https://www.slideshare.

net/MariaMarthaManetteMadrid/technical-writing-12786836

https://www.slideshare.net/DrElizabethLohman/eng-131-technical-writing-introduction-powerpoint

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Why Is Report Writing So Important?

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WHY IS REPORT WRITING SO
IMPORTANT?
This post was originally added to Learnhigher on: January 15th, 2012

Often report writing at university is presented as deceptively simple all you need to do is ensure you follow
the required report structure, and write clearly and concisely. But we know this isnt as straightforward as it
seems; although reports have to be easy to read, this doesnt necessarily make them easy to write.

Reports are formally structured but you've probably discovered that what is needed for a report in one
discipline is likely to be different from a report in another discipline. Also expectations can be different from one
report to the next, even within the same subject.

Writing concisely and clearly takes time. You have to work out exactly what your audience wants to know in
order to make sure you are writing relevant information.

So, the truth is there is no set formula for writing a report - every report is different. Each one depends on what
the purpose is, who you are writing for and the kind of research that you are reporting.

So if every report is different, how can you tell what makes a good report? The key is to understand the
purpose of report writing rather than just what goes in each section.

The keys to writing good reports are:

Understanding the types of writing a report involves
Being able to identify the audience and purpose of your report
Knowing how reports are read by your audience
Knowing the purpose of each section in a report (not just where the information goes)
Understanding how good organisation of your report helps the reader find the information they want
Being able to communicate well both in writing and using graphical data
The good news is the ability to write good reports will stay with you. Youre once you leave university but good
report writing principles of writing informatively for a specific audience and purpose will help you communicate
well in whichever career you choose.

http://www.learnhigher.ac.uk/writing-for-university/report-writing/why-is-report-writing-so-important/

Importance of Knowledge in
Technical Writing
by Ron Kurtus (revised 4 May 2003)

In your role as a technical writer, it is important that you are both knowledgeable
and skilled in your profession. You can't do a good job at writing if you don't know
the rules of writing, the subject matter and how to use writing tools.
Being skilled allows you to do your work better and enhances your career. You gain
knowledge through study and skill through application of what you learned.

Questions you may have include:

What sort knowledge is needed?

What are the benefits to a writer?
How can a technical writer become knowledgeable?

This lesson will answer those questions.

Knowledge and skill

Being knowledgeable means you are well informed about writing techniques, the
subject matter and tools to use. This knowledge can come from schooling and more
often from on-the-job experience.

Being skilled means you know how to write effectively and to use the available
writing tools. It is the application of your knowledge. This means learning how to
write with such commonly used tools as FrameMaker and RoboHelp.

Importance of being knowledgeable

If you know how to write effectively and how to use the required software, you can
do your job with less effort and more quickly. Writing according to the technical
writing standards is relatively easy. On the other hand, it isn't pleasant having to
struggle through the process of formatting pages in FrameMaker, when you really
don't know the application.

Also, having knowledge and skill makes you feel better about yourself. Your esteem
grows proportionate to the ease at which you can perform your job.

Being knowledgeable is important in doing excellent work and in being valuable to

your employer. And that perceived value can result in raises and promotions.
Applying your knowledge helps to show your character and even helps reduce
work-related stress to the benefit of your health.

Become knowledgeable
The way to gain knowledge in technical writing is to observe, study and read.
Writers are known to be voracious readers. There are good books on technical
writing techniques, as well as those on how to use the various required software
applications.
Taking classes and attending seminars on writing topics can add to your knowledge.
Participation in profession organizations such as the Society for Technical
Communication (STC) helps you gain knowledge through their presentations and
conversations with other writers.

Applying what you have learned and also analyzing the results of your work are
good ways to establish your skills.

Summary
Being well informed about writing and subject matters and having skill in using
writing tools are important in being a technical writer. Knowledge can make the
work easier, increase your esteem and make you more valuable to your employer.
You should continuously study to improve your knowledge and skills.

http://www.school-for-champions.com/techwriting/importance_of_knowledge.htm#.We46BVuPKM8

mportance of Technical Writing

24 October, 2014 , by Jane Copland

Although creative writing is a complex and complicated discipline in its own right, it would be
wrong to consider that mastering it can give you any edge at all in technical writing. Technical writing
follows a completely different set of rules and principles; and the importance of their proper
implementation can hardly be overestimated. After all, the everyday workings of modern world
depend in a much more crucial way on technological documentation than on fiction and even
journalism for good or worse.
Technical writing deals with specific knowledge, generally in the sphere of science and
technology, and may be used in a wide variety of media: technical documentation, manuals,
scientific articles, dissertations and so on. Each of these kinds of writing follows its own set of rules,
and in order to write, for example, an article in a scientific magazine one doesnt simply have to
know his subject one has to know the conventions of this genre, the way scientific and
technological thought is to be expressed. It doesnt mean that otherwise you wouldnt be understood
 although in some cases you really wouldnt it simply means that no self-respecting magazine is
going to accept your article if it isnt written properly.
And it isnt merely an arbitrary choice to do something in a specific way it is a result of the long
evolution of language used in science and technology. A lot of different other ways were tried out
and found wanting thus, what we have now is the most effective way of imparting knowledge found
so far.
That is why technical writing is of such tremendous importance. At a glance one may say that
students of technology and science should concentrate on their primary disciplines their particular
branches of technology and science in order to achieve more in them, and skills of communication
and writing are superfluous at the very best, redundant at the very worst.
It is, however, far from being true. A person may be an excellent scientist or engineer he may even
have ideas in his head that, if properly addressed, can change the way we perceive his discipline, or
even science in general. But if he lacks these necessary writing skills he wont be able to impart his
ideas, to persuade others in their merits. And in our modern competitive world it is more important as
ever.
A second-rate specialist with a better grasp of technical writing can prepare a better, more organized
project than a brilliant expert who neglected this part of his education. And taking into consideration
that the majority of technologists and engineers today are working in business, in competitive fields,
it is worth mentioning that their (Engineering) department is always just one of many, and it has to
contend with other units: management, marketing, design and so on.
Although technically all departments within one company strive to achieve one and the same goal,
they dont necessarily agree on how it is to be done. Engineers, when all is said and done, do the
work that is the job of others to sell they are by definition less inclined to deal with other people,
prove their point and sell their ideas than, lets say, marketing department. And if a technologist is
going to be competitive in such an environment, he has to have tools to prove his point namely,
good understanding of technical writing.
That is why every person willing to pursue a career in science and technology will do himself or
herself a world of good by doing their best and getting the grasp of technical writing before it
becomes an issue.
https://www.thepensters.com/blog/technical-writing/

Technology is a manner of accomplishing a task using technical methods or knowledge.

It has conferred a number of benefits on humankind. Engineering is the practical
applications of scientific and mathematical principles. And engineers being the directors
of motion guide the course of actions.

Writings that deal with the special knowledge especially on scientific or technical
subjects are scientific or technical writings. Practice for such kind of writings is to be
given to the technical students who study engineering and technology. Importance is
given for technical writing in the Engineering curriculum not only in the Universities in
India but also in all other countries promoting technology.
In general, the educational system of engineering, that is, the Technology Education can
be defined as training for the practical applications of science in industry and commerce.
Beginning from the 18th century there was a progress of technology. An increasing
awareness of the technology and the dilemma confronting the world due the
knowledge of technology makes it possible to offer a realistic assessment of the role of
technology in shaping the society. For practical assessment, technology education
should be comprised with technical communication courses, including oral and written,
in the syllabi for shaping the society.

Technical communication is very important for practical applications of science, for

learning the mechanics in technology, for promoting technological research, and for the
training of technologists.

The primary training and interests of engineering students lie in technical areas. Most of
the engineering students successfully pursue their technical subjects but without extra
writing courses. After their studies, being practicing engineers and scientists in
government and industry, they work on technical projects. It might seem they pursue
and practise well and that writing and communication are superfluous to a technical
education. In fact, this is not the case. Scientists and engineers may be technically
brilliant and creative, but unless they can convince co-workers of their worth, the
technical skills will be unobserved, unrewarding, and unused. If technical people cannot
communicate to others what they are doing and why it is important, it is they and their
technical skills that will be superfluous. So the importance of technical communication
has to be noted. For example, most industries are composed of internal units that
include, at least, a marketing unit, a manufacturing unit, an engineering unit, a design
unit, and a management unit. These units are the internal organizations in the industries.
While they all strive toward the same end, they do not necessarily agree among
themselves. The engineers or scientists must present themselves effectively in
competition. Inevitably, it is a part of their responsibility to transmit understandably the
results of their work to other people, both verbally and in writing.

