Guides to Interactive Technical Manuals: IETM Documentation

Discover the wonders of Interactive Electronic Technical Manuals (IETMs) as they revolutionize the way we access and navigate complex technical information. From their dynamic hyperlinked structure to the advantages they offer, explore the benefits of IETMs in simplifying complex information for easy access and troubleshooting.

Now, IETM may sound like some fancy technical document, but it’s actually way cooler than that. It’s like a software superhero with a web application and a powerful database. It’s interactive and used in electronic devices like systems and PDAs.

But hey, if that explanation didn’t quite click, let me give it another shot. Imagine buying a car and getting a user manual that’s as thick as a brick with 1000 pages. Well, when big vehicles or machinery with lots of subsystems are delivered by the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), they also provide hard copies of manuals. These manuals cover everything from user instructions to maintenance, troubleshooting, and more. And let me tell you, the volume of hard copies can reach a staggering 3000 per subsystem!

Now, for huge systems like missiles, ships, and radars, with countless subsystems, the OEMs have to supply a mind-boggling number of hard copies — around 20,000 to 50,000 — to the Army, Navy, or Air Force. And that’s not all! They also have to provide training videos, computer-based training, and soft copies of manuals in PDF format.

But here’s the problem: when trouble strikes, it’s a nightmare to sift through 30,000 pages and cross-reference information spread across separate hard copies. It’s like searching for a needle in a haystack!

Enter the Interactive Electronic Technical Manual, also known as IETM, our trusty lifesaver. IETMs are like digital superheroes. They combine all those manuals into one electronic marvel with hyperlinks for easy navigation. Think of it like different levels of awesomeness. We used to have Level 1 and 2, which were like PDFs and indexed PDFs, but they’re not used much anymore. The real deal is Level 3, which uses HTML-based indexed files when there are around 3000 to 4000 pages.

But wait, there’s more! When we’re talking about systems with more than 25,000 pages, we kick it up a notch and bring in the Database to save the day. Yep, all the content and manuals are transformed into an SQL database — fancy talk for a Common Source DataBase (CSDB). They’re organized in a hierarchical structure with user management and authoring functionalities. We call this Level 4, the software that manages thousands of pages and keeps everything in order. And if you want even more advanced features like intelligent search and user activity tracking, we’ve got Level 5!

Just so you know, there are some standards for IETMs. We’ve got JSG — 0852:2001, the Indian Standard, and s1000d, the European Standard. We’re super proud to be associated with the Indian Defense and have been supplying our top-notch IETM Framework to the Army, Navy, and Air Force since 2013. We’re also working with other defense agencies like DRDO, ASL, BDL, ECIL, and various OEMs who provide systems and subsystems.

Oh, and here’s a little tip: if the Navy or Air Force wants s1000d IETMs, they need to have their own CSDB server to host all those data modules. If they don’t, they can still use IETM, but it’ll be a standalone version without fancy user management. And if you’re an OEM and they ask you for s1000d, make sure to ask them