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Technical Writing World
The social network for technical communicators
The social network for technical communicators
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TWW is an open and free community for technical communicators. After signing up, create a blog, start a discussion, add an event, and invite your friends!
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Top Members This Month
| 1 |
Amarjeet Desai |
| 2 |
Chastin Howerton |
| 3 |
Desh |
| 4 |
Hamish Blunck |
| 5 |
Shirley Lu |
| 6 |
Monica Young |
| 7 |
Reshma Mohammed |
| 8 |
Alison Turner |
| 9 |
Simon Sun |
| 10 |
Jobin Jose |
Don't Be Blue
Blog Posts
Managing projects effectively in India
Posted by Arnold Burian on May 18, 2013 at 9:01am 0 Comments 0 Likes
Clouds...it has already raining.
Posted by Amarjeet Desai on May 17, 2013 at 3:44am 0 Comments 0 Likes
Readers,
you might know about the recent trend of cloud computing. If you don’t, well you should. Short cut is, it’s not any rocket science technology, the way we work tough is different. We share our documents on YouTube, Facebook and…
Continue A stitch in time saves nine.
Posted by Amarjeet Desai on May 6, 2013 at 3:30am 0 Comments 0 Likes
It was a hot Sunday afternoon. I was home alone watching one of my favourite movie. Though this movie is a bit romantic love story, I was surprised to myself watching this movie. You might be guessing what is surprising in watching the all-time…
Continue
“That” Doesn’t Go Without Saying
Posted by Marcia Riefer Johnston on April 24, 2013 at 1:52pm 0 Comments 0 Likes
(My essay below appeared earlier today as a …
Marcia Talks Up Writing on "AM Northwest"
Posted by Marcia Riefer Johnston on April 23, 2013 at 3:20pm 0 Comments 0 Likes
When did you last hear people talking on TV about the importance of writing skills? If it’s been too long, today is your lucky day. AM Northwest hosts Helen Raptis and Dave Anderson interviewed Marcia Riefer Johnston…
Continue
Using Python in documentation generation automation
Posted by Simon Sun on April 22, 2013 at 2:08am 3 Comments 0 Likes
Recently I have been learning to use Python and Sphinx (http://sphinx-doc.org/index.html )to generate docs for my company's user manuals. It is very easy to learn and good for the…
Continue "Word Up!" -- You Can Now Preorder
Posted by Marcia Riefer Johnston on April 19, 2013 at 5:35pm 0 Comments 0 Likes
Get documentation superpowers: Send me (a chapter of / instruction from) your documentation
Posted by Kees van Mansom on April 16, 2013 at 1:55am 0 Comments 0 Likes
I will demonstrate how we can use semantic technology to create process-driven documentation at the STC Summit 2013 in Atlanta. I will do this by live modeling with a semantic tool set.
Now I…
Goodbye to textual manuals
Posted by Manmeet Singh on April 11, 2013 at 5:23am 4 Comments 0 Likes
Technical Writing has come a long way. Users just do not have time to read through a 500-page manual. They want something interesting or probably someone to demonstrate how a certain task is performerd rather than having to go through a…
Continue
Call For Proposals - Technical Communication UK (TCUK) – September 24-26, 2013 Bristol, UK
Posted by David Farbey on March 26, 2013 at 9:33am 0 Comments 0 Likes
Technical Communication UK (TCUK) which takes place in Bristol from 24th to 26th September 2013 is the UK’s leading technical communication event, and without a doubt the…
ContinueNewspaper Rack
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Latest Activity
Gaurav Tulpule replied to Desh's discussion Deployment Guide"I agree with Chastin. However, the final decision should depend on the complexity of the depployment scenario. If there are several components to be deployed / configured, then Deployment Guide should be a separate document. If its a straightforward…"
Chastin Howerton replied to Desh's discussion Deployment Guide"I think it would be more fitting inside the installation guide if you don't want to make it a separate section.
Your user's guide should tell users how to use the product effectively and how to do various tasks using the product.
The…"
Desh posted a discussionDeployment Guide
Hi Forum,Have you worked on software product deployment guides before. I'm struggling to figure out where I can ideally place the deployment guide in my product documentation.Should it be inside the User's Guide, or inside the Installation Guide or…See More
Desh replied to Desh's discussion Quick Start Guide"Thank you for both your replies. We have decided to go with the video option and as you both said, remove the QSG from the existing documentation."
Amarjeet Desai posted a blog postClouds...it has already raining.
