Toward More Comprehensible Technical Manual Graphics.

Although technical manuals often consist primarily of graphic material, there is a virtual absence of empirical data on how technical writers and artist might improve the comprehensibility of graphics. This study, sponsored by the Navy Technical Information Presentation Program, evaluated several alternate methods of presenting written material within a graphic. The number, location and sequence of 'callups' were systematically varied in a series of drawings and tried out experimentally on samples of Navy trainees. The major finding was that arranging callouts sequentially provides for good comprehension, even when the number of callouts is large. (Author)