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How to Write Compelling Release Announcements

(refactoringenglish.com)
69 points mtlynch | 1 comments | 25 Jun 25 14:22 UTC | HN request time: 0.226s | source
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simonw ◴[25 Jun 25 14:49 UTC] No.44377996[source]▶
This is good. I realized last year that every time I release a new version of my software is a chance for people who have never heard of that software to get their first exposure to it.

As such, I've tried to put more effort into my release notes - based on the idea that some of the people who read them may not have experienced the software before.

I had not considered the difference between release notes and a release announcement as described here. I will be thinking about that in the future.

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1. mtlynch ◴[25 Jun 25 15:21 UTC] No.44378347[source]▶
Thanks for reading, Simon!

>I've tried to put more effort into my release notes - based on the idea that some of the people who read them may not have experienced the software before.

That's something I try to be mindful of as well. If I think someone might discover a release announcement that isn't already a user, I want it to be easy for them to understand what the software does at all.

I see so many posts reach the front page of HN that are like, "OpenVQ7 reaches 1.0 release" and the post never explains what the heck OpenVQ7 is at all. And I always feel like, "Just add one sentence explaining what this is." You're not going to alienate your existing users with a one-sentence explanation, even if it's something they already know.