Tutorial format?

[MrCastle]

Just wondering what people prefer in terms of tutorial format.
By format I mean the way in which it is presented, how it is delivered to the reader/viewer.

You CAN vote for MULTIPLE ANSWERS in the poll.

Normal, article-style tutorials like what is found on the DPS blog most of the time?
Video tutorials, as found on youtube, google video or other like web sites?
Power point style presentation tutorials (slide by slide) viewable in the browser, without having to download anything?

With as many examples as possible (lot's and lot's of photographs)?
Do you prefer lot's of photos taken off of flickr or less photos, but commented as to why they work and how it was done?

Why am I wondering this?
Because, if I write a tutorial, I want people to like it!

[Nathan deGargoyle]

I don't like video tuts. If I can't follow a text tut I stasnd no chance with a video.

[rediguana]

Re: video - I ignore most of these tuts on the net as they take too long to watch, and you can't skim them and find the good stuff, and neither are they searchable (e.g. text can be found via Google)

Re: powerpoint - the bane of information transfer. Nuff said!

[LightChaser]

An article works best.

Photos, examples, illustrations, and other visual aids are not a requirement, but usually help a lot.

Unless the tutorial is really long, keeping it all in one page is very much appreciated.

DPS & Strobist are good examples of tutorial sites.

[wulf]

The exact presentation depends on the aim of the tutorial. If it seeks to inspire, then lots of excellent pictures are good; if it seeks to educate, it might be better to start with one picture and then explore how it was created (additional shots of the set up and any stages of post-processing would be good supplements).

I don't like standalone video or powerpoint type tutorials. They demand time to watch and then, if they turned out to be any good, it is hard to follow them. A page of information is much easier - you can skim ahead and then return to concentrate on the details. I think the best place for those media is to supplement one of the other formats - for example, "here is a slideshow of ten pictures taken with this type of lens", "here is a video which shows me setting up and taking the shot" or "here is a screencast of the simple postprocessing steps outlined, so you can see just quick and easy it is".

Wulf

[lputman]

I agree with 100% Wulf.

I would like to be able to print the tutorial as often times websites be extinct and bookmarked tuts are no longer. I actually like the ones where there is already a pdf file for downloading and if not, then at least the ability to create my own pdf of it.

[MrCastle]

Well, it seems the most popular is by far the "normal" article style tutorial.

As for shots, I might just have to but up some commented ones and a few particularly good ones with a bunch of comments!

Thanks for the input!

[Jcas]

I voted for normal article style, i find them easier to follow, easier to copy/paste should i want to print the article too .

I must admit i won't even view a video tut.

[Scatterbrain]

A combination. I'm more likely to scan through a normal tutorial regardless of the subject, but I'm only likely to watch a tutorial if it's something I'm particularly interested in or really complicated.