To present the ideas effectively, to transmit the ideas understandably and influentially
both verbally and in writing, the communication skills should stand above all other types
of skills. The American Society for Engineering Education conducted a survey to
determine which academic skills are most needed for engineering careers in industry.
The results show that communication skills rank above any other type of skill, capturing
five of the most-needed skills, out of thirty-eight skills analyzed.

These five communication skills are:

Technical writing (2nd place)
Public speaking (4th place)
Working with individuals (6th place)
Working with groups (7th place) and
Talking with people (9th place)

Nicholas D. Sylvester in his book Engineering Education has given data under the title
Engineering Education Must Improve the Communication Skills of its Graduates. From
the data, it is observed;

75 percent of engineering undergraduates take jobs in industry, where at least 25

percent of an engineers time is spent in the reporting process. As the engineer moves
up the managerial ladder, this time can increase to as much as 80 percent.

On the lack of communication skills, Nicholas observes;

Engineers cannot communicate cannot spell, cannot make a sketch, have difficulty in
all phases of communication with others. The student of today needs more ability than
ever and a key need is to increase the ability to communicate both in speech and
graphics.

Communication tasks are important to success in the technical professions and

constitute a relatively large part of a job. The technical professionists should have clear
organisation in writing and logical reasoning. They should write clear and concise
sentences. They should follow the standard conventions of grammar, punctuation, and
other mechanics.

Writers of scientific and technical writing should produce sentences that readers can
easily understand, and they should place those statements in contexts, paragraphs or
larger units. So people in technical fields should study significant amounts of both oral
and written work and learn to communicate in a variety of forms, especially shorter
forms using technical terms for the specialists and longer or expanded form for the non-
specialists. They can help also the non-technical people understand easily the technical
terms. If the writers being familiar with the terms, present in a way that could be made
intelligible, the terms can be easily understood by everyone.

For example, the full meaning of a term can often be expressed by simply unwinding it
from right to left and inserting the appropriate preposition(s). For example, the term
wall stresses could be expanded as stresses on a wall, stresses inside a wall,
stresses produced by a wall, etc. Only the civil engineer can be sure that stresses
inside a wall is correct.

The correct interpretation of the term depends heavily on the readers prior knowledge
of the subject being discussed; the non-specialists would be able to guess the intended
meaning of the compound term as a whole.

Likewise, there are many rules for making the scientific and technical writings easy for
non-specialists too. From this perspective, communications skills are not just handy;
they are critical tools for success, even survival, in real world environments.

Copyright 2005 Dr. G. Manivannan

https://www.usingenglish.com/articles/technical-writing-communication-what-why.html

Online Technical Writing:

Common Grammar, Usage, & Spelling
Problemscontinued

This part of the appendix covers grammar problems involving the structure of a
sentence as well as usage problems such as capitalization.

Parallelism
Subject-verb agreement
Pronoun reference
Pronoun case (who, whom)
Capitalization
Numbers vs. words
Symbols and abbreviations

Parallelism
Parallelism refers to the way that items in a series are worded. You want to use the
same style of wording in a series of items--it makes it easier on the reader. Widely
varied wording is distracting and potentially confusing to readers. Here are some
examples, with revisions and some comments:

Problem: The report discusses how telescopes work,

what types are
available, mounts, accessories, and
techniques for beginning star
gazers. (The "how" and the "why" clauses are not
parallel to the "mounts," "accessories,"
and
"techniques" phrases.)

Revision: The report discusses how telescopes work,

what types of
telescopes, mounts, and accessories are
available, and how to begin your
hobby as a star gazer.

Problem: Customers often call the showroom to

inquire about pricing,
what items are available, and to place orders. (The
"what items
are available" clause does not go with the
two phrases beginning with
"to.")

Revision: Customers often call the showroom to

inquire about prices,
check on the availability of certain items, and place
orders.

Problem: While the dialysis solution remains in the

peritoneal
cavity, the dialysis is achieved, a
process that includes the removal of
nitrogenous wastes and correcting
electrolyte imbalances and fluid
overloads. (The "removal" phrase and the
"correcting" phrase are not parallel to
each other.)

Revision: While the dialysis solution remains in the

peritoneal
cavity, the dialysis is achieved, a
process that includes the removal of
nitrogenous wastes and the correction of
electrolyte imbalances and fluid
overloads.

Problem: This report is intended for people with

some electronics
background but have little or no knowledge
 of geophysical
prospecting. (The "with" phrase is not parallel with
the
"have little" clause--this one is not even
grammatical.)

Revision: This report is intended for people with

some electronics
background but with little or no knowledge of
geophysical prospecting.

See parallelism problems for some additional practice.

Subject-Verb Agreement
With subject-verb agreement problems, either a singular subject is matched with a
plural verb, or vice versa. (Remember that some singular verbs end in -s.) Sometimes
it's hard to spot the true subject, particularly in these cases:

When several words come between the subject and verb:

Agreement problems Revisions

The communications between the The communications between the

programmer and the rest of the programmer and the rest of the
company tends to be rather company tend to be rather
informal. informal.

The purpose of the monorails The purpose of the monorails

have changed from one of has changed from one of
carrying food to one of carrying food to one of
carrying people to work in carrying people to work in
crowded urban areas. crowded urban areas.

The shortage of available The shortage of available

infants and the availability of infants and the availability of
children with special needs has children with special needs
changed the focus of adoption have changed the focus of
for many parents. adoption for many parents.
 When there are two or more subjects joined by and or or:

Agreement problems Revisions

In the computer's memory is In the computer's memory are

stored the program and the data stored the program and the data
to be manipulated by that to be manipulated by that
program. program.

Either BASIC or Pascal are the Either BASIC or Pascal is the

high-level computer language high-level computer language
you should take first. you should take first.

Skyrocketing charges for data Skyrocketing charges for data

preparation, the need to keep preparation, the need to keep
pace with rapidly increasing pace with rapidly increasing
amounts of data, and amounts of data, and
requirements for fast system requirements for fast system
response has led to a search response have led to a search
for more efficient input for more efficient input
devices. devices.

The magnetic-ink character- The magnetic-ink character-

recognition device and the recognition device and the
optical character-recognition optical character-recognition
device is two important device are two important
advances in the preparation of advances in the preparation of
batch input. batch input.

When the normal subject-verb order is inverted:

Agreement problems Revisions

In the computer's memory is In the computer's memory are

stored the program and the data stored the program and the data
to be manipulated by that to be manipulated by that
program. program.
 Introduced in 1968 by the Introduced in 1968 by the
Computer Machine Corporation Computer Machine Corporation
was the concept of key-to-disk were the concept of key-to-disk
processing and the concept of processing and the concept of
shared processing. shared processing.

Equivalent to more than 3000 Equivalent to more than 3000

punched cards are the single punched cards is the single
diskette, first introduced in diskette, first introduced in
1972. 1972.

Through the center of the core Through the center of the core
runs several sense wires. run several sense wires.

When the subject is a word like each, every, none, either, neither, no one, and
nobody, especially when followed by a plural object of a preposition:

Agreement problems Revisions

Each of the steps in the Each of the steps in the

process are treated in a process is treated in a
separate chapter of this separate chapter of this
report. report.

Neither of the two high-level Neither of the two high-level

languages offer a facility for languages offers a facility for
designing your own variables. designing your own variables.

When the subject is a phrase or clause acting as a unit:

Agreement problems Revisions

Printing 54,000 chars. per 60 Printing 54,000 chars. per 60

seconds were considered a high seconds was considered a high
speed for printers at one time. speed for printers at one time.
 Reversing the direction of Reversing the direction of
currents through the wires currents through the wires
change the magnetic state of changes the magnetic state of
the core. the core.

What is truly amazing about What is truly amazing about

bits cells in integrated bits cells in integrated
circuits are that 30 cells circuits is that 30 cells lined
lined up side by side are about up side by side are about as
as wide as a human hair. wide as a human hair.

