3  Helper Pages

Helper pages are optional support pages that sit between the cover and the main workflow.

Use a helper page when operators need preliminary shared context that does not belong to a single procedure page, for example:

• credential setup;
• cluster access notes;
• repeated shell commands;
• reusable helper code;
• warnings about institutional or platform constraints.

3.1 Authoring Notes

Do not add helper pages by default. If a manual can stay clear without them, the manual should stay smaller. A good rule of thumb is that a task that leads to the final outcome should be in a Manual Page; a task that is required for all of the steps to work, but is not itself a step toward the final outcome, should be in a Helper Page. For example, API Keys.