Add Programming to Your Skill Set

While many technical communicators may already have HTML, CSS, or Javascript skills, many may feel that it's time to take the next step: creating a web page that hooks up to a Microsoft Access database. With new, affordable tools, now is certainly a good time to get started. While there are a number of tools that you could use, this article describes Web Matrix as an example that can help you get started with programming and connecting a web page to a database.

Hansen, Heidi. STC Puget Sound (2005). Careers>TC>Databases>Microsoft Access

All by Myself...

All job searchers probably needs to be prepared for that scenario and to be ready to subcontract. That doesn't mean buying an expensive software package to do your own accounting. It does mean being ready to set up an Excel spreadsheet to track your income and expenses.

Gordon, Miryam. STC Puget Sound (2005). Careers>Freelance>Contracts

Ask the Word Guru

As you read the questions below, notice how many of the solutions are found in the Tools | Options dialog. This little dialog is a treasure trove of useful options and settings. I encourage you to explore it a little and experiment with different settings.

Faulkner, Betty. STC Puget Sound (2004). Articles>Word Processing>Software>Microsoft Word

Avoid the Top Three Cover Letter Mistakes!

As a career coach and professional resume writer, I'm often asked 'How important are cover letters to my job search?' My answer is, 'It depends on how long you want to search for your next job.' If you are in no hurry to get interviews, then don't worry about your cover letter.

Walker, Deborah. STC Puget Sound (2005). Careers>Resumes>Cover Letters>Business Communication

Certification for Technical Communicators: The Time is Now

The Society for Technical Communication (STC) has been debating certification for technical communicators for over 37 years in one form or another. Despite many attempts locally, regionally, and nationally to move toward establishing a certification process for the profession, the issue remains on hold.

Jacobson, Peggy. STC Puget Sound (2004). Careers>Certification

Comparing Help Authoring Tools

Help authoring tools are big in today’s market. Matthew Ellison quoted one source as saying that there were 208 Help authoring tools. A veteran with over 10 years Help authoring experience, Ellison shared information on selecting authoring tools.

Boos, Diane and Matthew Ellison. STC Puget Sound (2004). Presentations>Documentation>Software>Help

Framing the Evolving Field of Technical Communication

We are witnessing the dramatic change of technical communication programs. Framing the field is not only a step forward to meet the evolving challenges in the information age, but also a way to connect the new frontier with our cherished heritage.

Zhou, Quan. STC Puget Sound (2007). Articles>TC

General Job Search Tips

So, you're in the throes of job search. Perhaps the job that was good enough to take in order to make ends meet just isn't good enough anymore. Maybe you're working 60-hour weeks, coming home completely burned out, and you're tire of being tired. Perhaps your job did the unthinkable — laid you off. Whether it's your first job search or your fourth, you are not alone, and there are ways to maximize and even enrich the process of job search.

Liao, Annie. STC Puget Sound (2005). Careers>TC>Interviewing

How to Get Book Reviews Published in Technical Communication

Do you enjoy reading book reviews? Do you like the challenge of trying new kinds of writing projects that are different from your regular work? Would you like to have a new piece of professional writing for your portfolio?

Kowalsky, David. STC Puget Sound (2005). Articles>Publishing>TC

Information Architecture of Content Management

When people think about content management, they generally think about it from a systems perspective, focusing primarily on tools and technology. While it is true that content management usually requires a technological solution, it also requires that content be designed for reuse, retrieval, and delivery to meet your authors' and customers' needs. Content management requires that tools be configured to support authoring, reviewing, and publishing tasks, but first, those tasks must be designed. Designing content and the processes to create, review, and publish it is what information architecture is all about.

Rockley, Ann. STC Puget Sound (2005). Articles>Content Management>Information Design

Is It Time To Update Your Resume?

If a recruiter called you today with your dream job, would you be prepared to send out an up-to-date resume right away?

Walker, Deborah. STC Puget Sound (2006). Careers>Resumes>Advice

The Magical Number: Seven, Plus or Minus Two

Few of us know the details of the original research that produced the concept of this magical number. And still fewer of us choose to question its applicability to information design--it's far too convenient a rule of thumb to risk invalidating it!

Ellison, Matthew. STC Puget Sound (2006). Design>User Interface>Usability>Cognitive Psychology

The Man Behind Clippy

An interview with Kevan J. Atteberry, the graphic artist who first developed Clippy the Overly Eager Office Supply Unit.

Dickson, Andrea with Erin Lowe. STC Puget Sound (2007). Articles>Interviews>Graphic Design>Help

Return on Investment: Our Value as Technical Communicators

Before technical communicators can talk to managers or developers, we need to understand their language and perspective. Managers think in terms of value added as return on investment (ROI).

Boos, Diane. STC Puget Sound (2004). Articles>TC>Collaboration

The Road Ahead: Getting Ready for Your Career  

Lance Gelein presented Getting Ready for Your Career at the STC PSC chapter meeting on June 18. His presentation focused on how to build your network, techniques for learning new technologies, and ways to make you stand out from the masses.

