#21450
Technical Illustration Gallery
These are typical samples of technical illustrations. Click on an image to see the enlarged version. Furthermore, you can view each illustration in detail with IsoView.
ITEDO Software (2004). Academic>Course Materials>Technical Illustration
#20497
The assignment in this unit is to learn about technical reports, their different types, their typical audiences and situations, and then to plan one of your own. Specifically, your task in this unit is to pick a report topic, report audience and situation, report purpose, and report type.
McMurrey, David A. Illuminati Online (2001). Academic>Course Materials>Reports>Technical Writing
#24116
The format in technical writing is similar to the pyramid technique used in journalism. Information is presented quickly to the reader with the most important details in the first sentence or two.
Scott, George A. TechWriter!. Academic>Course Materials>Writing>Technical Writing
#13697
Technical Writing Workbook: Model Documents
This Workbook contains models of corporate communications that take creative, proactive advantage of the capabilities of the Web. As you work through the activities and questions for each model, think about ways in which you can apply similar strategies and techniques to your own academic and professional writing.
Selber, Stuart A. Addison Wesley Longman (1997). Academic>Course Materials
#13696
Technical Writing: Simulated Search Activity
This activity is meant to simulate the process of finding and evaluating information on the World Wide Web. We present it as a simulation to aid new Web users, who may feel uncomfortable with conducting an actual search. For detailed information on searching for information on the Web, as well as evaluating and citing sources, see our online guides.
Selber, Stuart A. Addison Wesley Longman (1997). Academic>Course Materials>Research>Search
#13521
Technical/Professional Communication Summary
In this document, John December summarizes some principles and ideas that he discussed in class. He first focuses on technical communication as a process of shaping information. Then, he reviews the process of information development and techniques to shape information. Finally, he describes techniques for learning and teaching technical communication.
December, John A. December.com (1993). Academic>Course Materials
#14283
Probably the most common type of document testing in the workplace is text-based. Text-based testing is common because it’s cheap and easy—with current word processors, running a test is as simple as selecting “Grammar” from the “Tools” menu in Microsoft Word or WordPerfect (6.0 or later). Text-based testing is very efficient at catching spelling errors (although it doesn’t catch homonyms, like accidentally substituting “threw” for “through”) and some grammatical mistakes. However, such testing doesn’t take into account visuals, forecasting, design, or other elements that have a great deal to do with a document’s usability. For this exercise, you will explore the plusses and minuses of text-based testing by working with a small group of classmates to test and revise a short but complex document. You will then compare your improved document to that of other groups and discuss the value of text-based testing.
Burnett, Rebecca E. Thomson (2001). Academic>Course Materials>Editing>Assessment
#15075
When learning written argument, it is always helpful to observe how others argue effectively or ineffectively. The Toulmin method, based on the work of philosopher Stephen Toulmin, is one way of analyzing a text that we read, with an eye toward responding to that particular argument (as in a writing assignment that asks us to respond) and, ultimately, toward analyzing and improving the arguments we ourselves make.
Colorado State University. Academic>Course Materials>Rhetoric
#14333
This section was part of a chapter made up of the following: Content—provides strategies for thinking of useful content for writing projects, in other words, developing the content of a project. Organization—provides strategies for reviewing the sequence and arrangement of the contents of a writing project. Transitions—provides review strategies for checking the coherence of a writing project, in other words, the 'flow' of the project as created by the transitions.
McMurrey, David A. Illuminati Online (2001). Academic>Course Materials>Style Guides
#27424
Videotaping Student Presentations: A Quick Start Guide
A guide to using MiniDV digital camcorders to record student presentations, then to review them on a computer and copy them to DVD for later review.
Johnson, Rachel. EServer (2006). Academic>Course Materials>Multimedia>Video
#29950
This interactive tutorial is designed to supplement your use of TCTC, and provides new information and activities that will enhance your understanding of visual rhetoric. This tutorial has five main sections, Visual Rhetoric, Use of Visuals, Types of Visuals, Color, and Design. With only a few variations, each section is divided into smaller three- to five-page chapters, all arranged using three basic types of pages.
Dobrin, Sidney I., Christopher J. Keller and Christian R. Weisser. TCTC. Academic>Course Materials>Visual Rhetoric
#29949
This web tutorial is designed for students making their first web pages. No previous experience writing HTML is expected. This tutorial will introduce you to the basic concepts of HTML code and will guide you through the creation of several practice web pages. Using this tutorial you will learn the skills you need to start making your own web sites.
Dobrin, Sidney I., Christopher J. Keller and Christian R. Weisser. TCTC. Academic>Course Materials>Web Design
#19230
Your division’s new manager, a woman, believes that your company’s policy regarding maternity leave is inadequate, even though the previous manager claimed it met federal minimum requirements. She designates you and 3-4 others to investigate the issue. Discover what minimum federal requirements (if any) are in place and what standards are common among other companies in your chosen industry. Designate responsibility evenly among group members and discuss your findings. Your instructor may have you compile the results as a report.
Lannon, John M. Pearson Education (2003). Academic>Course Materials>Management>Workplace
#26990
A video documentary about the appropriate use of computer technologies in the workplace, which may be useful in talking about workplace ethics.
Johnson, Rachel. EServer (2006). Academic>Course Materials>Ethics>Workplace
#22367
Writing Course Evaluations that Matter 
An article on writing course evaluations that measure the effectiveness of training courses, in relation to business objectives and return on investment.
Rice, William H. IV. WilliamRice.com (2004). Academic>Course Materials>Instructional Design>Assessment
#10785
The purpose of these exercises is to give you a chance to write well-crafted paragraphs. The first three exercises (Basic Points about Paragraphs, Classifying, and Using Transitions) help you write brief paragraphs about various topics in science and technology. The exercises that follow help you write longer paragraphs. The last two exercises (Cause and Effect and Giving Examples) show you how you can write two or more paragraphs connected to the same topic.
Kimball, Jack. Fauxpress (1996). Academic>Course Materials
#14265
Writing for Different Audiences 
For this exercise, you will be looking at as many as four texts about Java, a programming language that has recently become a phenomenon because it allows programmers to make interactive pages on the World Wide Web. You’ll examine and discuss the way these different texts approach their different audiences, then construct an article, pamphlet, or brochure about Java for an audience you choose.
Burnett, Rebecca E. Thomson (2001). Academic>Course Materials>Writing
#25578
Writing for the World Wide Web
This is a course about writing and the World Wide Web in at least two different and related ways. First, we will be reading, 'browsing,' and writing about the World Wide Web in order to understand how the web works rhetorically. Second, we will be creating web sites that are good examples of effective web sites.
Krause, Steven D. Eastern Michigan University (2005). Academic>Course Materials>Web Design>Writing
#10783
Describes the two types of abstracts: informational and Descriptive, then gives some tips on how to write effective report abstracts.
#14279
Regardless of what industry you work in, as a professional communicator you will encounter the difficulty of defining a new or unfamiliar term for your readers. How will you explain a new concept like random access memory? How would you even know where to begin? Technical Communication/4e presents several options you have for writing technical definitions, providing examples of both short and extended definitions. For this exercise you will construct a technical definition for a specific audience. The strategy you choose for defining the concept depends on the audience(s) you select, that audience’s need(s) for the information, and the type of document in which the definition would appear.
Burnett, Rebecca E. Thomson (2001). Academic>Course Materials>Writing