Pronoun Reference
Pronoun reference is an area that has caused international conflict and created
major rifts in the women's movement--so don't expect this little section to explain it
all. A pronoun, as you may know, is a word like "he," "they," "him," "them," "which,"
"this," "everyone," "each," and so on. It's like a variable in programming--it points to
some other word that holds its meaning. Problems arise when you can't figure out
what the pronoun is pointing to (its "reference") and when it doesn't "agree" in
number or gender with what it is pointing to. You may have experienced the first
type of problem: you're reading along in some incredibly technical thing, and it up
and refers to something as "this." You look back up at the sea of words you have just
been laboriously reading through--you say "this what?!" You have just experienced
one form of the pronoun-reference problem. Here's another example:

Problem: Lasers have also been used to study the

reaction by which
nitric oxide and ozone make nitrogen
dioxide (NO2) and molecular
oxygen. It plays an important role in the chemistry
of the ozone
layer that surrounds the earth and
protects us from the sun's harmful
ultraviolet radiation. ("It" what?)

Revision: Lasers have also been used to study the

reaction by which
nitric oxide and ozone make nitrogen dioxide (NO2)
and molecular oxygen.
This process plays an important role in the chemistry
of the ozone
 layer that surrounds the earth and
protects us from the sun's harmful
ultraviolet radiation. (Okay, now we see...)

The second kind of pronoun-reference problem arises over lack of agreement between
the pronoun and what it refers to. Here is one common example:

Problem: Motorola has just announced their new

PowerPC chip.

Revision: Motorola has just announced its new

PowerPC chip.

The problem here is that "Motorola" is a singular thing, while "their" is a plural thing-
-they don't agree in number! Now, maybe any dummy knows what's being said here,
but this is imprecise writing, and it can lead to serious problems, given the right
situation. Here is a second example:

Problem: These days, every student needs to own

their own computer.

Revision 1: These days, students need to own their

own computers.

Revision 2: These days, every student needs to own

his or her own
computer. (How politically correct...)

Revision 3: These days, every student needs to own a

computer.

The problem in this example is that "student" does not agree with "their": one is
singular; the other, plural. Some self-proclaimed authorities have tried to call this
usage acceptable. However, it is imprecise--and we care greatly about precision in
technical writing. Maybe not in this example, but in other situations, we might look
elsewhere in the context for the plural noun we think is being referred to by "their."
As you can see from the revisions, there sometimes is no good way to fix the problem.
(Things like "h/she" have pretty much been booed off the stage.) Whenever it works,
try converting the singular noun to a plural--the plural pronoun will then be okay (but
don't forget to change the verb to plural).

Here are some additional examples (the reference word is underlined and the
pronouns are italicized):
Problem: NASA hoped that, by using production
tooling rather than by
making each tool individually, they could save time
and money.

Revision: NASA hoped that, by using production

tooling rather than
by making each tool individually, it could save time
and money.

Problem: If an energy efficient system can be

developed, electrical
vehicles could become as popular as its conventional
counterpart.

Revision: If an energy-efficient system can be

developed, electrical
vehicles could become as popular as their
conventional counterpart.

Problem: Currently, Houston has $328.2 million in

their
1984-1985 budget to help fund a new form
of mass transportation.
Revision: Currently, Houston has $328.2 million in
its 1984-1985
budget to help fund a new form of mass
transportation.

Problem: Aerobic fitness programs help to improve

an employee's
physical condition by strengthening their
circulatory, muscular, and
respiratory systems.
Revision: Aerobic fitness programs help to improve
an employee's
physical condition by strengthening his
circulatory, muscular, and
respiratory systems.

Problem: American industry should implement aerobic

fitness programs
for the betterment of their employees even
if there is some
opposition to it at first. (A double dose of
pronoun-reference
grief!)
Revision: American industry should implement aerobic
fitness
programs for the betterment of its
 employees even if there is some
opposition to it at first.

Pronoun Case (Who, Whom)

Yes, you too can learn the proper usage of who and whom. (This will soon be an
exciting new self-help seminar offered `round the country; look for it advertised late
at night on a cable channel.) Who is used in the same slots that words
like he, she, they, and we are used; whom is used in the same slots
that him, her, them, and us are used. So if you can run a little replacement test, you
can figure out which to use. Here's the test:

1. Imagine that you start out with sentences like these (admittedly not an
eloquent crew but they'll do):
2. It was the NBS engineers [who, whom?] Sen. Eagleton's office
3. contacted on July 17.
4.
5. It was the NBS engineers [who, whom?] performed the tests on
6. the walkways.
7.
8. Send a copy of the report to [whoever, whomever?] wants one.
9.
10. No one is sure [who, whom?] will be the next mayor.
11.
12. It was the NBS engineers to [who, whom?] Sen. Eagleton's
13. office made the request for technical assistance.
14. Now, strike out all the words up to the who or whom including prepositions:
15. It was the NBS engineers [who, whom?] Sen. Eagleton's office
16. contacted on July 17.
17.
18. It was the NBS engineers [who, whom?] performed the tests on
19. the walkways.
20.
21. Send a copy of the report to [whoever, whomever?] wants one.
22.
23. No one is sure [who, whom?] will be the next mayor.
24.
25. It was the NBS engineers to [who, whom?] Sen. Eagleton's
26. office made the request for technical assistance.
27. Next, juggle the remaining words so that they make a complete sentence:
28. Sen. Eagleton's office contacted the NBS engineers.
29.
30. The NBS engineers performed the tests on the walkways.
31.
32. [Who, whom] wants one?
33.
34. [Who, whom] will be the next mayor?
35.
 36. Sen. Eagleton's office made the request for the technical
37. assistance to the NBS engineers.
38. If it sounds right to substitute I, he, she, they, we, use who. If it sounds right to
substitute me, him, her, us, them, use whom:
39. Sen. Eagleton's office contacted them. => (whom)
40.
41. They performed the tests on the walkways. => (who)
42.
43. He wants one? => (who)
44.
45. She will be the next mayor? => (who)
46.
47. Sen. Eagleton's office made the request for the technical
48. assistance to them. => (whom)
49. Here are the results:
50. It was the NBS engineers whom Sen. Eagleton's office contacted
51. on July 17.
52.
53. It was the NBS engineers who performed the tests on the
54. walkways.
55.
56. Send a copy of the report to whoever wants one.
57.
58. No one is sure who will be the next mayor.
59.
60. It was the NBS engineers to whom Sen. Eagleton's office made
61. the request for technical assistance.
This may not be the next Hoola-Hoop or Veg-a-Matic, but it works. And it works
without having to toss around terms like nominative case and objective case. Try it
on your friends... (Incidentally, the third example, which contains "whoever wants
one," is typically missed by people who pride themselves on their grammar. The rule
about always using whom when it comes after a preposition does not work! It's like
those 10-day miracle diets.)

Capitalization
One of the big problems in technical writing involves capitalization. Technical people,
developers, and other nonprofessional writers tend to use capital letters for
everything that feels importantparticularly the stuff that they've worked on.
Problem is that this practice breaks all our standard capitalization rules and, more
importantly, makes it harder to read. Most professionals in publishing, writing, and
editing believe that excessive capitalization is distracting and confusing for readers.
Capitalization should not be used for emphasis (use underscores or italics for that, or
for really important things, use special notices.
Capital letters should be used for proper names--formal, official names of things and
people. For example, Tandem Corporation is a proper name; Mosaic is a proper name
of a software product. However, a loose reference to the "development area" at IBM
does not need caps; it's not the official name of that area. Similarly, WordPerfect is a
proper name, but not its grammar-checking feature. In technical writing, the impulse
is often to use caps for the components of a thingfight it off! For example, if we
were discussing the disk drive, the monitor, the CPU unit, the modem, the mouse, or
the printer of a computing system, none of it should be capitalized. However, if we
were talking about the the Dell NL40 Notebook computer, the Microsoft Mouse, or
the IBM 6091 Display, then certainly caps are in order.

Of course, there are some exceptions. For example, in instructions, you want to
reproduce the capitalization style shown on buttons, knobs, and other physical
features of products as well as on the display screens of computer programs just as
they are shown on the hardware. If I have a Service button on my computer, I'd write
it as Service or SERVICE, whichever way it is shown on the machine.

