Technical Writing, a form of technical communication, is a style of formal writing and business communication, used in fields as diverse as computer hardware and software, chemistry, the aerospace industry, robotics, finance, consumer electronics, and biotechnology. Good technical writing clarifies technical jargon; that is, it presents useful information that is clear and easy to understand for the intended audience.
#29321
Embedding Linked Images in a Word Document
I wish Flare gave me an option before creating the printed documentation: embedded or linked images. I went through a lot of rigmarole before finally figuring out how to get the images embedded so I could share the document.
Lentz, Michelle. Write Technology (2007). Articles>Writing>Technical Writing>Madcap Flare
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It is my firm belief that every technical writer is passionate about her work and would put in her best efforts to deliver high quality. If you are a manager or an editor and are shaking your head in disagreement, think again. Why would someone want to submit a work of poor quality?
Lawrence, Prema. International Journal for Technical Communication (2006). Articles>Writing>Project Management>Technical Writing
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Technical communicators tend to be problem solvers. We ask ourselves, 'How can I make this better?' We don't want our instruction material to simply be serviceable; we want it to help make our readers' lives easier. One way we do that is by anticipating mistakes that users might make if they don't read carefully. We use various techniques to emphasize material that could otherwise be overlooked. Some effective means of drawing the reader's eye to important material are presented below. Note that this article doesn't address safety messages. For proper use of safety messages, consult your corporate guidelines and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).
Wenger, Andrea. Carolina Communique (2007). Articles>Writing>Grammar
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EMPI Digital Library National Convention - 2007 
Established in 2005, KnowGenesis Online Library for Technical Communication (www.knowgenesis.org/tc) is India's first online repository dedicated to accelerate knowledge sharing and promote self-learning in the field of technical communication. The library is available free of cost and require one time free registration to access the available material. The popularity and success rate of the library can be determined by the fact that within a year of its launch, it not only attracted more than 24000 visitors and gained more than 1500 subscribers, but also increased the volume of the hosted content from few documents to more than 2000 important documents, presentations, tutorials and links. KnowGenesis library presents a unique case for repository designers to study the complex design and implementation process that contributed to the stability and overall success rate of the online library. This paper not only shares the designing and implementation challenges faced by the knowgenesis team, but also presents the approach used to match the user requirements with the library design. Based on the lessons learned during the process, the paper also presents specific set of guidelines and recommends methodologies that can provide critical assistance for developing and managing medium and large scale repositories
Kudesia, Saurabh. International Journal for Technical Communication (2007). Presentations>Information Design>Knowledge Management>Technical Writing
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Empirical Evaluation of Concept Mapping: A Job Performance Aid for Writers 
The usefulness of concept mapping as a job performance aid for writers of technical documents was examined. Thirty-four writers were randomly assigned to one of two groups. The experimental group received 2 hours of training in the use of concept mapping. Both groups revised the same chapter from a computer manual, and an experienced technical editor blindly evaluated each revision. In part two of the study, revised texts were given to two groups of users. One group received a concept-mapped revision, while the other group received a text revised by a writer who had used conventional revision techniques. Readers' comprehension was tested and compared. Revision time was not significantly different between groups, and the editor's ratings of quality were not different. However, readers' comprehension was significantly higher with the concept-mapped versions. These results suggest that concept mapping is a useful revision tool for writers.
Crandell, Thomas L., Naomi A. Kleid and Candace Soderston. Technical Communication Online (1996). Articles>Information Design>Writing>Assessment
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Most people sending e-mail nowadays take no steps to prevent their messages from being intercepted. That's fine for many types of messages, but just as there are written messages that you wouldn't want to put on a postcard and would prefer to have protected by an envelope, there's a need for encryption in electronic communication. Besides, encryption can do more than keep things secret. The concepts on which encryption is based can be difficult, and most of the complication is handled behind the scenes by software. Nevertheless, it's useful to have a general understanding of how encryption works. Encryption software (often part of a Web browser or server, e-mail client, or other program) is built around the use of a special number, called a key, to convert information into a form that can be read only by someone who has the key needed to decrypt it.
