#13245
Tips and Tricks of Information Management 
Technical communication, when it comes down to basics, is getting the right information across to the right audience, with results. But how do you wade through all that ocean of information? How do you sort them, separate them, store them, and retrieve them at your fingertips? In this presentation you will learn tools such as L files and Mailword, and share other tips and tricks of managing information in an open discussion with other participants.
Dijamco, Renato A. STC Proceedings (2001). Presentations>Information Design>Management
#20523
Tips for Presenting to Young Audiences
It was my first year in business and I was 20-minutes into delivering a one-hour presentation skills seminar when it was becoming painfully clear that I was losing my audience fast. With this particular group, the early warning signs were all there. It started with some subtle multi-tasking activity followed by a pronounced loss of eye contact by a few individuals at first and then half the group. If you’ve ever had that experience you know that you only have a couple of options at that point. You can try to pump up the energy level and occasionally re-energize an audience; but, let’s face it, the odds are pretty slim. Or you can always start summarizing, cut your loses and go for a well-scripted close. At least there’s some hope that your audience will, at a minimum, hear a few crisp closing points and an interesting story to tie it all together. On that particular day, I didn’t have a chance to do either. The bell rang at precisely 11:22 and Cheryl Bailey’s third period PowerPoint class darted for the door and I was left standing there (unplugging my projector and laptop) wondering what the heck just happened. It was my first time presenting to a group of kids and since then I’ve had to revise my technique considerably for this unique audience.
Endicott, Jim. Presenters University (2003). Articles>Presentations>Rhetoric>Children
#29356
Tips for Using Eyetrackers in HCI Experiments
This is a summary of a talk on eyetracking for HCI students at Lancaster University in the UK. Feedback showed that students felt more able to conduct eye tracking research after attending the session.
Poole, Alex. Alex Poole (2005). Presentations>Human Computer Interaction>Usability>Eye Tracking
#13393
Tips for Writers and Publishers: Making the Most of Acquisitions Programs
The production of books that suit a publisher’s guidelines and find their appropriate market requires a perfect match of publisher and author. This panel discussion will explore the dynamics of authors and publishing professionals working to achieve that match. Acqui-sitions professionals and a technical book writer and editor will pro-vide information about what publishers expect from manuscripts and how they work with authors, suggest how writers can find the right publishers for their books, and describe how one successful techni-cal book acquisitions program was built. The discussion should be of interest to technical writers and editors hoping to publish and to publishing professionals in the trade or college book market.
Sakson, Donna M., Ted Buchholz, Eric Stroo and Jennifer M. Ginn. STC Proceedings (1993). Presentations>Writing>Publishing
#14552
To SGML or Not to SGML. That is the Question?
SGML is a tool that will change the way technical communicators work, it will also change the way companies operate. To implement SGML requires careful planning. Success will allow information to be created once and used repeatedly. This technology will benefit any company that requires large amounts of technical information to be shared and eventually updated. DTDs, FOSIs and parsers will all have to be understood before a move to SGML is contemplated. SGML does for document creation what word processing did for typing, some years ago. It adds repeatable format structure and style to an information document.
Rhodes-Marriott, A. STC Proceedings (1995). Presentations>Information Design>SGML
#29146
To Slideware Or Not To Slideware: Students' Experiences With PowerPoint vs. Lecture 
This study analyzes the performance and attitudes of technical writing students in PowerPoint-enhanced and in non-PowerPoint lectures. Four classes of upper-level undergraduates (n = 84) at a mid-sized, Southern university taking a one-semester technical writing course were surveyed at the beginning and end of the course about their perceptions of PowerPoint. Of the four sections, two classes were instructed using traditional lecture materials (teacher at podium, chalkboard, handouts); the other two sections were instructed with PowerPoint presentations. All four classes were given the same pre- and post-test to measure performance over the course of the semester. Traditional lecture or PowerPoint presentations consisted of at least 50% of the course, with the remaining time spent on exercises and small group work. Results reveal that while most students say they preferred PowerPoint, performance scores were higher in the sections with the traditional lecture format.