Readers,you might know about the recent trend of cloud computing. If you don’t, well you should. Short cut is, it’s not any rocket science technology, the way we work tough is different. We share our documents on YouTube, Facebook and others. We…See More
Monica Young replied to Amarjeet Desai's discussion Is it good to write Good Morning during written communication?"Eh, it's kind of weird in a business environment. It really depends on how you want to present yourself to your associates. I tend to veer toward the playful route."
Chastin Howerton replied to Chastin Howerton's discussion What do you use to create client forms / questionnaires?"We've moved everything to the cloud too... It's definitely the way of the future. It may seem more expensive, but Chris, you've nailed it with the ROI you see from scaling back IT salaries.
PS.... I love working from home too :)"
Chris Waggoner replied to Chastin Howerton's discussion What do you use to create client forms / questionnaires?"I can see where people are saying this, however you get a lot more with CC. For starters, no need for a company to keep a server around. That's huge just in IT salaries alone. So where can they say the cost is more? I can tell you the answer to…"
Amarjeet Desai replied to Amarjeet Desai's discussion Is it good to write Good Morning during written communication?"Thanks Monica,
You have depicted a very excellent explanation when we communicate worldwide. I have a world clock on my desktop for that matter.
BTW: Somewhere I read a line,"Hope you are in good spirit and health." Would this be a…"
Amarjeet Desai replied to Amarjeet Desai's discussion Is it good to write Good Morning during written communication?"Perfect Dave.
We won't be discussing the Taboo here about the written communication. And secondly, addressing the reader with "Hey" or "Hi" would be an offence, me too can't imagine doing business with…"
rahul gulati replied to Chastin Howerton's discussion What do you use to create client forms / questionnaires?"You can also use GroupDocs Assembly to create questionnaire. Please check this out. It gives you the option to collect information in different ways. You need to upload a document template in this."
Monica Young replied to Reshma Mohammed's discussion Need Help..."Basically a Process Map is a Flow Chart, but with deciding individuals and swim lanes and all kinds of variables.
Click Here for help on process mapping."
Reshma Mohammed replied to Reshma Mohammed's discussion Need Help..."
Hi,
Thanks for replying. Can you be a bit specific about what is a process map. what all are the details that cover a process map??"
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Forum
Deployment Guide
Started by Desh in Software and Stuff. Last reply by Chastin Howerton 13 hours ago. 3 Replies 0 Likes
Hi Forum,Have you worked on software product deployment guides before. I'm struggling to figure out where I can ideally place the deployment guide in my product documentation.Should it be inside the User's Guide, or inside the Installation Guide or should it be a separate section altogether. I am hesitant to make it a separate sections because that would make my "list of main topics" too lengthy and since I talk about server extension and troubleshooting scenarios inside the User Guide, I don't…Continue
Tags: information, architecture, structure, topics, guide
Quick Start Guide
Started by Desh in Software and Stuff. Last reply by Desh yesterday. 3 Replies 0 Likes
Dear forum,I work in the IT sector and I have a question on where the Quick Start guide best fits in product documentation. Currently, I have listed it as follows:About the productInstallationQuick Start GuideUser GuideI have basic instructions on how to install and set up the product in the Quick Start Guide too. So I am thinking if it is better to move it right after the About section.Do you have any suggestions for me please? Is the Quick Start Guide irrelevant nowadays?Continue
Tags: installation, products, documentation, start, quick
QA Turned Writer
Started by Desh in Questions, Opinions, and Thoughts. Last reply by Desh yesterday. 2 Replies 0 Likes
Hi guys,This is a newcomer saying "Hi" to the forum. I am on the verge if changing job tracks to technical writing because I do not quite enjoy what I do right now. I am in QA but I have a passion for documentation.My Question:Are there any writers here who changed tracks from a software development or QA job? If so, what are the implications of such a job change?Thanks guys.Continue
Tags: change, tracks, jobs, writers, development
Is it good to write Good Morning during written communication?
Started by Amarjeet Desai in Questions, Opinions, and Thoughts. Last reply by Monica Young on Friday. 5 Replies 0 Likes
Hi,I wrote an email to a person asking about some clarrifications. The email that I wrote was during the morning time, so I started the email with "Hello XYZ, A very Good Morning to you." Well, during afternoon when I was just checking the Sent items from my outlook, I thought whether it's appropriate to say, "A very Good Morning." I am not sure when is he going to read the email. He may read it during afternoon, evening or at night.It sounded weird or something to me when I was reading my…Continue
Tags: communication, written, ethics, Email
What do you use to create client forms / questionnaires?
