#12958
This new TECHWR-L archive format gives you complete access to TECHWR-L list messages--from the first messages posted in March 1993 to the current day's TECHWR-L postings. We've added this new format in response to site visitor feedback, which indicated a need for a complete archive that: returns focused results (minimizing irrelevant results; returns results quickly; minimizes forms; minimizes reloading pages; offers flexibility to search by topic, author, thread, or date. This new archive format provides full-text search capabilities through all 120,000+ (and growing) messages, as well as allows you to browse by month/year, thread, and author. Experiment with the new archive format, or find out more about it.
#13932
The TECHWR-L Mentoring Program 
The TECHWR-L mentoring program is designed to match students or people starting out in the profession with those interested in being a mentor.
#13994
The TECHWR-L website periodically polls users' opinions about the current state of the field. Review the recent findings.
#21691
#25923
I got a free pen, a free highlighter, a pad, and this story out of the Internet training course my company sent me to.
#12969
Shovelware is becoming the norm in computer software documentation. Many companies no longer furnish printed books with their products, and it’s usually impossible to produce (from the on-line help files) a reasonable facsimile of a coherently organized, double-sided, printed book with page numbers, running headers and footers, table of contents, glossary, and multilevel subject index. The current sad state of affairs is epitomized by the FrameMaker user manual and on-line help. In the last release (V5.1) of FrameMaker+SGML for which Frame Technology was responsible, the printed user’s manual was quite comprehensive at 900+ pages, and the on-line help was extensive, well-designed, and effective. But the Adobe-produced V5.5 user’s manual (including the separate “Getting Started” manual for FM+SGML) has 300 fewer pages, even though many new fea-tures (e.g., HTML and XML export) in V5.5 had to be covered in addition to all those features common to both releases. Not only that, but the effectiveness of the on-li
Emory, Dan. TECHWR-L (1999). Articles>Documentation>Help>Online
#12936
Tips for Attending Conferences
First, determine what you want to gain from the conference. Are you looking to gain new knowledge in specific topic areas? Are you looking to gain as much new information as possible? Are you primarily attending to network with new people? Are you looking to find a new job or investigate relevant services? Maybe some or all of these reasons? Determine what your goals are.
Ray, Deborah S. TECHWR-L (2000). Articles>Collaboration
#14145
Top Five Tips for Starting a New Job
This article offers five tips that can help you get off to a good start in your new job.
Hart, Geoffrey J.S. TECHWR-L (2000). Careers>Advice>TC
#14147
Twenty Questions for Your First Day on the Job as a Contractor
It's hard enough your first day at work as a permanent employee. There are forms to fill out, introductory meetings to attend, tools to learn. But people are likely to cut you a little slack at first, while you come up to speed. Then there's your first day as a contractor. You're expected to hit the ground running, ask what you need to know, and get productive as fast as possible. How can you minimize your initial minutes of floundering around, and get to work quickly? The sets of questions below, while by no means comprehensive, will help you figure out how your new environment works. They are grouped, but not prioritized.
#18695
Understanding and Planning for Translation Services
The past decade has seen significant advances in machine-translation (MT) technology. While MT is still a ways off its goal of replacing human translators, today it is used successfully in several industry sectors (incl. automotive, aerospace, defense) with lots of documentation to be translated.
Heuberger, Andres. TECHWR-L (2002). Articles>Language>Localization>Machine Translation
#12939
Understanding Business Communication Copyright Laws
For some reason, there is a common misconception that correspondence and other forms of communication are not subject to protection by U.S. copyright laws; however, generally, that is not true. The U.S. Copyright Act states that protection exists 'in original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression, now known or later developed, from which they can be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated, either directly or with the aid of a machine or device.' Therefore, letters typically are protected by copyright law.
Isenberg, Doug. TECHWR-L (2000). Articles>Intellectual Property>Correspondence>Business Communication
#12952
Understanding Graphic File Formats
Identifying and fixing problems with graphics often comes down to a brief reminder of what the various kinds of graphic formats are and how to use each of them when they're the most appropriate--not merely most convenient--for the situation.
Ray, Eric J. TECHWR-L (2000). Design>Graphic Design
#10651
Generally, the 'year of first publication of the work' refers to the year in which the work (such as an instruction manual) was first distributed to the public. So, a manual written and distributed companywide in 1998 should obviously contain 1998 in the copyright notice. That's the easy example! But what about your question: What happens when the manual is revised? Interestingly, the Copyright Act doesn't directly say. But the commonly accepted practice is to include multiple years in the copyright notice, indicating the various years in which various material in the overall work was first published.
Isenberg, Doug. TECHWR-L (2000). Articles>Intellectual Property
#12946
Did you know that some people think technical writers make too much money? Discuss it as much as you like, but one thing remains certain: Until engineers can figure out that 'I/O' is 'on,' we writers will continue to pull down the big bucks.