Amare, Nicole. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication (2006). Articles>Education>Presentations>Microsoft PowerPoint
#22885
Tools to Trade: Transfer Your Skills to Develop Professional Presentations
Skills of developing and delivering presentations are valuable for both personal growth and professional development.
Pearson, Kent S. STC Proceedings (1997). Articles>Presentations
#26204
Common goofs, mistakes, bloopers, mal mots, slip ups, lapses, oversights, gaffes, and 'foe paws' in online documentation and Help.
Horton, William K. III. STC Orange County (1998). Presentations>Documentation>Help
#13207
Tracking Change: A High Tech Solution
This paper explains the planning process that led to a GUI-based (Graphic User Interface) change-tracking system that has enabled our writing group to effectively exchange information between subject experts and writers. The implementation that emerged has enhanced our ability to meet schedules with fewer surprises and has empowered writers with a tool that assists them in planning both routine and long-range tasks.
Leck, Louise. STC Proceedings. Presentations>Editing>Software
#13478
Ever wonder why we find graphical user interfaces, hypertext, and multimedia so appealing? Some of the appeal has to do with language itself which is the basis of human transactions, and some of it has to do with our conditioning as a literate society. Literacy builds on visual as well as verbal skills. This paper traces the roots of language to the ascendancy of print technology to explain how visualization is the foundation of literacy.
Hawkes, Lory. STC Proceedings (1993). Presentations>Human Computer Interaction>Multimedia
#13206
Transforming Our Roles from Writers to Designers: A Manager’s Perspective
As software documentation becomes increasingly integrated with the software interface, technical communication organizations must apply new skills to create new kinds of deliverables. In addition to the traditional technical communication skills such as task analysis, audience analysis, and written communication, today’s technical communication organizations may also need programming skills, visual design skills, and user interface design skills. Managers must find ways to hire, train, and retain these new skills. They must also actively work to change the perception of technical communication to align with the new roles that technical communication organizations will play in the future of software development.
#14360
Transition To Process-Based Policies and Procedures
From mega-mergers to dwindling defense contracts, companies are dealing with a very different business environment than of decades past. To remain competitive, companies are implementing process improvement programs that encompass the ‘big picture’, and are not focusing on just one segment of company operations. This trend toward mega-process improvements has resulted in companies developing policies and procedures that reflect a flexible, process oriented approach, instead of the traditional, organizationally oriented procedures.
Houciayer, Jerri L. STC Proceedings (1997). Presentations>Management>Policies and Procedures
#14359
Translating Hardcopy Documents to HTML Online Documents
The ever-increasing popularity of the World Wide Web has created another assignment for the professional writer-the need to turn hardcopy documents into HTML coded documents. This paper discusses some of the translation tools available, the problems to watch when converting documents, and the benefits of using special translation tools for converting your original hardcopy documents into HTML documents for online viewing.
Hoess, Laurence. STC Proceedings (1997). Presentations>Web Design>HTML
#13205
Trends in Technical Communication
Some of the latest issues and trends that are expanding the roles of technical communicators include: working with User Interface and Usability; documenting web-based intranet applications; creating CBTs that complement online help; writing a standard that people actually use; evaluating our expanding tool base; redesign and Re-testing - Always consult with end users to ensure that the interface performance is maximized. If not, go back to the drawing board.
Brandon, John, Bobbi Magnuson, Sara Hoeppner and Nathan Melsted. STC Proceedings (2000). Presentations>TC>History
#13102
Workplace decision-making practices cast the technical communicator into the role of technical rhetorician—a rhetorical specialist who must sometimes make difficult choices. Decisions involving technical communication receive the most scrutiny when bad things happen, but technical communicators often facilitate good things that are never measured. This paper examines three contexts that affect the technical communicator’s understanding of a situation requiring a decision: the rhetorical situation, the cultural context, and the procedural and ethical guidelines. Qualitative assessments that examine the multiple contexts informing the decision-making process are important to understanding the complexity involved in day-to-day decision-making practices.