A common misuse of capitalization involves acronyms. You know that whenever you
use an acronym in your text, you should spell it out first then show its acronym in
parentheses. Writers often want to put the spelled-out version in initial caps; you
would do so only if the spelled-out version were a proper name in its own right:
The National Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was formed just
afterWord War II.

When you turn your computer on, it normally goes through a process
called initial program load (IPL).
Here are the standard rules for caps:

Use capital letters for names of people, races, cities, regions, counties, states,
nations, languages, and other such proper names:

The Early Bird satellite was launched by Intelst, a

consortium of Western countries including the United States,
France, the United Kingdom, and Germany.

Samuel Morse invented the coding system called the Morse

code.

Among Muslims, Ramadan commemorates the first revelation of

the Koran and is celebrated by fasting.

The population of Quebec is largely French speaking.

 The Middle East, culturally speaking, refers to those lands
in that part of the world that are predominantly Islamic in
culture.

The Midwest includes Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan,

Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, and Nebraska.

in her sophomore semester Gilda took English, French,

astronomy, biology, geology and a special course called "Key
Concepts in Western Science."

Use capital letters for points of the compass only when they refer to well-
established regions, but not when they simply refer to a direction of travel:

In the 1970s and 1980s, the major population and economic

growth regions of the United States have been the South and
Southwest.

The dam is located to the west of the city.

Oil imports from South America have been decreasing recently.

Drive ten miles north from Baldwin City, Kansas, and you'll
be in Lawrence.

Use capital letters for titles of offices when the title precedes the name of an
officeholder but not when the title occurs alone. This rule is often ignored
within organizations that need to use capitalize titles of positions. Another
exception to this rule involves the president of the U.S.; some styles require
this title to use a capital letter, even when it occurs alone.

The first electronic computer was assembled in the years 1940

to 1942 by Professor John V. Atanasoff and Clifford Berry, a
student, at Iowa State University.

A professor and a student assembled the world's first

electronic computer in the years between the wars.

In the U.S., the president hold the power of veto over any
legislation passed by the Congress.

Last week, mayors from several cities in the region met to

discuss an integrated system of health care.
 Use capital letters for academic subjects only when they are part of a specific
course title or when they are derived from the name of a person, country, or
language. (This capitalization rule often get bent a little in resumes and
application letters. Typically, names of occupations and fields, and job titles
get initial caps. By standard capitalization rules, that's not correct, but the
usage is so strong in these two types of documents that it has become
acceptable.)

She took a course in world history called "The Shaping of

Western Thought" at Baker University in Kansas.

They consider Chemistry 301 a difficult course even though

they are all chemistry majors.

This semester Majorie plans to take French, finance, and

physics.

Use capital letters for the days of the week, months, special days, and
holidaysbut not for the names of the seasons:

On Monday, July 24, 1978, they celebrated her birthday at a

local restaurant.

Last fall they spent Thanksgiving in Denmark.

In the United States, the national independence day is July

the Fourth; in Mexico, it's called Cinco de Mayo.

Use capital letters for religions, religious groups, historical events, periods of
history, and historical documents:

The telegraph played an important role in the Civil War.

The term Protestantism is used to distinguish this faith from

the other major Christian faiths: Roman Catholicism and
Eastern Orthodoxy.

At the Casablanca Conference, the Allies agreed to continue

the war until the unconditional surrender of the Axis powers.

The Allies landed on Normandy Beach on July 6, 1944, a day

known as D-Day.

The Great Depression in the United States was supposedly

 precipitated by the stock-market crash of 1929. Under
compulsion by English barons and the church, King John signed
the Magna Carta in 1215.

Use capital letters for organization names (commercial, governmental, and

non-profit) as well as their products and services:

In the late 1950s, the U.S. Department of Defense initiated a

number of projects, such as Project Courier, which finally
resulted in the Initial Defense Communications Satellite
Program (IDCSP).

The IDCSP satellites were launched by the U.S. Air Force in

1966.

Saudia Arabia has its own air force and its own integrated
defense system.

After the FCC's 1971 adoption of a "limited skies" policy,

three domestic carriers initiated operations during 1974:
American Satellite Corporation, a subsidiary of Fairchild
industries, Inc.; Americom of RCA; and Western Union.

On March 24, 1980, Pennsylvania Governor Richard Thornburgh

asked the Union of Concerned Scientists to make an
independent evaluation of the krypton problem at the Three
Mile Island nuclear power plant. Recently, Apple Corporation
introduced its Macintosh to compete with IBM's Personal
Computer.

Use capital letters for references to most numbered or lettered items (figures,
tables, chapters, parts, volumes, rooms, buildings, etc.):

In Figure 3 a simple telegraph arrangement is shown.

Unfortunately, this small amount of krypton is uniformly

mixed with the roughly 2 million cubic feet of air in the
sealed Three Mile Island Unit 2 reactor containment building.

In this book, Chapter 6 discusses how to convert instructions

written by engineers into instructions that can be read and
understood by ordinary nonspecialists.

In Part I of this book, the basic patterns of technical

writing and compared to those of traditional English
composition.
 Use capital letters for objects that have individualized names:

The first operational communications satellite, Early Bird,

was launched in 1965.

Until the Challenger space shuttle, expendable launch

vehicles such as the Thor Delta, Alpha-Centaur, and Titan
were used for launching space communications satellites.

The Golden Gate Bridge was opened in 1937 and it is one of

the most extraordinary bridges in the world.

Dr. Smith has her offices in the Woods Building.

Use capital letters for the earth, sun, moon, and universe when they are
discussed with other celestial bodies or systems:

The Sun is 1.4 km from Earth.

The theory that the Universe is constantly expanding is based

on the observation of red-shifts.

Use capital letters for most acronyms, although a few such as ac and dc are
not. When in doubt, check your dictionary. Use capital letters for the spelled-
out version of acronyms only if the spelled-out versions are proper nouns in
their own right.

In 1969, an experiment at the Stanford Linear Accelerator

(SLAC) shattered electrons with protons.

In 1977 and 1978, NASA launched the first two High-Energy

Astronomy Observation (HEAO) satellites to study black holes.
The "brain" of the computer is the central processing unit
(CPU).

Numbers vs. Words

In the preceding section on hyphens, it was pointed out that worrying too much
about hyphens will drive you crazy--so will numbers. The main hurdle to overcome is
to learn that in technical contexts, we use numerals in text, even ones below 10. In
other words, we break the rules that are taught in regular writing courses and that
are used in normal publishing and copyediting practice. That's because in the
technical and scientific context, we are vitally interested in numbers, statistical data,
even if it's a 2 or 5 or--yes--even a 0. The difficulty is in defining the rules. You should
use numerals, not words, when the number is a key value, an exact measurement
value, or both. For example, in the sentence "Our computer backup system uses 4
mm tape" the numeral is in order. Also in "This recipe calls for 4 cups of unbleached
flour." But consider this one: "There are four key elements that define a desktop
publishing system." A word, not a numeral, is preferable here because--well, how to
explain it? The number of elements is exact all right, but it's just no big deal. Four,
five, who cares? However, if I use 5 cups of flour, I'll have a miserable, disgusting
cake. To summarize the rules that we normally apply:

Don't start sentences with numerals--write the number out or, better yet,
rephrase the sentence so that it doesn't begin the sentence.
For decimal values less than 1, add a 0 before the decimal point: for example,
.08 should be 0.08.
Make a firm decision on how to handle 0 and 1 when they refer to key, exact
values and stick with it. (Style varies wildly in technical writing on these two
villains.) Some technical styles choose to use words for these; they resign
themselves to the slight inconsistency but better readability.
Use numerals for important, exact values, even when those values are below
10.
Use words for numerical values that are unimportant, such as in the sentence
"There are six data types in the C programming language."
When you must use fractions, avoid the symbols that may be available in the
character set used by your software or typewriter. Construct the fraction like
this: 5-1/4. Be sure and put the hyphen between the whole number and the
fraction.
It would be nice if all fractions could be reset as decimals, but such is not the
case when you have things like 1/8 floating around. Stay consistent with either
decimals or fractions in these situations.
Don't make numerical values look more exact than they are. For example,
don't add ".00" to a dollar amount if the the amount is rounded or estimated.
For large amounts, you can write things like 36 million or 45 billion, but, for
some reason, not 23 thousand.
Apply these rules in specifically technical, scientific contexts only. Be sensitive
to what the standard practices are in the context in which you are writing.

