Links for Technical Writers

Reference links especially for technical writers.

Sansalone Technical Translations. Resources>Directories>Writing>Technical Writing

Listen, Observe, Speak

When you are a speaker, you communicate. When you are the audience, you communicate. As a member of the development team, the technical writer has to deal with hundreds of intelligent egos. There are the programmers who think only about solutions and technology (not about people and their emotions). A technical writer would definitely feel hurt, when developers talk down to him. Managers on the other hand are likely to have oodles of people skills and may not have technical skills. Therefore, they may talk nicely to you. Nevertheless, a technical writer may feel that managers do not appreciate his technical skills.

Kamath, Gurudutt R. IT People (2002). Careers>Writing>Technical Writing>Workplace

The Lone Ranger as Technical Writing Program Administrator    

The popularity of technical writing and communication has caused many colleges and universities to scramble to hire qualified tenure-track faculty members. So-called lone ranger candidates are often lured to workplaces in which they are the sole technical writing faculty members by promises of autonomy and the ability to develop programs in ways, and at a pace, that would not necessarily be possible at other institutions. This article explores challenges faced by several such lone ranger faculty members and outlines survival strategies that may help lone rangers sustain and build their technical writing programs.

Sapp, David Alan. Journal of Business and Technical Communication (2006). Articles>Education>Writing>Technical Writing

Low Bandwidth and the Highs of Web Design

The emergence of Internet was, and still is a fascinating thing to happen in technology firmament. The ease and the comforts of connecting to people, defying geographical boundaries, and getting a global audience for businesses were unparalleled -- first of its kind ever. So wonderful a thing has, unfortunately, got its share of woes -- the connection speed. The bandwidth of Internet connectivity was considerable at the time when it was entirely new to the world. The newness of the medium did not let it know to the excited lots of users and beneficiaries. Gradually, when people wished for more speed, they earnestly expected that things will turn favorable in the times ahead. Strategy is not something entirely applicable to chart out the direction of a corporation. Yeah, Your web design has to be strategized as well if you wish to serve your target audience in business friendly manner.

Azam, Rahbre. Amateur Writerz (2008). Articles>Web Design>Technical Writing>User Centered Design

Low-Level Jobs to Avoid: Technical Writer

Grouping technical writers with grocery stock clerks and temps, this article mocks us all. Seemingly, from the position of someone who's done the job. For example, under 'manager says,' it quotes:

I want those four bullet points on letters of credit to be perfectly clear and concise. Spend a few more hours reworking them until they're exactly right.

Suck (1998). Humor>TC>Writing>Technical Writing

Make Yourself More Than Just an "Entry-Level" Tech Writer

To make the most of limited opportunities, you have to distinguish yourself from the crowd of other technical writers who'll be vying for the same positions you're after. In other words, you have to go into that job market armed with more than just a bachelor's degree and some classroom writing samples. Following are some suggestions that can help you acquire some professional technical writing experience, broaden your skills and knowledge of the technical writing field, and get you over the entry-level hump.

Monahan, Jim. Boston Broadside (1991). Careers>Writing>Technical Writing

Making a Big Business out of Technical Writing  

Leveraging on the success of my business, DocuStar, this paper describes some of the strategies I have used to grow my one-person freelance gig into a business employing over 65 employees on our own premises and servicing over 200 hi-tech companies per year. While the profit margin may not match that of the up-and-coming dotcoms, the needs of the market foretell a solid and ever-growing future within the technical documentation niche. With a strong commitment to hard work, an adventurous excitement for conquest and a paramount and obsessive commitment to quality and integrity, technical writing can certainly be grown into a big business venture.

Sher, Barbara J. STC Proceedings (2001). Careers>Management>Writing>Technical Writing

Making a Big Business Out of Technical Writing  

Leveraging on the success of my business, DocuStar, this paper describes some of the strategies I have used to grow my one-person freelance gig into a business employing over 65 employees on our own premises and servicing over 200 hi-tech companies per year. While the profit margin may not match that of the up-and-coming dotcoms, the needs of the market foretell a solid and ever-growing future within the technical documentation niche. With a strong commitment to hard work, an adventurous excitement for conquest and a paramount and obsessive commitment to quality and integrity, technical writing can certainly be grown into a big business venture.

Sher, Barbara J. STC Proceedings (2001). Careers>Management>Writing>Technical Writing

Making Connections: Teaching Writing to Engineers and Technical Writers in a Multicultural Environment    

Teaching writing to engineering students representing Indian, Middle Eastern, Asian, and American cultures can be daunting as their cultural perceptions of time, gender, source of authority, individualism and risk taking, affect learning styles. However, despite cultural differences, many International students have no difficulty with much of American instruction and, in some cases, perform better than American students. Their ability to adapt to American instruction appears to depend primarily on the educational goals of their cultures.

Boiarsky, Carolyn. IEEE PCS (2008). Articles>Education>Technical Writing>Engineering

Making Documentation Accessible to Users With Disabilities  

Good documentation takes into account the needs of people with disabilities. Such documentation is termed 'accessible' and provides support for the assistive technologies used by people with disabilities. For example, accessible documentation provides a text equivalent for each graphic element, such as a picture, flow diagram, or icon. This provision is necessary for users who rely on screen readers to read the documentation.