#12940
According to the U.S. Lanham Act, a trademark is generally a 'word, name, symbol, or device, or combination thereof' that is used to 'identify and distinguish...goods, including a unique product, from those manufactured or sold by others and to indicate the source of the goods, even if that source is unknown.' Similarly, a service mark identifies and distinguishes services, rather than goods. Trademark infringement occurs when a person, without permission, uses another person's trademark or service mark in a commercial manner that is likely to cause confusion among the public. Trademark dilution, a less common legal violation, occurs when a person uses another person's famous trademark commercially without permission if doing so dilutes the distinctive quality of the trademark, even if there is no likelihood of confusion.
Isenberg, Doug. TECHWR-L (2000). Articles>Intellectual Property>Trademark
#12938
Using Parts of Another Company's Documentation to Supplement Your Company's Documentation
Although in some parts of life, as the saying goes, 'it's easier to ask forgiveness than to ask permission,' that's certainly not true in copyright law. It's very important to ask permission, because if you don't, you could be committing copyright infringement. In some instances, you may be able to use small portions of the other company's documentation without asking permission, under the 'fair use' doctrine of copyright law. However, this doctrine is highly fact-specific and often confusing; in other words, it's impossible to provide a blanket rule about how many paragraphs or words you can copy without violating the law.
Isenberg, Doug. TECHWR-L (2000). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright
#12968
Thanks to all of you who responded to my recent questions about WebHelp and HTML Help. I've put together an informal summary of my findings, but please feel free to make comments or add to it.
MacLemale, Laura A. TECHWR-L (2000). Articles>Documentation>Help
#14500
What Can We Learn from Other Functional Areas?
Imagine the perfect technical writing experience. Engineers gladly line up at your door to explain how the product works. You enjoy ample time to finish the tasks on your documentation plan. Your manager gives you free rein to work at your own pace. Your customers rejoice at the usefulness of your document. A fairy tale? Perhaps. As a fledgling writer, though, that idyllic picture is my goal. To achieve even part of that goal, I've discovered a need to develop new work habits, behaviors, and processes. In addition to seeking the help of mentors within the technical writing community, my strategy involves looking to other functional areas within my company and learning from the approaches they use on their own tasks. I believe people new to the technical communication industry, as well as those who have toiled in the field for decades, can benefit from the examples of other functional areas.
Stewart, David. TECHWR-L (2001). Careers>Collaboration
#13513
What Do Technical Writers Find Stressful?
If you are new to the technical writing profession or are considering technical writing as a career, you may be wondering whether technical writing is a high-stress occupation. According to The Jobs Rated Almanac 2001 by Les Krantz, technical writers are rated as having a 'relatively moderate to medium level of stress' when compared to other professions. The Almanac ranks 250 professions based on a range of job demands that are considered to cause stress; the stress ranking for 'technical writing' is based on the large workloads, tight deadlines, stringent demands for quality, and the exposure to criticism characteristic of many technical and marketing writer jobs.
Singer, Warren. TECHWR-L (2002). Careers>TC>Assessment
#26601
What Kind Of Writer Are You, Anyway?
It never ceases to amaze me when clients and recruiters insist on absolute perfection in a technical writer, or, at the very least, a writer who is everything to everybody. So, at the risk of sounding flippant, what kind of writer are you anyway?
Torres, Derek. TECHWR-L (2005). Articles>Writing>Technical Writing
#13514
What Strategies Can Technical Writers Use to Cope with Stress?
This article offers some practical suggestions for increasing your ability to cope with stressors. Rather than attempting to cover solutions in depth, this article provides a range of ideas to explore in addressing the stressors discussed in Part One. The 'See Also' section at the end of each topic provides links to additional resources related to the topic, which help clarify or expand on the strategies briefly described under each topic.
Singer, Warren. TECHWR-L (2002). Careers>TC>Assessment
#13364
What's in a Name? Guidelines for Naming Files
While file naming may seem like an insignificant detail, developing an intuitive, descriptive file naming system can help minimize file access and management challenges. What's more, developing such a file naming system--especially when a consistent system is not in place--can have added benefits, such as improving access through better searchability and browseability, and improving access for everyone who may, now or later, need to access project files. In this article, you'll find several tips and examples for naming files, which used individually or in combination, can help ease file access and management.
Hower, Sean. TECHWR-L (2002). Resources>TC>Computers and Writing
#31968
This guide to dealing with the trials and tribulations of Master documents is virtually guaranteed to save whatever fragments of sanity you may have left as you deal with Master documents.
Hudson, Steve. TECHWR-L (2008). Articles>Word Processing>Software>Microsoft Word
#12967
This summary lists pros and cons for using FrameMaker or Word for creating large documents or books. The general consensus of techwhirlers is that FrameMaker is better-suited than Word for large documents and for creating a single-source documentation set.
Christopherson, Christie. TECHWR-L (1999). Articles>Software>Writing>Adobe FrameMaker
#13589
Working with a Technical Editor
If you have never worked with an editor before, you may be wondering what to expect, and what the editor will expect from you. If you have worked with an editor before, you probably have some expectations about the relationship. Whether your past experiences were good or bad, you may be quite surprised to discover that the new editor's expectations are rather different from yours. This article looks at some aspects of the writer-editor relationship and what each of you can do to get the best results out of working together.
Weber, Jean Hollis. TECHWR-L (2002). Articles>Writing>Collaboration