Here are some examples where these rules are applied:

 Some 19 million tons of sulphur dioxide are
discharged from US sources
alone each year, and another 14 million tons
from Canada.(Using the
number "19" and the word "million" indicates an
approximate amount. "19,000,000" might make some
readers think
it was an exact amount.)

It was not until after December 1952, when 4000

people died in London from
air pollution in just a few days, that real
gains in pollution-control
legislation were made.

The US Army's standard airborne Doppler

navigator weighs 28 lb (12.7 kg),
requires 89 W of power, and operates at 13.325-GHz
frequency.

All vitrain of the European classification, if

more than 14 micrometers
thick, has been regarded as anthraxylon.

In 1971, 11 countries accounted for about 91

percent of world production of
coal.

The Department of the Interior has just

published a report that reviews 65
different coal gasification processes.

Combustion turbines total about 8% of the total

installed capability of
US utility systems and supply less than 3% of
the total energy generated.

Internal combustion engines in small power

plants account for about 1% of
the total power-system generating capability of the
US.

The water-cement ratio will generally range from

4 gal of water per sack of
cement to about 9 gal per sack. (These are exact
values here; in
technical writing, use the numeral even if it is
below 10.)

The problem is located in piston number 6. (When

there enumerated items
or parts, technical writing uses the number, as in
this example. But notice
that no "#" or "No." is used.)
 The signal occurs in 6-second intervals.

The order is for 6-, 8-, and 12-foot two-by-

fours.

Use Code 3 if a system shutdown occurs.

Mined coals commonly contain between 5 and 15

percent mineral
matter.

The above illustration shows a 20-unit coaxial

cable with 9 working coaxial
pairs and 2 standby coaxials, which
automatically switch in if the
electronics of the regular circuits fail.

There are 59 different species of the coffee

shrub, but only 4 are of
commercial importance.

Most grinds of coffee contain particles ranging

in size from 0.023 to 0.055
inches in diameter.

Using carrier frequencies between 0.535 MHz and

1.605 MHz in the US, AM
broadcasting stations sprang up all over the
country beginning in the
1910s.

As a base from which to work, 2-1/2 to 3 gal of

water are needed for each
sack of cement for complete hydration and maximum
strength. (These are
exact values; therefore, in the technical-
writing context, we use
numerals. Notice how fractional values are handled:
put a hyphen between
the whole number and the fraction to prevent
misreading.)

The order for twelve 30-foot beams was placed

yesterday.

The order was for 30 fifteen-gallon tubs.

They used six 8-pound sacks of nails.

The microprocessors of the 70s and 80s operated

under the control of clocks
running at 1 to 5 MHz, that is, 1 to 5 million counts
per second.

Your eye has a bandwidth of 370 trillion Hz, the

visible spectrum.

Transmission rates on ETHERNET range from 1 to

10 megabits per second
(0.125 to 1.25 million bytes per second).

In 1978, the satellite carriers' revenues were

about $88 million, and by
1986, they are expected to reach $800 million.

Most communications satellites are in

geostationary orbit: at an altitude
of 22,300 miles over the surface of the earth
and at a distance of 26,260
miles from the center of the earth (the earth's
radius being 3960 miles).

Aggregates constitute about 70 percent of a

concrete mix.

Uniform compaction of 95% or better of standard

AASHO densities is
recommended.

In this book, Chapter 7 discusses the different

audiences of technical
prose and translation techniques for
communicating effectively with the
less specialized ones.

The wheels of the four-wheel tractor give it

increased speed over the
Crawler, but because of the weight distribution
over four wheels rather
than over two wheels or tracks, this vehicle has less
traction.

Hundreds of thousands of people will have

purchased microcomputers by the
end of 1980. Tens of millions of them will bought
them by the end of the
century.

There are two telephones in service today for

every three people in the
US.

In 1965, Dr. Gordon Moore announced his "law"

that the complexity
of a chip would double every year for ten years. (Use
the word
"ten" here because it is not an exact amount.)

The typical stand-alone microcomputer system

consists of seven physical
components. (Use the word "seven" here because, even
though it
seems like an exact amount, it is not a key value. It
doesn't have the same
significance as the "7"would have in "7 quarts
of
oil.")

If you are using page-zero addressing, use a RAM

for memory page zero.

Primary fuel cells are those through which

reactants are passed only one
time.

Before recharging, A zinc-carbon battery must

have a working voltage not
less than one volt. (Even in technical-writing
contexts, rules for one
and zero vary. Just pick a style and stay with it.
Using the word
"one" is the standard in this example.)

Japan has roughly one-third of the US production

of dry batteries. (In
running text, always write out fraction like
this, and hyphenate
them. However, you'd still write "5-1/2 inches.")

The radial fractures are so extensive that they

are the dominant structural
element over half of Mars's surface. (And just to be
sure,
"half" by itself in running text is always a
word.)

A nanosecond is one-billionth of a second.

Inside the UP are three 16-bit registers. (When

you have two separate
numerical values side by side, one has to be a
word, and the other a
numeral. Styles vary here, but make the numeral the
higher number. Contrast
with the next example.)

Data from the frequency counter take the form of

16 seven-bit ASCII words.

Sales of batteries have increased from $510

million on the average during
1957-1959 to $867 million in 1966 and are
projected to exceed $1.8 billion
in 1980.
 The speed of light is roughly 300 million meters
per second.

Fifty-three representatives of different

software development companies
showed up at the meeting. (Never start a sentence
with a numeral in any
writing context. With this example, some rewriting
might be a wise idea to
get the numerical out of the beginning of the
sentence, as in the following
rewrite.)

At the meeting, 53 representatives of different

software development
companies showed up.

Symbols and Abbreviations

In technical-writing contexts, you may often have to decide whether to use " or ' for
"inches" or "feet" or whether to use "inches," "in," or "in."

First of all, remember that symbols and abbreviations are distracting to readers; they
are different from the normal flow of words. However, there are plenty of cases where
the written-out version is more distracting than the symbol or abbreviation. Also, the
context (specifically, technical or nontechnical) has a lot to do with which to use.

Imagine a technical document which has only one or two references to numerical
measurements in inches. There is no reason to use symbols or abbreviations here--just
write the thing out. But imagine a technical document with numerous feet and inch
references: using symbols or abbreviations in this case is better, more readable, more
efficient for both reader and writer. But which? Imagine the amount of foot and inch
references there would be in a carpentry project (for example, a dog house). In this
case, the symbols, " and ' would be greatly preferable. However, this would be an
extreme case; otherwise, use the abbreviations.

Which are the standard symbols and abbreviations to use? Go with the standards in
the field in which you are writing, or with those found in a standard reference book
such as a dictionary. Don't make them up yourself (for example, "mtrs" for meters)!

What about plurals? Very few abbreviations take an s to indicate plural: for example 5
in. means 5 inches. For the few that you think might take the s, check a dictionary.
What about obscure abbreviations and symbols? If you are concerned that readers
might not recognize the abbreviation or symbol, write its full name in parentheses just
after the the first occurrence of that abbreviation or symbol.

Here are some examples of abbreviations or symbols in text:

High resolution displays use larger video

bandwidths, up to 30 MHz
or more.

Most touch-sensitive displays use a matrix of

either
LED/photodiodes or transparent capacitor arrays
to detect a
physical touch.

The part of the memory that is easily alterable

by the operator
consists of RAM chips.

A satellite in geostationary orbit looks at the

earth with a cone
angle of 17.3 corresponding to an arc of 18,080
km along the
equator.

The arc from 53 W to 139 W will cover 48

states (excluding Alaska
and Hawaii) and is said to provide conus coverage.

Fairchild Industries, Inc., was an early

participant in commercial
satellites.

The voice was compressed from the usual 64-kb/s

pulse code
modulation (PCM) to 32 kb/s per channel by near-
instantaneous
companding (a modified PCM technique).

