Why are Figures Made All-Inclusive in a Computer Manual? The Elimination of Cultural Preference  

Computer manuals are produced by documentation engineering or some methodology. The organization, contents, and sequence of a manual developed in this way are usually universal. However, figures included in a computer manual tend to be all-inclusive, namely very comprehensive or complicated. It is probably due to the cultural preference, or one characteristic of the Japanese way of communication. The inductive thinking method may have caused the habit of presenting all related information on just one page at the time of information transmission.

Nakajima, Yasushi. STC Proceedings (1993). Articles>Documentation>International

Writing and Publishing a Book in the Japanese Marketplace  

Publishing one’s own book by oneself is one of the concrete output of technical communication just like writing a paper and a manual for a company or its client. Right subject, good organization, and easiness of reading are the minimum requirements. The book must be more market-oriented because it will be sold at bookstores and read by consumers as well as specialists. However, having a book published in the Japanese marketplace isn’t easy for two reasons. One is the economic depression. The other is that a publishing company is looking for only a book, which is likely to be sold in numbers. They say, 'Does it sell or not; that’s the question.' internationalization is a long-range issue, the book, when published, could have a relatively long lifetime. The plot of the book were 1) make task analysis of SEs work, 2) check the effect of internationalization upon SEs tasks, and finally 3) explain guidelines, know-how, and English expressions needed by SEs in the international situations. HOW TO WRITE To publish

Nakajima, Yasushi. STC Proceedings (2000). Presentations>Publishing>Regional>Japan