Chappell, Gail B. STC Proceedings (2003). Articles>Documentation>Accessibility>Technical Writing

Making Product Information an Integral Part of the Development Process  

Document inspections formalize the document review process and encourage the full participation of technical developers in the documentation development process. A document inspection consists of three parts: a briefing meeting, a desk review, and a recording meeting. At the briefing meeting, you state your requirements for the inspection process. During the desk review, the technical developers review your document. At the recording meeting, you review the comments made by the technical developers, and as a group decide on appropriate resolutions.

Hildebrand-Lund, Ruth. STC Proceedings (1996). Articles>Documentation>Workflow>Technical Writing

Making Sense of Step-by-Step Procedures    

Procedural instructions that consist of only a sequence of steps will probably be executable, but nevertheless 'meaningless' to users of technical devices. This paper discusses three features that can make procedural instructions more meaningful: adding functional coordinating information, adding information about the use of the technical device in real life, and adding operational information about how the device works. The research literature supports the effectiveness of the first feature, but offers little evidence that real life elements enhance understanding of instructions. As for operational information, the research suggests that users are willing to read it, and that it contributes to better understanding and performance in the long term, but only if it is closely related to the procedure. As a conclusion, we propose a theoretical framework that assumes three levels of mental representation of instructions: syntactical, semantic, and situational.

Steehouder, Michael F., Joyce Karreman and Nicole Ummelen. ACM SIGDOC (2000). Articles>Documentation>Rhetoric>Technical Writing

Making the Transition From Techcom to Marcom

At first glance, technical communication (techcom) and technical marketing communication (marcom) appear to be very different genres. Where traditional techcom strives to help people use products, marcom seeks to make people realize they need products.

Simard, Christy. Writing Assistance (2007). Careers>TC>Technical Writing>Marketing

Making the Transition from Technical Writer to Manager

This article is a collage of ideas and experiences from some people who've made the leap from writer to manager. Although it's not a step-by-step guideline, it provides some compelling insight as to what individuals might expect as they transition into the management ranks. Even if you are an experienced manager, you might find these ideas helpful.

Capri, Steve. Writing Assistance (2007). Careers>Management>TC>Technical Writing

Managing Career Enrichment for Technical Writers  

This paper explores how technical publications managers can create a department that provides career enriching opportunities and direction for technical communicators. The paper describes in detail four major ways: by providing training opportunities, by providing diverse assignments, by allowing participation in management issues, and by providing customer contact. The paper describes the benefits of each enriching opportunity to the technical communicator and to the manager.

Krasner, Arlene J. STC Proceedings (1997). Careers>Management>Writing>Technical Writing

Managing Conflicts within a Team of Writers  

As much as you may try to avoid it, conflict among your employees is bound to rear its ugly head from time to time. While you may not be able to resolve all conflicts, with the right approach, you can manage many of them.

Prabhakar, Rahul. Intercom (2006). Careers>Management>Writing>Technical Writing

Managing Conflicts within a Team of Writers

It is quite challenging for a manager to integrate a diverse group of intelligent and creative professionals into a single, cohesive unit. As much as you may try to avoid it, conflict among your employees is bound to rear its ugly head from time to time.

Prabhakar, Rahul. Blogspot (2006). Careers>Management>Writing>Technical Writing

Managing Technical Writers by Wandering Around  

Technology has reduced the need for managers to act as communication conduits. Instead they must add more quality to the work of their employees by wandering among them. Effective wandering means forgetting the telephone, using bull sessions, becoming a fifteen-minute manager, giving employees a vision, and looking at their work.

Dicks, R. Stanley. STC Proceedings (1993). Careers>Management>Writing>Technical Writing

Managing the Communication "Process": The Emerging Role of Technical Writers and Documentation Managers  

Current trends in Corporate America are changing the traditional role of technical communicators and creating new challenges and opportunities. Re-engineering the corporation, Total Quality Management, ISO 9000 compliance, and the continuing onslaught of the Information Age are all bringing formally 'invisible' technical communications functions into the limelight. It's not just writing and editing any more! As communication professionals and managers we need to upgrade skills and re-focus our efforts to become 'information managers.'

Anton, Kathy and Teresa J. Tarwater. STC Proceedings (1994). Careers>Management>Documentation>Technical Writing

Managing the TWI Mailing List: As Tough as it Gets

The success or failure of any mailing list depends entirely on its members - as in how effectively can they contribute on the list or how diligently can they enhance the quality of ongoing discussions. If you watch closely, the level of discussions combined with the maturity of posters is what characterizes these mailing lists to a large extent. For instance, take a firsthand look at Technical Writers India mailing list or TWI, as it is popularly called.

Prabhakar, Rahul. Blogspot (2006). Articles>Documentation>Technical Writing

Many Heads Make Work Right

Writing is popularly considered a spontaneous exercise, and often is. Spontaneous writing, however, does not always result in high quality results.

Aiyyangar, Ramesh. Indus (2002). Articles>Writing>Collaboration>Technical Writing

The Marketing of Technical Authors

In May 2004, I did a presentation to the London group of the Institute of Scientific and Technical Communicators on the future for technical authors. This article expands one of the topics discussed - how to promote and market technical authors.

Pratt, Ellis. Cherryleaf (2004). Careers>Writing>Marketing>Technical Writing