Terrestrial microwave radio communications

require repeaters spaced
every 20 to 40 mi from each other.

Over a period of several days the spacecraft is

tracked from the
ground and positioned on station (i.e., in the
preassigned orbital
spot) in order to commence operations.

A velocity increment of approximately 155 ft/s

per year is required
to correct drift problems in satellites.
 The ancient battery-like objects made by the
Parthians in 250 BC
were thin sheets of copper soldered into a
cylinder 1.125 cm long
and 2.6 cm in diameter.

The standard electrodes are the normal and the

0.1 normal (N)
calomel electrodes in which the system is Hg|KCl
solution saturated
withHgCl.

Such batteries contain 4400 cc of water in which

NaOH is dissolved.

Water pressure in the heat recovery loop can be

as much as 25 psig.

https://www.tu-
chemnitz.de/phil/english/sections/linguist/independent/kursmaterialien/TechComm/acchtml/gram2.ht
ml

WHY YOU SHOULD CONSIDER A

CAREER IN TECHNICAL
WRITING
By Kate Schneider | September 15, 2016

2 COMMENTS

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Hi, My Name is Kate and Im a Technical

Writer.
Im used to getting a blank stare when I tell people my occupation. A technical writer?
they ask. What is that?

Well, I write the directions for a software program. So whenever my users need help,
they click the Help button and they read my writing. If youve ever used Help in Word or
something, that was written by someone like me.

(This is where I get the blank stare.)

Oh. I never realized that someone actually wrote that stuff.

I usually laugh and make some kind of self-deprecating joke. Yes, I write that stuff.
And I love it.

What Does a Technical Writer Do?

Simply put, technical writers explain things. We take complicated concepts and break
them down into easy-to-understand pieces. Were also skilled at organizing information
so it flows logically. With these skills, a technical writer is often responsible for many
kinds of writing: manuals, online Help systems, or even video tutorials.
How Is it Different from Other Kinds of
Writing?
Ive had lots of different jobs where Ive written lots of different things: proposals,
reports, press releases, and marketing slicks. The documentation I write as a technical
writer is very different from all of these other kinds of writing.

First, technical documentation is often heavily focused on steps and processes, and it is
painstakingly organized. This attention to detail and organization makes it easy for you
to find out what you need to do, do it, and get on with your day. The key purpose of a
technical document is to help you learn what you need to know.

Second, technical documentation is usually very direct. You wont find any extra fluff in
an online help system (although technical writers love to use examples to illustrate
concepts). Instead, we get right to the point and tell you just what you need to know
and all of the caveats and warnings that will help you along the way.

Third, although it is direct, technical documentation is also very detailed. While a report
or proposal might give a 30,000-foot overview of a topic, that isnt adequate in
technical documentation. To a technical writer, the more information in your document,
the better. By getting to know everything about our product and explaining everything
we can, we help our readers understand the product and learn to use it correctly. Can
you imagine if an airplane manual only gave a brief overview of how to operate an
airplane?

So Why Do You Do It?

Sometimes when I get that blank stare, people ask me why I do what I do. Well, I love
my job because technical writers are behind the scenes, helping people when they need
it. When youre setting up your coffee maker, a technical writer wrote those instructions.
When a pilot is safety checking an airplane, a technical writer wrote that manual. When
youre browsing the internet for the answer to a question and find some product FAQs
or online help, a technical writer wrote that content.

So the next time youre installing new software on your computer and encounter an
error, or you cant remember how to set up a Microsoft Excel macro, click the Help icon
and search the documentation. Someone writes that stuff, and we do it because we
want to help.
https://www.northeastern.edu/graduate/blog/what-is-technical-writing/
 Writing series
Organizing and pre-writing
Seven stages of writing assignments
Prewriting exercises provide key words, meaning, and structure
to your research before you write your first draft, and may help you overcome "writers block."
These exercises can help you
Focus intellectually
and clear distractions while opening your mind to ideas within your subject
Narrow and define topics for your paper
and begin the process of translating research into your own words.
Develop logical or architectural structure to topics you have identified.
This provides a visual and verbal document for reaction, review, discussion, and/or further
development in your rough draft. However, these exercises are dynamic or subject to
change in the actual writing process as you understand, develop, and build your argument.
Some topics will go, some will stay, some will be revised
Provide a context for "project management"
to further define the topic, set timelines, identify gaps in information, etc.
Use one of these four processes,
free writing, mind mapping, brain storming, or listing and outlines to both develop your topic
and get started. Better yet, try them all to see which suits your style and/or the topic.
(See the text versions below for more information.)
Four exercises in prewriting:
Focused Free writing
1. Use a blank paper or computer screen and set a time limit of 5 - 15 minutes
2. Summarize the topic in a phrase or sentence;
generate a free flow of thought
3. Write anything that comes to mind, whether on topic or off, for the period of time you
chose,
4. Don't pause, don't stop.
don't rush; work quickly
5. Don't review
what you have written until you have finished
6. At the end of your time, refer back to the beginning:
Rephrase the initial topic
Repeat a word, phrase, or important thought or emotion that makes sense.
7. Review:
are there words or ideas you can grab onto for the topic?
Is there a main idea to this sequence of ideas?
Listing and outlines
This is a more structured and sequential overview of your research to date. You may also outline
to organize topics built from free writing, brainstorming, or mind mapping:
1. Arrange items or topics, usually without punctuation or complete sentences
 2. List topics and phrases them in a grammatically similar or parallel structure (subjects,
verbs, etc.)
3. Sequence topics in importance,
defining what "level" of importance they are. Items of equal importance are at the same
level
Example (using this web site):
Study Guides & Strategies
I. Preparing to learn
A. Learning to learn
B. Managing time
C. Setting goals/making a schedule
II. Studying
A. Thinking critically
B. Memorizing
C. Organizing projects
III. Writing Essays
A. Basics of essays
1. Prewriting
a. Definitions
b. Basics of prewriting
c. Exercises
d. ...
2. Rough drafts
a. definition
b. basics of drafts
c. exercises
d. ...
3. ...
B. Types of essays
1. The five paragraph essay
2. Essays for a literature class
3. Expository essays
4. Persuasive essays
5. ....
Brainstorming:
1. Use a blank paper or computer screen and set a time limit of 5 - 15 minutes
2. Summarize the topic in a phrase or sentence;
generate a free flow of thought
3. Write down everything that comes to mind to generate a free flow of thought:
Think of ideas related to this topic, the crazier the better: be wild and amuse
yourself; eliminate nothing
Make up questions and answersabout the topic, no matter how strange: Why am I
doing this? What could be interesting about this to me? Why don't I like this? What
color is it? What would my friend say about it?
 4. Review:
are there words or ideas you can grab onto for the topic?
Is there a main idea within this sequence of ideas?
Mind mapping
1. Think in terms of key words or symbols that represent ideas and words
2. Take a pencil (you'll be erasing!) and a blank (non-lined) big piece of paper or use a
blackboard and (colored) chalk
3. Write down the most important word or short phrase or symbol in the center.
Think about it; circle it.
4. Write other important words outside the circle.
Draw over-lapping circles to connect items, or use arrows to connect them
(think of linking pages in a web site)
Leave white space to grow your map for
further development
explanations
action items
5. Work quickly
without analyzing your work
6. Edit this first phase
Think about the relation of outside items to the center,
Erase and replace and shorten words for these key ideas
Relocate important items closer to each other for better organization
Use color to organize information
Link concepts with words to clarify the relationship
7. Continue working outward
Freely and quickly add other key words and ideas (you can always erase!)
Think weird: tape pages together to expand your map; break boundaries
Develop in directions the topic takes you--don't bet limited by the size of the paper
As you expand your map, tend to become more specific or detailed
http://www.studygs.net/writing/prewriting.htm

Organizing Your Writing

Previous

Next
 Learning Objectives

1. Understand how and why organizational techniques help writers and

readers stay focused.
2. Assess how and when to use chronological order to organize an essay.
3. Recognize how and when to use order of importance to organize an
essay.
4. Determine how and when to use spatial order to organize an essay.
The method of organization you choose for your essay is just as important
as its content. Without a clear organizational pattern, your reader could
become confused and lose interest. The way you structure your essay helps
your readers draw connections between the body and the thesis, and the
structure also keeps you focused as you plan and write the essay. Choosing
your organizational pattern before you outline ensures that each body
paragraph works to support and develop your thesis.
This section covers three ways to organize body paragraphs:
1. Chronological order
2. Order of importance
3. Spatial order
When you begin to draft your essay, your ideas may seem to flow from your
mind in a seemingly random manner. Your readers, who bring to the table
different backgrounds, viewpoints, and ideas, need you to clearly organize
these ideas in order to help process and accept them.
A solid organizational pattern gives your ideas a path that you can follow as
you develop your draft. Knowing how you will organize your paragraphs
allows you to better express and analyze your thoughts. Planning the
structure of your essay before you choose supporting evidence helps you
conduct more effective and targeted research.