Started by Chastin Howerton in Questions, Opinions, and Thoughts. Last reply by Chastin Howerton on Thursday. 12 Replies 0 Likes
I need to create a questionnaire for new clients to fill out prior to implementation. What software do you recommend for something like that? I need something that offers "save as you go" functinoality.Example:What is the name of your company? *What is your first name?*In what states do you write business?*Continue
Need Help...
Started by Reshma Mohammed in Questions, Opinions, and Thoughts. Last reply by Monica Young on Thursday. 3 Replies 0 Likes
Hi All, I have a major dillema. I work in a company where we create user guides, admin guides, installation, troubleshooting and online help docs.A requirement from the Dev team has arised about an Application document which doesnot have a UI, and acts as a gateway for the order flow across various spaces. So they just have the rules for managing this complex application. The data basically flows from the Sales Database.Now my question is to create what kind of document that accomodates these…Continue
Tags: rules, Application, Documenting
Use "the" or not before a product name?
Started by Shirley Lu in Questions, Opinions, and Thoughts. Last reply by Monica Young on Thursday. 2 Replies 0 Likes
I have a problem regarding whether or not to use the definite article “the” along with a product name. 1. Use “the” or not before a noun-version product name?It seems that when a product name is used as an adjective (that is, being followed by a modified noun), “the” is usually required (When I said “usually”, I meant “there may be exceptions.” See my second question below.) For example, “The SC000™…Continue
Style Guide
Started by Dan Boylan in Questions, Opinions, and Thoughts. Last reply by Monica Young on Thursday. 8 Replies 0 Likes
I am creating a first ever Style Guide for my company.We create web content, User Guides, Marketing Communications (on line and technical oriented docs), White Papers, and Press Releases.As you might suspect the styles, even within a single document, are inconsistent.On one hand, the techs want Times for everything, while Sales want Impact, Garamond, etc., and I need facts to help me "draw a line in the sand."Do you know of, and can point me to resources/research that recommends using specific…Continue
InDesign v. Word...
Started by Monica Young in Software and Stuff on Thursday. 0 Replies 0 Likes
Hola, folks! I'm new, so be nice, but be honest. :)I came from a desktop production background, and I fell in love with the Adobe CreativeSuite. I have InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, and even a little Dreamweaver on my resume.Now that I'm a technical writer...as much as I LOVE InDesign as a layout program, I'm not sure how long-term user-friendly it is for longer documents. I've so far had issues with text threading, anchored objects, and those FREAKING section numbers. Word handles…Continue
Audience refered in various documents like user guide, installation guide, user manul etc.
Started by Amarjeet Desai in Questions, Opinions, and Thoughts. Last reply by Amarjeet Desai May 15. 5 Replies 0 Likes
Hello Readers,I am a bit confused about refering to the audience or reader of the document.I am not sure in which document, how should I refer. For Instance, "You need to verify the ....." or "User need to verify the...."?Another question is whether we can change from "User" to "You" and Vice-a-Versa at some point in the document?Regards,Amar.Continue
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Introduction to Author-it Course - New Zealand
May 20, 2013 to May 21, 2013 – Auckland, New Zealand
In conjunction with TCANZ, I will be running a two day “Introduction to Author-it” course in May in New Zealand (not in Australia, I understand, but there might be some Kiwis lurking on this list).…
Organized by Hamish Blunck | Type: training
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Introduction to Author-it Course - New Zealand
May 23, 2013 to May 24, 2013 – Christchurch, New Zealand
In conjunction with TCANZ, I will be running a two day “Introduction to Author-it” course in May in New Zealand (not in Australia, I understand, but there might be some Kiwis lurking on this list).…
Organized by Hamish Blunck | Type: training
0 Comments 0 Likes
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Agile Technical Documentation Seminar
May 24, 2013 from 7:30pm to 9pm – Sweden
Attendees will learn about efficient ways of producing technical information in an agile product development environment, and the associated pitfalls.
Organized by Stephan Quist | Type: breakfast, seminar
0 Comments 0 Likes
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Open Help Conference & Sprints
June 15, 2013 to June 19, 2013 – Garfield Suites
Open Help brings together leaders in open source documentation and support, as well as people from across the technical communications industry who are interested in community-based help.
Organized by Shaun McCance | Type: conference
0 Comments 0 Likes
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