Ivey, Keith C. Editorial Eye, The (1997). Articles>Writing>Email>Security
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Encyclopedia of Business Case Terms
A business case is a tool that supports planning and decision-making, including decisions about whether to buy, which vendor to choose, and when to implement.
Solution Matrix. Reference>Encyclopedias>Business Communication>Writing
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Engaging and Educating Readers Through a Progressive Writing
Although technical communication documents cannot possibly be tailored to exactly match the interest, reading level and many-faceted influences of a reader, they can I believe, take measures to engage the reader to believe that the information he or she is receiving from the document is valuable to their experience in some way.
Comstock, Jeanie. Orange Journal, The (2003). Articles>Writing>Rhetoric>Technical Writing
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Engineering Communication Centre
Language Across the Curriculum in Applied Science and Engineering at the University of Toronto helps students to communicate in writing and orally.
University of Toronto (1999). Reference>Style Guides>Engineering>Technical Writing
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Engineering Terms in Plain English
Twenty terms from engineering writiting translated into the vernacular.
PlainLanguage.gov (2004). Humor>Writing>Engineering>Minimalism
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English 3301: Principles of Professional and Report Writing
The main objective of this class is to help you gain the skills needed to think through writing tasks, analyze the audience(s) involved, secure various types of resources, generate documents, and present those documents in an effective manner.
Garza, Susan Loudermilk. Texas A and M University (2007). Academic>Courses>Writing>Reports
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This course is designed for undergraduates and graduates interested in the professional writing and publishing of both print based and electronic documents. Through a variety of projects, we will cover advanced theories of document design, web-based publishing, educational media, information delivery, and multimedia production. The course is designed so that students will have opportunities to work on both electronic and print based projects.
Bay, Jennifer. Purdue University (2003). Academic>Courses>Writing>Business Communication
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English Department Service Courses
The service curricula in this survey include institution-wide general education courses, English courses required in addition to institution-wide general education courses for preprofessional students (those pursuing four-year or longer non-arts and sciences degrees), and other specialized preprofessional English courses, such as technical writing.
Fontane, Marilyn Stall. ADE Bulletin (1994). Articles>Education>Writing>Technical Writing
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English Professors as Technical Writers: Experience is The Best Teacher
The future of the English curriculum is being argued and discussed in academic settings across the country. Students, more and more, seek courses of study that will lead directly to jobs. The buzzword is 'relevance.' The bottom line is 'big bucks.'
Barnum, Carol M. ADE Bulletin (1983). Articles>Education>Writing>Technical Writing
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Experimenteel onderzoek naar de relevantie van cultuurverschillen voor tekstontwerp brengt specifieke problemen met zich mee. In dit artikel worden drie van dergelijke problemen besproken. Het eerste probleem ontstaat doordat cultuurverschil vaak wordt geoperationaliseerd door middel van de nationaliteit van de proefpersoon. Nationaliteit is een parapluvariabele voor een groot aantal verschillen tussen proefpersonen. Elk van die verschillen zou een eventueel effect kunnen verklaren. Een tweede probleem betreft de equivalentie van document en meetinstrument. Hoe kan men controleren dat de documenten in de verschillende talen hetzelfde betekenen en de meetinstrumenten hetzelfde bevragen? Een derde probleem ontstaat doordat leden uit bepaalde culturen eerder geneigd zijn de extremen van een schaal te mijden terwijl dat voor leden uit andere culturen veel minder geldt. Naast een beschrijving van de problemen worden ook suggesties voor oplossingen gedaan.
Hoeken, Hans and Hubert Korzilius. Universiteit Stellenbosch Taalsentrum (2002). (Afrikaans) Articles>Writing>Cultural Theory
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Entering the Technical Writing Field
Technical writers produce, organize and edit scientific and technical information, crafting language that can be understood by people who service, maintain, or operate various types of equipment. To gather data about the subject matter, they may observe production processes, interview production and engineering staff, or refer to trade journals and other such publications.
