Anyone can write instructions, they say, especially in the age of AI. Just write a list of steps and add a screenshot or two, and that’s it. I wanted to play devil’s advocate, so I fired up ChatGPT to see if - through the eyes of someone who writes and edits knowledge articles daily - these claims hold any weight.

Let’s start with a TL; DR I hope is rather obvious: Things are seldom black and white. Knowledge articles are not just set of instructions; they are also an authority behind a procedure, a responsibility behind claims, and grounds for support services when the instructions fail. AI instructions don’t contain these qualities.

The Scenario: Taking Photos with an iPhone

I wanted to use a standard, well-documented procedure, so I asked ChatGPT how to take photos on an iPhone. A quick look glimpse showed me ChatGPT’s instructions weren’t bad. It’s easy to get by if you’re familiar with an iPhone and basic camera functions, and most people probably are. Here are the instructions, pasted here for convenience:

How to Take a Photo with an iPhone

  1. Unlock Your iPhone: If your iPhone is locked, press the Sleep/Wake button (located on the right side of most models) or use Face ID or Touch ID to unlock it.
  2. Access the Camera App: Locate the Camera app icon on your iPhone’s home screen; it looks like a camera. Tap the Camera app icon to open it.
  3. Choose a Camera Mode: The Camera app usually opens in Photo mode, which is the default mode for taking standard pictures. Swipe left or right on the screen to select different modes, such as Portrait, Video, Slo-Mo, Time-Lapse, and more, depending on your iPhone model and software version.
  4. Frame Your Shot: Use your iPhone’s display as your viewfinder to compose your shot. Tap on the screen where you want to set the focus and adjust the exposure by sliding your finger up or down on the screen. Make sure your subject is well-framed.
  5. Capture the Photo:
    • For iPhones with a physical Home button (older models), press the circular button at the bottom center of the device to take the photo.
    • For iPhones without a Home button (iPhone X and later), tap the white or red circular button at the bottom center of the screen to capture the photo.
  6. Review Your Photo: After taking the photo, swipe left to view the picture in the Photos app or tap on the preview thumbnail in the lower-left corner of the Camera app to see it.
  7. Edit and Share (Optional): If you wish to make edits to your photo, tap the “Edit” button when viewing the photo in the Photos app. After editing, tap the share icon (a square with an upward-pointing arrow) to share the photo with others via messaging, email, social media, or other apps.
  8. Save Your Photo: Your photo will automatically be saved to the Photos app on your iPhone. It will be organized into your Camera Roll or other albums based on your settings.

Remember that your iPhone camera may have additional features like HDR, Live Photos, and various filters, which you can explore within the Camera app to enhance your photography experience. The exact steps may vary slightly depending on your iPhone model and the version of iOS or iPadOS you’re using.

Things Fall Apart

This doesn’t look too bad, right? As an iPhone user, I’d say so myself. The problems start to show if you don’t have an experience with an iPhone or taking photos. But let me take a step back first and give you the bigger picture.

You see, as a technical writer, writing instructions is usually the last thing I do. The first two important steps (that missing here) are research and testing.

I won’t claim to test everything I ever wrote instructions about. I often rely on other credible sources. In the case above, I could reach out to our Apple sysadmin for review and a crew of service desk technicians for testing. Since I have an iPhone, I would also test the procedure myself, grab screenshots, and take note of problems I encounter.

See that last paragraph in the instructions? It leaves it to the user to figure out things on their own. It has no room here. These are instructions for a procedure, not a workshop with creativity-exploring exercises. For a big organization, this could mean a day in hell for Desktop Support technicians who would need to help an overwhelming number of users determine their iOS version or “explore” the “various filters” within the Camera app. What filters? Are they needed, and What for? And these are just a couple of examples.

For research, I will first determine which iOS version the instructions are for specifically and highlight the “Apple terms” that might not be familiar to some users, like Touch ID or Face ID, or even the Home bottom (on Android, users had three buttons for a very long time). This leads to a good point: style guides.

At work, I try to follow the Microsoft style guide where possible (this is because this guide is one of the most common and available). A term like “Touch ID” would be in bold, indicating this is a specific term to iOS, not a common phrase like file or “camera” or “photos” (not to be confused with Photos, the app, which should be bolded). It’s also good practice to link references to these terms directly so users can catch on quickly.

Speaking of users, who are we writing these instructions for? Is it for Android users? iPhone users? Photographers maybe? When in doubt, I try to keep instructions at their most basic level without over-explaining terms that should be familiar - and that “should” is already a dangerous assumption. For better delivery, this article could refer users who need more information to Apple’s support article about the camera app and the iPhone manual.

And yet another issue while we’re speaking of the audience: level of access. Certain data (images included) should only be accessible to employees, sometimes specific employees with specific access. While this can be regulated by AI, deciding what level of access an article needs can be difficult.

In the example above, the instructions need to specify if certain pictures cannot be shared outside of the organization. There should be a link or a reference to what procedure should be followed (if at all) to share pictures. Note that while these instructions are not about sharing photos, which is a different topic altogether, we must assume that users who need to take photos might also need to share them. This kind of connection we make as humans is hard for AI to do, yet it may be critical.

These are just a few of the problems I see in the above article. It’s worth mentioning that the information needed to resolve these issues is almost never available to me by default at work. I have to find the right people who have the responsibility for the information and ask questions. It’s not uncommon that these questions alone can stall publishing instructions while the different parties involved debate the issues and try to come up with answers. Asking dynamic questions is a crucial part of technical writing.

AI is a tool, not a complete solution

At this point, I see AI as a tool to help streamline parts of a complex process. I believe many organizations (especially those involved in technology directly) rush to use AI as the new “cool” tech. That’s unfortunate because it hurts the quality of their services and products.

AI doesn’t cater to those at the margins with different needs. It is programmed to work with a “most probable use case,” not those exceptional times when something goes wrong. It’s in these times, when help is needed most, that AI fails.

With AI replacing humans, the need for innovation and improvement disappears because those depend on failure outside of the scope of automatic programming. Things go wrong when something unexpected happens, and the solution is usually an improvement to the system. With AI, responsibility disappears, and with it, morality and business ethics. We humans are not perfect boxes that fit into algorithms, no matter how much the CEOs of big tech companies want us to be.

I plan to keep using some of the AI tools available, but just as tools. I enjoy writing and learning about technology, and I can’t imagine letting AI take all the fun. Sure, it takes more time, but I’d argue it brings much more quality to the table.