Chronological Order

In Chapter 8 The Writing Process: How Do I Begin?, you learned that

chronological arrangement has the following purposes:
To explain the history of an event or a topic
 To tell a story or relate an experience
To explain how to do or to make something
To explain the steps in a process
Chronological order is mostly used in expository writing, which is a form of
writing that narrates, describes, informs, or explains a process. When using
chronological order, arrange the events in the order that they actually
happened, or will happen if you are giving instructions. This method
requires you to use words such as first, second, then, after that, later,
and finally. These transition words guide you and your reader through the
paper as you expand your thesis.
For example, if you are writing an essay about the history of the airline
industry, you would begin with its conception and detail the essential
timeline events up until present day. You would follow the chain of events
using words such as first, then, next, and so on.

Writing at Work
At some point in your career you may have to file a complaint with your
human resources department. Using chronological order is a useful tool in
describing the events that led up to your filing the grievance. You would
logically lay out the events in the order that they occurred using the key
transition words. The more logical your complaint, the more likely you will
be well received and helped.
Exercise 1

Choose an accomplishment you have achieved in your life. The important

moment could be in sports, schooling, or extracurricular activities. On your
own sheet of paper, list the steps you took to reach your goal. Try to be as
specific as possible with the steps you took. Pay attention to using
transition words to focus your writing.
Keep in mind that chronological order is most appropriate for the following
purposes:
Writing essays containing heavy research
Writing essays with the aim of listing, explaining, or narrating
Writing essays that analyze literary works such as poems, plays, or
books
Tip
When using chronological order, your introduction should indicate the
information you will cover and in what order, and the introduction should
also establish the relevance of the information. Your body paragraphs
should then provide clear divisions or steps in chronology. You can divide
your paragraphs by time (such as decades, wars, or other historical events)
or by the same structure of the work you are examining (such as a line-by-
line explication of a poem).
Exercise 2

On a separate sheet of paper, write a paragraph that describes a process you

are familiar with and can do well. Assume that your reader is unfamiliar
with the procedure. Remember to use the chronological key words, such
as first, second, then, and finally.

Order of Importance

Recall from Chapter 8 The Writing Process: How Do I Begin? that order
of importance is best used for the following purposes:
Persuading and convincing

Ranking items by their importance, benefit, or significance

Illustrating a situation, problem, or solution
Most essays move from the least to the most important point, and the
paragraphs are arranged in an effort to build the essays strength.
Sometimes, however, it is necessary to begin with your most important
supporting point, such as in an essay that contains a thesis that is highly
debatable. When writing a persuasive essay, it is best to begin with the most
important point because it immediately captivates your readers and
compels them to continue reading.
For example, if you were supporting your thesis that homework is
detrimental to the education of high school students, you would want to
present your most convincing argument first, and then move on to the less
important points for your case.
Some key transitional words you should use with this method of
organization are most importantly, almost as importantly, just as
importantly, and finally.
Writing at Work
During your career, you may be required to work on a team that devises a
strategy for a specific goal of your company, such as increasing profits.
When planning your strategy you should organize your steps in order of
importance. This demonstrates the ability to prioritize and plan. Using the
order of importance technique also shows that you can create a resolution
with logical steps for accomplishing a common goal.
Exercise 3

On a separate sheet of paper, write a paragraph that discusses a passion of

yours. Your passion could be music, a particular sport, filmmaking, and so
on. Your paragraph should be built upon the reasons why you feel so
strongly. Briefly discuss your reasons in the order of least to greatest
importance.

Spatial Order

As stated in Chapter 8 The Writing Process: How Do I Begin?, spatial

order is best used for the following purposes:
Helping readers visualize something as you want them to see it

Evoking a scene using the senses (sight, touch, taste, smell, and sound)
Writing a descriptive essay
Spatial order means that you explain or describe objects as they are
arranged around you in your space, for example in a bedroom. As the
writer, you create a picture for your reader, and their perspective is the
viewpoint from which you describe what is around you.
The view must move in an orderly, logical progression, giving the reader
clear directional signals to follow from place to place. The key to using this
method is to choose a specific starting point and then guide the reader to
follow your eye as it moves in an orderly trajectory from your starting point.
Pay attention to the following students description of her bedroom and
how she guides the reader through the viewing process, foot by foot.
Attached to my bedroom wall is a small wooden rack dangling with red and
turquoise necklaces that shimmer as you enter. Just to the right of the rack
is my window, framed by billowy white curtains. The peace of such an
image is a stark contrast to my desk, which sits to the right of the window,
layered in textbooks, crumpled papers, coffee cups, and an overflowing
ashtray. Turning my head to the right, I see a set of two bare windows that
frame the trees outside the glass like a 3D painting. Below the windows is
an oak chest from which blankets and scarves are protruding. Against the
wall opposite the billowy curtains is an antique dresser, on top of which sits
a jewelry box and a few picture frames. A tall mirror attached to the dresser
takes up most of the wall, which is the color of lavender.
The paragraph incorporates two objectives you have learned in this
chapter: using an implied topic sentence and applying spatial order. Often
in a descriptive essay, the two work together.
The following are possible transition words to include when using spatial
order:
Just to the left or just to the right
Behind
Between
On the left or on the right
Across from
A little further down
To the south, to the east, and so on
A few yards away
Turning left or turning right
Exercise 4

On a separate sheet of paper, write a paragraph using spatial order that

describes your commute to work, school, or another location you visit often.
Collaboration
Please share with a classmate and compare your answers.
Key Takeaways

The way you organize your body paragraphs ensures you and your
readers stay focused on and draw connections to, your thesis statement.
A strong organizational pattern allows you to articulate, analyze, and
clarify your thoughts.
 Planning the organizational structure for your essay before you begin to
search for supporting evidence helps you conduct more effective and
directed research.
Chronological order is most commonly used in expository writing. It is
useful for explaining the history of your subject, for telling a story, or for
explaining a process.
Order of importance is most appropriate in a persuasion paper as well
as for essays in which you rank things, people, or events by their
significance.
Spatial order describes things as they are arranged in space and is best
for helping readers visualize something as you want them to see it; it
creates a dominant impression.
http://open.lib.umn.edu/writingforsuccess/chapter/9-3-organizing-your-writing/

What Is Organizational Communication?

Organizational Communication and You Like defining communication study, many
What is Organizational Communication? definitions of organizational communication
exist. Deetz argues that one way to enlighten
Before you begin reading the rest of this chapter, our understanding of organizational
Watch a cool animated short about What is communication is to compare different
Organizational Communication approaches. However, for the purpose of this
text, we want to define organizational
For an example of another approach to communication so you have a frame of
Organizational Communication read Dennis reference for understanding this chapter. Our
Schoeneborns paper on organization as definition is not definitive, but creates a starting
communication involving the Luhmannian point for understanding this specialization of
perspective. communication study.

We define organizational communication as the sending and receiving of messages among

interrelated individuals within a particular environment or setting to achieve individual and
common goals. Organizational communication is highly contextual and culturally dependent.
Individuals in organizations transmit messages through face-to face, written, and mediated
channels.

Organizational communication helps us to 1) accomplish tasks relating to specific roles and

responsibilities of sales, services, and production; 2) acclimate to changes through individual and
organizational creativity and adaptation; 3) complete tasks through the maintenance of policy,
procedures, or regulations that support daily and continuous operations; 4) develop relationships
where human messages are directed at people within the organization-their attitudes, morale,
satisfaction, and fulfillment (Goldhaber 20); and 5) coordinate, plan, and control the operations
of the organization through management (Katz & Kahn; Redding; Thayer). Organizational
communication is how organizations represent, present, and constitute their organizational
climate and culturethe attitudes, values and goals that characterize the organization and its
members.

