STANDARD INSTRUMENT DEPARTURES (SID’s)
General. - A SID is normally developed to accommodate as many aircraft categories as possible. The SID terminates at the first fix/facility/waypoint of the en-route phase following the departure procedure.
There are two basic types of departure route: STRAIGHT and TURNING. Departure routes are based on TRACK guidance acquired within 10,8 NM from the departure end of the runway (DER) on straight departures and within 5,4 NM after completion of turns on departures requiring turns. The design of instrument departure routes and the associated obstacle clearance criteria are based on the definition of tracks to be followed by the aeroplane. When flying the published track, the pilot is expected to correct for known wind to remain within the protected airspace.
So, remember when ATC ask you to maintain runway heading, well, just do that and forget about the wind ok. Cheers 
P.S. It'd be good from time to time to make a quick review of the Jeppesen Introduction section (Documents 8168 and 4444). It's a great tool for most of us, specially after we have been flying for quite some time and tend to forget about the basics.
Last edited by Desert_Storm; 1st Oct 2007 at 16:03.
Reason: mispelling