Gelein, Lance. STC Puget Sound (2002). Careers>Advice>Presentations

Should You Pay for a Resume Writer?

I'm a writer. Shouldn't I be able to write something as simple as a resume?

STC Puget Sound (2007). Careers>Resumes>Advice

Single-Sourcing with FrameMaker and SiberSafe

Like many of you, I’ve struggled over the years to find the right combination of tools and processes to reliably manage large volumes of volatile text under the duress of seemingly impossible deadlines. Inevitably, I had to learn to customize my tools and automate as much of the process as I could. This meant getting under the hood and learning numerous scripting and markup languages. I was constantly exploring new technologies and applications that could take on some of the heavy lifting.

Hanna, Rob. STC Puget Sound (2005). Articles>Content Management>Single Sourcing>Adobe FrameMaker

STC Puget Sound Chapter Jobs Bank

The information included in these job postings has been provided solely by the employers profiled herein. The STC Puget Sound Chapter employment committee has not independently verified the information set forth herein and shall not be responsible or liable for any misinformation or misprint. Further, STC expressly makes no representations or endorsements of such employers or any such information.

STC Puget Sound. Careers>Job Listings>Regional>Puget Sound

Technical Communication Has a Bright, Exciting Future!  

What did Henry Ford do? He learned from other people’s experiences as well as his own. He took risks. He saw failure as a lesson, and he applied everything he learned to perfect the product, the process, and the policies that shaped the American automobile industry. In short, he was a great innovator. And, because he was so willing to share the lessons he learned, he became an inspiration to many others. The field of technical communication has a bright and exciting future because we’re innovators, just like Henry Ford. We work constantly to perfect the product, the process, and the policies that shape our profession. Technical communication work is being performed in more diversified environments than ever before, with experience, skills, and talents that vary widely. We know that there will always be a need for trained people to explain new technology, processes, and products so audiences can better understand or use them, so our future is bright and exciting. Technical communication enjoyed sustained growth for the last eight years of the 20th Century, but times are different now. We entered this new millennium with high expectations for continued success only to have our hopes crushed by tragedy as America was thrust into uncertain times. We’ve learned that 2002 is going to be a lean year and that many companies have fewer people to do more work. To prepare for the future, there are a couple of things I think technical communicators should do.

Laurent, J. Suzanna. STC Puget Sound (2002). Articles>TC>History

Think Weird and Prosper

The only way to effect true transformation in the workplace is to enlist the outliers in your organization to your cause. Find the weirdos and the freaks, offer support for the projects they're secretly pursuing, then get them to help you with your own revolutionary change ideas.

Bailie, Rahel Anne. STC Puget Sound (2004). Articles>TC>Collaboration

Three Ways of Using XML in Software User Assistance

Technical writers are gearing towards challenging roles that enable them to enrich software users' experience. Extensible Markup Language (XML) happens to be one of the ways in which writers are enhancing their skills for software user assistance.

Ryali, Kavita. STC Puget Sound (2004). Articles>Documentation>XML>Help

What Do You Do for a Living?

We need to revise our job descriptions. Rather than authoring printed manuals and on-line help panels, we should be involved in or leading projects that make them unnecessary. Why? Because consumers increasingly demand intuitive interfaces to the products they use. Users and administrators of more complex products expect interfaces that guide them through decisions rather than require them to read details. We must stay ahead of this trend, rather allow ourselves to be flattened by it.

Harvey, Michael. STC Puget Sound (2006). Careers>TC

What's in a Title?

Job titles are so subjective. We should probably just title people 'boss' or 'flunky' and call it a day. Have you looked through lists of job postings lately, trying to find tech writing or editing positions? Jobs for technical writers and editors may not even have 'writer' or 'editor' in the job name, or even in the job description!

Gordon, Miryam. STC Puget Sound (2005). Careers>TC

Why Technical Writers Should Learn XML Now

Lately you may have noticed the increase in newsletter articles, seminars, and monthly meeting topics that relate to XML. If you haven’t been keeping up, you might be wondering what's all the fuss about XML? Or, why do I need to learn this if my job doesn’t have anything to do with XML? If you haven’t kept up, you might be interested to know why you should.

Schurtz, Renee. STC Puget Sound (2004). Articles>Writing>XML>Technical Writing

Wikipedia and the "Informalation" Revolution

This is the great debate currently raging between Wikipedia's advocates and its critics. Wikipedia's supporters argue that an 'open source' structure in which anyone can perform updates will lead to the highest quality of information. Wikipedia has similar structure to Linux, an open source operating system which anyone is free to modify. Supporters also point out that unlike traditional print encyclopedias, or even software-based ones such as Microsoft Encarta, Wikipedia is continually updated in real-time, therefore much of the information is extremely relevant and timely.

Brooke, Andrew. STC Puget Sound (2005). Articles>Web Design>Collaboration>Open Source