better organize the documents in your training manual by category.

2. Update. As you're collecting material for the new, computerized training material, be sure to update any out-of-date material and add new information as needed.

3. Keep it current. Update your materials often. The very nature of a computerized training manual makes it easier to update on a regular basis. Don't let things pile up. An update here and there is painless. It's when the updates add up that leads to frustration and time-consumption.

5. Make sure to keep files read-only for all except those who will need to make changes. Many software packages allow files to be password protected. Without the password, they are available as read-only documents.

4. Keep backups. Backups are all important. Training manuals can be extensive collections of vital material. Don't put a huge amount of time, resources, and energy into something only to lose it. Always keep at least one hard copy in a safe place, and back up all files in whatever way your office has set up to do so.

5. Tell the masses. When you're finished with your manual, let employees know, and not only your new hires b

raining materials to go into the manual. On a shared drive -- if available -- create one file folder to contain all materials. Make additional folders within the main folder to better organize the documents in your training manual by category.

2. Update. As you're collecting material for the new, computerized training material, be sure to update any out-of-date material and add new information as needed.

3. Keep it current. Update your materials often. The very nature of a computerized training manual makes it easier to update on a regular basis. Don't let things pile up. An update here and there is painless. It's when the updates add up that leads to frustration and time-consumption.

5. Make sure to keep files read-only for all except those who will need to make changes. Many software packages allow files to be password protected. Without the password, they are available as read-only documents.

4. Keep backups. Backups are all important. Training manuals can be extensive collections of vital material. Don't put a huge amount of time, resources, and energy into something only to lose it. Always keep at least one hard copy in a safe place, and back up all files in whatever way your office has set up to do so.

5. Tell the masses. When you're finished with your manual, let employees know, and not only your new hires

e to update any out-of-date material and add new information as needed.

3. Keep it current. Update your materials often. The very nature of a computerized training manual makes it easier to update on a regular basis. Don't let things pile up. An update here and there is painless. It's when the updates add up that leads to frustration and time-consumption.

5. Make sure to keep files read-only for all except those who will need to make changes. Many software packages allow files to be password protected. Without the password, they are available as read-only documents.

4. Keep backups. Backups are all important. Training manuals can be extensive collections of vital material. Don't put a huge amount of time, resources, and energy into something only to lose it. Always keep at least one hard copy in a safe place, and back up all files in whatever way your office has set up to do so.

5. Tell the masses. When you're finished with your manual, let employees know, and not only your new hires

and time-consumption.

5. Make sure to keep files read-only for all except those who will need to make changes. Many software packages allow files to be password protected. Without the password, they are available as read-only documents.

4. Keep backups. Backups are all important. Training manuals can be extensive collections of vital material. Don't put a huge amount of time, resources, and energy into something only to lose it. Always keep at least one hard copy in a safe place, and back up all files in whatever way your office has set up to do so.

5. Tell the masses. When you're finished with your manual, let employees know, and not only your new hires

of vital material. Don't put a huge amount of time, resources, and energy into something only to lose it. Always keep at least one hard copy in a safe place, and back up all files in whatever way your office has set up to do so.

5. Tell the masses. When you're finished with your manual, let employees know, and not only your new hires but all employees. The idea of a computerized training manual is to make informational materials available to everybody with ease, but if nobody knows it's there, it won't do anyone any good. So send out an email to anyone who might be interested, including management and Human Resources.

6. Be open to feedback. The training manual is meant to be user-friendly to the employees of your company. So don't be afraid to listen to feedback, criticisms and suggestions offered upon the inception of your computerized training manual.

Keeping the above in mind, you can create a computerized training manual painlessly. And with a little time and attention, a computerized training manual can be one of the best things to happen to your office.