George Saunders: Taking Technical Writing into the World of Fiction  

For George Saunders, recipient of a MacArthur Grant and former technical writer, years working on reports and proposals proved to be excellent training for creative writing.

Moran, Tom. Intercom (2007). Articles>Interviews>Writing>Technical Writing

Getting Involved in Interface Design  

Describes a four-step process to help technical writers gain influence over product design.

Hart, Geoffrey J.S. Intercom (2004). Design>User Interface

Getting Reviewers to Review  

Presents ten humorous suggestions for technical writers on how to persuade reviewers of documentation to do their jobs.

Hart, Geoffrey J.S. Intercom (2000). Articles>Editing>Collaboration

Getting Started with Performance Management  

What are some ways to effectively track and manage a group’s performance? Wiley examines a way to do so using specific requirements designed to measure the success of an STC SIG.

Wiley, Ann L. Intercom (2006). Articles>Project Management>Collaboration>Methods

Global XML  

XML alone is not enough to effectively manage your organization's global content. Explore global XML and its benefits.

Hurst, Sophie. Intercom (2007). Articles>Information Design>XML>International

Globalizing the Technical Communication Classroom  

In today’s global economy, knowing how to communicate in an international environment is more important than ever. The United States leads the world in the number of foreign students attending its educational institutions. The student body is becoming increasingly diverse. Instructors can no longer assume that all students have had the same experiences. Often, in an attempt to treat all students equally, instructors overlook or misunderstand the needs of international students. But if the teachers acknowledge and welcome cultural diversity in the classroom, students can become more aware of the varied audiences they will encounter in their future careers.

Sharpe, Victoria. Intercom (2003). Articles>Education>Instructional Design>International

Going Global with Technical Writing  

Despite your best efforts, it is not uncommon for mishaps to occur when attempting to localize documentation. Learn how to align your technical writing and localization processes and how to optimize the solution you choose for this alignment.

Hill, Nicholas. Intercom (2006). Articles>Writing>Technical Writing>Localization

Graphic Electronic Editing  

Radella discusses the advantages of graphic electronic editing with Adobe Acrobat 4.0 over traditional hard copy editing.

Radella, Marjorie Joyce. Intercom (2000). Design>Collaboration>Software>Adobe Acrobat

Graphs on Steroids  

A hypothetical example to help technical communicators think through ethical issues in the workplace.

Bryan, John G. Intercom (2003). Articles>Graphic Design>Ethics>Charts and Graphs

Grassroots Documentation  

We often hear how the Web can be used to deliver technical documentation. But have you ever thought about the Web as technical documentation? When dozens, or perhaps hundreds, of people, all using the same product, start posting tips and solutions to problems on different Web sites, the entire Internet becomes a kind of crude users’ manual.

Martin, Maurice. Intercom (2003). Articles>Documentation>Online>Community

Grid Computing--the "Electrical Outlet" Model of Computing  

This column presents overviews of new technologies that may affect technical communicators in the near future.

Perlin, Neil E. Intercom (2003). Articles>Collaboration

Growth of the Technical Writing Profession  

This article, reprinted from the January 1958 issue of the STWE Review (the quarterly journal of the Society of Technical Writers and Editors, one of STC's parent organizations), examines the state of the technical communication profession in the late 1950s.

Rathbone, Robert R. Intercom (2002). Articles>TC>History

A Hands-On Guide to Asia and the Internet  

Yunker explains how American and European companies can communicate with Asian markets by enabling their Web browsers to view Asian languages, send and receive an e-mail message in an Asian language, and input Asian text into Web forms. Yunker also poses ten questions to ask before localizing your Web site for Asian countries.

Yunker, John E. Intercom (2000). Design>Web Design>Regional>Asia

Help Stamp Out Hype  

Offers tips on eliminating hype from editorial copy.

Eyman, Carol L. Intercom (2001). Articles>Editing

Helping New Writers Through Their First Year  

Von Haas examines techniques for helping new technical writers achieve success in the profession.

Von Haas, Elaina E. Intercom (2002). Careers>Collaboration>Mentoring

The Heritage of the American Heritage Dictionary  

Bush explains the history of the American Heritage Dictionary and discusses how the dictionary has evolved from its first edition, published in 1969, to its fourth, published in 2000.

Bush, Donald W. Intercom (2002). Articles>Language>History

Hewlett-Packard's CapShare 920 Portable E-Copier/Scanner  

The Hewlett-Packard CapShare 920 is designed to copy blocks of print and graphics as you pass it over the hardcopy document. If the size of the block to be scanned exceeds the 51/4-inch width of the scanner's surface, the HP Capshare 920 automatically pieces the output of successive swaths into one document. Stored documents can be transmitted to a computer as a graphics file, and text images can be converted to text files using ScanSoft's TextBridge optical character recognition (OCR) software included with the package. You can view demonstrations of the scanner at www. capshare.hp.com. in five to fifteen seconds to devices equipped with fast infrared (FIR) and in fifteen to thirty seconds to devices equipped with serial infrared (SIR). The scanner uses Scan Soft's Pagis Pro 2.0 software to organize files, clean up documents, and send both to other applications.

Wallia, C.J.S. Intercom (2006). Articles>Technology>Scanning

Hierarchies in Online Information: Balancing Depth and Breadth  

Hart explains how understanding hierarchies--the order in which information is grouped--can help you choose an appropriate balance between the depth and breadth of your online information.

Hart, Geoffrey J.S. Intercom (2007). Articles>Information Design>Web Design>Online

Hiring Technical Writers: Are We Looking for the Right Skills?  

Winsberg argues that the most valuable employees are those with a work ethic and analytical, organizational, and writing skills, rather than those with specific software experience.

Winsberg, Freya Y. Intercom (2000). Careers>Management

Hone Your Professional Skills: Find Your Writer's Voice    

When concentrating on your daily tasks, you may lose track of your creative side. Discover four suggestions for how to stretch your creative muscles.

Tremmel, Martina A. Intercom (2007). Articles>Writing>Workplace

Hooray, I'm Doing the Forms!  

Everyone hates forms--users hate filling them out, and writers hate creating them. But forms offer writers a unique opportunity for rewarding work. Jarrett suggests ways to improve forms--and, possibly, users' lives.

Jarrett, Caroline. Intercom (2004). Design>Document Design>Forms

How Have You Advanced Your Career?  

Three technical communication gurus answer the question, 'What single action or decision did more to advance your career than any other?'

Barker, Thomas, Janice Gelb and Donald E. Zimmerman. Intercom (2002). Careers>Advice>TC

How to Conduct a Review Meeting  

Although technical reviews of many draft user’s guides, references, and help systems occur through the black box (that is, the author sends out the material, and reviewers send it back marked up, without the two ever seeing one another), many technical communicators find that a personal meeting ultimately saves time and improves communication in the process of developing a technical communication product.

Carliner, Saul. Intercom (2003). Careers>Management>Editing

How to Edit for Content  

Editing involves more than just formatting and inserting page numbers. You need to ask, 'How can I improve the communication?'

Bush, Donald W. Intercom (2003). Articles>Editing>Writing>Technical Writing