With no standards, both format and content vary. Generally, release notes are a terse summary of recent changes (not a substitute for a
user guide), written in the present tense and include information such as: ; Header: Document name (i.e. Release Notes), product name, release number, release date, note date, note version, etc. ; Overview: A brief overview of the changes and in the absence of other documentation, the product as well. ; Purpose: Describes the purpose of the document. ; Issues: A list of what is new in the release, including
bug fixes and new features. :; Issue summary: A short description of the bug or the enhancement in the release. :;
Steps to reproduce: The steps that were followed when the bug was encountered. :; Resolution: A short description of the modification/enhancement that was made to fix the bug. ; End-user impact: What different actions are needed by end-users. This should include whether other functionality is impacted by these changes. ; Support impacts: Changes required in the daily process of administering the software. ; Notes: Other information such as
installation, upgrades and product documentation (including documentation updates) ; Disclaimers: Company and standard product-related messages (e.g., an
anti-piracy notice, guidance on
freeware, or other information on duplication). See also
disclaimer. ; Contact: Support contact information. The Release Notes Schema Specification is a proposed specification for a release notes document. ==See also==