Miller, Susan W. Los Angeles Times, The (2001). Careers>Writing>Technical Writing
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Equal Time: Grammar and Composition: Myths and Realities
Let's resist seduction by the mythologies of teaching and keep our grasp on the realities of learning.
Kuykendall, Carol. English Journal, The (1975). Articles>Education>Writing>Grammar
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Equations must have a number in parentheses at the right of the page. Must be numbered in the order they appear. Must be able to be read as part of the text.
Young, V.L. and K.J. Sampson. Ohio University (2004). Articles>Document Design>Technical Writing>Mathematics
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The essential equipment and software include a current PC -- should be a Pentium II or better -- and licensed software. Ideally, the PC should have at least 128 MB of RAM, a 19-inch monitor (min.), a high performance video card with a minimum of 64 MB of video RAM, and adequate storage for graphics and photos – at least an 80 GB hard disk. These are general specifications. Your requirements may be different depending upon what area you specialize in and to what extent you work on your own.
Tech-Writer (1996). Articles>Computing>Writing>Technical Writing
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This article examines the sentence-based pedagogies that arose in composition during the 1960s and 1970s—the generative rhetoric of Francis Christensen, imitation exercises, and sentence-combining—and attempts to discern why these three pedagogies have been so completely elided within contemporary composition studies. The usefulness of these sentence-based rhetorics was never disproved, but a growing wave of anti-formalism, anti-behaviorism, and anti-empiricism within English-based composition studies after 1980 doomed them to a marginality under which they still exist today. The result of this erasure of sentence pedagogies is a culture of writing instruction that has very little to do with or to say about the sentence outside of a purely grammatical discourse.
Connors, Robert J. CCC (2000). Articles>Education>Writing
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Coloque o seu anuncio em destaque. O cliente que solicite um trabalho a um dos Freelancers inscritos, terá que entregar todo o material necessário para o trabalho, bem como informar do tempo de realização se houver,os preços e formas de pagamento deveram ser acordados entre os mesmo.
Online.pt. (Portuguese) Careers>Job Listings>Writing>Technical Writing
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La escritura hipertextual, que tiene como unidad básica el enlace y como soporte lógico el electrónico, se debe realizar de forma diferente a la escritura convencional. A los usuarios no les gusta leer en pantalla, por lo que agradecerán cuanto más les facilitemos dicha tarea. En este artículo se tratará la correcta presentación de contenidos y elementos de interacción (enlaces) en los documentos hipertextuales.
Hassan Montero, Yusef and Francisco Jesus Martin Fernandez. Nosolousabilidad.com (2003). (Spanish) Articles>Writing>Hypertext>Web Design
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Essential Elements of a Writing Course Proposal
At some point in their careers, many writers may teach writing courses, either before a 'live' classroom audience or, these days, online. But how does a new teacher develop that first course proposal? What elements should go into it?
Dreifus, Erika. Klariti (2005). Articles>Education>Proposals>Writing
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The Essentials of Effective Communication
Good writing allows writers to be taken seriously, and being taken seriously is always important in communicating ideas effectively. If a person's writing is awkward, clumsy, or questionable, readers may get the wrong impression. And, first impressions can determine what people will read and what they will not.
Dowling, Dave. Indus (2002). Articles>Communication>Writing
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Establishing Yourself in a Writerless World 
Establishing a presence in a department that hasn’t had the benefit of technical writers can pose many challenges. As a writer newly assigned to such a department, I worked closely with my manager to develop the technical writer’s role, presented the role to key staff and teams, and created initial procedures to support writers within the department. By performing these tasks and thinking creatively about handling projects with a limited amount of writers, we’ve been able to work constructively with teams in our department and produce effective documentation.
Caliendo, Corin J. STC Proceedings (1998). Articles>Writing>TC
