Posts Tagged ‘Technical Writing’
The Worst and Best Review Scenarios for Technical Documents
Review process is where most technical documents either sink or swim: either they improve as a result of to-the-point and clear comments or they become muddled and actually deteriorate as a result of overlapping and conflicting feedback comments. I believe the quality and outcome of a review process has a lot more to do with the way…
Read MoreAdobe InDesign for Publishing Technical Documents on iPhone and iPad
I’ve been studying structured-authoring and DITA for some time with an eye towards publishing technical documents on mobile platforms like iPad and iPhone. I always thought that was the natural way to re-purpose and adapt my FrameMaker documents for the digital media. Recently, however, I became aware of another possibility as I started to study…
Read MoreHow to Add a SEARCH Bookmark to a PDF Document
Usually a PDF document’s bookmarks are generated automatically by the “Distiller engine” based on the paragraph tags you define in the PDF configuration settings. These are usually based on standard tags like “Heading 1”, “Heading 2”, “Chapter Title” etc. But what if you also wanted to add a SEARCH button to your bookmarks so that…
Read MoreHow NOT to Write a User Guide
I don’t like to be negative in general. Life is too short to go around fuming about things that we can’t change. However, there are times when we all need to be critical in order to improve things; especially if they fall within our area of expertise. The other day I bought an iPhone docking…
Read MoreArnold Burian – a Technical Communication Interview
© Ugur Akinci Arnold Burian is a technical communicator from Chicago, IL. He is the founder of Technical Writing World, the social network for technical communicators. In January 2012, Arnold is selected the 63rd most influential technical communicator on MindTouch’s list of 400 Most Influential Technical Communicators. QUESTION (1): How long have you been a…
Read More"Do you have any tips or advice for those interested in breaking into technical writing?"
My top advice would be to develop a personal portfolio to break into tech writing. Nothing speaks louder for your skills than a finished work or two at hand. One thing I recommend to my readers and students is to write a user’s manual for a freely available software like OpenOffice. It does not need…
Read MoreTechnical versus Content Writing
Technical versus content writing — are they the same or different? The answer is YES and NO. It is similar to content or article writing in the sense that you need to create prose that is easily understood, logically consistent, and conveys useful information. Where it separates from regular non-fiction writing is in its procedural…
Read MoreCatherine Hibbard – A Technical Communication Interview
We’re kicking off the new year with a new series of interviews with veteran technical writers and communicators. Our first guest for this column in 2012 is Catherine Hibbard of Cypress Media, a veteran writer and trainer who offers Technical Writing Training and Writing Effective Policies and Procedures Training. In January 2012, she is selected…
Read MoreTechnical Writing and Editing Online Course (was "Technical Editing" Online Course)
We are proud to offer our beginner-level technical communication online course: Technical Writing and Editing This is a practical hands-on introduction to technical writing for all beginner writers or those who are considering to make a career change and become technical writers. Comes with 30-Days 100% Money Back Guarantee! “Why should I learn technical writing?”…
Read MoreTCC Honored as MindTouch's "Top 10 Most Followed" Web Site
© Ugur Akinci I’m happy to report that, thanks to you TCC readers, our Twitter account @technicalwriter has been selected by MindTouch as one of the “Top 10 Most Followed” technical communication accounts on Twitter. To be included in such a distinguished list of industry pioneers and leaders is a great honor indeed. I’d like to…
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