Smith, Charlsye J. STC Proceedings (2001). Presentations>Rhetoric>Management
#26435
Tutorial on Creating an Explode Effect
In this presentation, you will learn how to create an explode effect on pictures.
Tohlz, Shawn. PowerPoint Heaven (2005). Articles>Presentations>Software>Microsoft PowerPoint
#26433
Tutorial on Fading a Picture to Translucent
Tutorial by tohlz, PowerPoint Heaven. Scenario #1: You wanted to fade in a picture, but not completely. You wanted the picture to fade from 0% until 50% and stops at there. Scenario #2: You wanted to fade out a picture, but not completely. You wanted the picture to fade from 100% until 50% and stops at there.
Tohlz, Shawn. PowerPoint Heaven (2005). Articles>Presentations>Software>Microsoft PowerPoint
#26436
Tutorial on Making an Automatic Slideshow and Delay Before Slide Advances
You need to make some delay so that all your slides will pause for a while before going to the next one. There are few ways to achieve this. This tutorial will cover two simple methods.
Tohlz, Shawn. PowerPoint Heaven (2005). Articles>Presentations>Software>Microsoft PowerPoint
#26434
Tutorial on Spiral Effect for Text
I have experimented many ways to create a spiral effect on text. This requires the overlapping technique. The simplest way is to make use of Pinwheel Entrance effect to do the job, while the best way to create the most realistic impact is to have combination of different effects.
Tohlz, Shawn. PowerPoint Heaven (2005). Articles>Presentations>Software>Microsoft PowerPoint
#29700
Understanding and Using PowerPoint
The relatively new and controversial medium of PowerPoint presentations has generated much casual commentary but little careful analysis or empirical research. This rhetorical study attempts to advance our understanding of the medium and provides practical guidance regarding deck design, rehearsal, and performance. The study considers the reasons for the controversy surrounding PowerPoint, offers a taxonomy of the kinds of content that appear in decks, and looks closely at how presenters interact with individual slides, in particular the way in which they 'synch' to each bullet point and then 'launch' an oral gloss of that point. In addition, the study provides criteria for writing bullet points and suggests reasons why presenters include excess text on their slides.
Farkas, David K. STC Proceedings (2005). Articles>Presentations>Software>Microsoft PowerPoint
#13204
Understanding Data Flow Diagrams
Data flow diagrams (DFDs) reveal relationships among and between the various components in a program or system.
Le Vie, Donald S., Jr. STC Proceedings (2000). Presentations>Graphic Design>Charts and Graphs
#23827
Understanding PowerPoint: Special Deliverable #5
PowerPoint: the software we love to hate. Has there been any other software since the dawn of the personal computer that has earned so much criticism? The question at hand is not, 'Does PowerPoint suck?' The answer to that, as we all know, is yes. The question is, in fact, 'For information architects, does PowerPoint suck?' Or, more to the point, 'Even though PowerPoint sucks, should I use it for my deliverables?'
Brown, Dan. Boxes and Arrows (2002). Articles>Software>Presentations>Microsoft PowerPoint
#28797
Understanding Principles of Usability, Part 1
In this podcast, Karen Bachmann, manager of the Usability and User Experience SIG, provides an overview of the user-centered design process. This is part one of a two part series.
Bachmann, Karen L. Tech Writer Voices (2006). Presentations>Usability>User Centered Design>Podcasts
#28796
Understanding Principles of Usability, Part 2
This is part two of Karen Bachmann's presentation on Usability. In this part of her presentation, Karen gets more in depth with principles and methods for usability.
Bachmann, Karen L. Tech Writer Voices (2006). Presentations>Usability>Methods>Podcasts
#13185
Understanding Users: Making the Transition from a Paper to an Electronic Reference System
Online technical documentation can be used as an effective job aid if designed properly. However, in many instances designers put the paper documentation online without concern for usability. To design an effective online technical reference system, technical communicators should understand how users interact with the legacy system and how they will interact with the system once it is converted to an online form.
Steward, Sherry. STC Proceedings (2001). Presentations>Web Design>Usability