Organizational communication largely focuses on building relationships and interacting with

with internal organizational members and interested external publics. As Mark Koschmann
explains in his animated YouTube video, we have two ways of looking at organizational
communication. The conventional approach focuses on communication within organizations.
The second approach is communication as organization meaning organizations are a result of
the communication of those within them. Communication is not just about transmitting messages
between senders and receivers. Communication literally constitutes, or makes up, our social
world. Much of our communication involves sending and receiving relatively unproblematic
messages and acting on that information. Other times things are a bit more complex, such as
when you need to resolve conflict with a close friend or family member. There is much more
going on in these situations then merely exchanging information. You are actually engaging in a
complex process of meaning and negotiating rules created by the people involved.

For organizations to be successful, they must have competent communicators. Organizational

communication study shows that organizations rely on effective communication and efficient
communication skills from their members. A number of surveys (Davis & Miller;
Holter&Kopka; Perrigo&Gaut) identify effective oral and written communication as the most
sought after skills by those who run organizations. The U.S. Department of Labor reported
communication competency as the most vital skill necessary for the 21st century workforce to
achieve organizational success (Secretarys Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills). The
Public Forum Institutemaintained that employees need to be skilled in public presentation,
listening, and interpersonal communication to flourish in an organization.

Organizations seek people who can follow and give instructions, accurately listen, provide useful
feedback, get along with coworkers and customers, network, provide serviceable information,
work well in teams, and creatively and critically solve problems and present ideas in an
understandable manner. Developing organizational communication awareness and effectiveness
is more than just having know-how or knowledge. Efficient organizational communication
involves knowing how to create and exchange information, work with diverse groups or
individuals, communicate in complicated and changing circumstances, as well as having the
aptitude or motivation to communicate in appropriate manners.

How the Field of Organizational Communication Began[edit]

As you now know, communication study is deeply entrenched in the oral rhetorical traditions of
ancient Rome and Greece. Similar to the many of the early concepts that shaped the discipline,
some of the founding principles of organizational communication originated in the East. As early
as the fourth century, Chinese scholars concentrated on the problems of communicating within
the vast government bureaucracy as well as between the government and the people (Murphy,
Hildebrandt & Thomas 4). Ancient eastern scholars focused on information flow, message
fidelity, and quality of information within their governmental bureaucracy (Krone, Garrett &
Chen; Paraboteeah). These still remain areas of focus for organizational communication that you
will learn in your classes today.
Like most of our fields specializations, Organizational Communication and You
organizational communication began in the mid Good Communication
20th century with the work of P. E. Lull and W.
Charles Redding at the University of Purdue The New York Times: Strikes Can Come
(Putnam & Cheney). During the industrial age, Easier Than Words. Major League Baseball is
the focus of organizational communication was trying to ease the language barrier, adopting a new
on worker productivity, organizational rule that permits interpreters to join mound
structure, and overall organizational conversations when pitchers arent fluent in
effectiveness. Through this work people were English. This example shows just how important
interested in higher profits and managerial communication is for the success of a team.
efficiency. Follett is often referred to as the first
management consultant in the United States Good Communication Skills Maybe the
(Stohl). She focused specifically on message Only Skill You Need?! The 10 Skills
complexity, appropriate channel choice, and Employers Most Want In 2015 Graduates, a news
article from Forbes demonstrates the
worker participation in organizations. Bernard communication skills desired by most
placed communication at the heart of every organizations.
organizational process, arguing that people
must be able to interact with each other for an
organization to succeed.

As a specialization in our field, organizational communication can arguably be traced back to

Alexander R. Herons 1942 book, Sharing Information With Employees that looked at manager-
employee communication (Redding & Tompkins; Meyers &Sadaghiani). Putnam and Cheney
stated that the specialization of organizational communication grew out of three main speech
communication traditions: public address, persuasion, and social science research on
interpersonal, small group, and mass communication (131). Along with public-speaking
training for corporate executives as early as the 1920s (Putnam & Cheney), early works like
Dale Carnegies How to Win Friends and Influence People in 1936 focused on necessary oral
presentation and written communication skills for managers to succeed in organizations.

Redding and Thompkins identify three periods in the development of organizational

communication. During the Era of Preparation(1900 to 1940) much of the groundwork was
laid for the discipline that we know today. Scholars emphasized the importance of
communication in organizations. The primary focus during this time was on public address,
business writing, managerial communication, and persuasion. The Era of Identification and
Consolidation (1940-1970) saw the beginnings of business and industrial communication, with
certain group and organizational relationships being recognized as important. During the Era
of Maturity and Innovation (1970-present), empirical research increased, accompanied by
innovative efforts to develop concepts, theoretical premises, and philosophical
critiques (Redding &Thompkins 7).

As with other specializations over the last century, organizational communication has evolved
dramatically as dialogue between business and academic contexts. Redding and Thompkins
conclude that by 1967 or 1968, organizational communication had finally achieved at least a
moderate degree of success in two respects: breaking from its business and industrial shackles,
and gaining a reasonable measure of recognition as an entity worthy of serious academic study
(18).

Organizational Communication Today[edit]

As communication evolves, research continues to develop, and organizational communication
continues to redefine itself. In the early stages, this area focused on leaders giving public
presentations. More recently emphasis has focused on all levels of interaction in organizations.
Because interpersonal relationships are a large part of organizational communication, a great
deal of research focuses on how interpersonal relationships are conducted within the framework
of organizational hierarchies.

Modern organizational communication research has been summarized into eight major
traditions: 1) Communication channels, 2) Communication climate, 3) Network analysis, 4)
Superior-subordinate communication, 5) the information-processing perspective, 6) the
rhetorical perspective, 7) the cultural perspective, and 8) the political perspective (Putnam and
Cheney; Kim) Since the 1980s, this specialization has expanded to include work on
organizational culture, power and conflict management, and organizational rhetoric. If you were
to take an organizational communication course at your campus, much of the time would be
spent focusing on developing your skills in organizational socialization, interviewing, giving
individual and group presentations, creating positive work relationships, performance evaluation,
conflict resolution, stress management, decision making, and communicating with external
publics.

Studying Organizational Communication[edit]

Looking back to Chapter Six, we looked at three primary ways Communication scholars conduct
research. When we study organizational communication we can look to quantitative methods to
predict behaviors, or qualitative methods to understand behaviors. We can use qualitative
methods to study communication in the natural environment of organizations in order to
understand organizational cultures and how they function (Putnam & Cheney; Pacanowsky&
ODonnell-Trujillo; Kim).

Critical approaches view organizations as sites of domination (Miller 116) where certain
individuals are marginalized or disadvantaged by oppressive groups or structures. Most often the
focus of this line of research involves gender or ethnic identity as they manifest themselves in
organizations. The critical researcher uses interpretative research techniques similar to cultural
studies. When looking at something such as a company pamphlet or the organizations employee
handbook, a critical researcher will expose political messages that may disadvantage particular
groups of people.

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/introductiontocommunication/chapter/what-is-organizational-
communication/
WHAT IS TECHNICAL WRITING?

Technical Writing is a scientific discipline that comes between the

designer of a product and the end user. Technical Writing handles
technical information and presents it in a way without ambiguity and
ensures that the information presented to the user, is as simple and clear
as possible.

Well, Technical Writing is a form of technical communication. It is a

style of formal writing. Technical writing is an established way to
communicate information to a particular audience for a particular
reason. It is often a systematic interpretation of scientific subjects and
technical subjects associated with sciences.

How to describe technical writing? An easy way is to think of the

gadgets you use at home, like the DVD player, the music system, the
microwave oven, the vehicle yfou drive, the software you use in your
computer. All these items are delivered to you with manuals, instruction
guides so that you are able to go through them and use your gadgets in
the right way.

WHO IS A TECHNICAL WRITER?

Technical writers also known as Technical Communicators are women

and men with strong language and interpersonal skills. They produce
documentation for some of the smartest people around. The demand for
writers who can communicate complex topics in simple formats is
always there. . A good technical writer needs strong language skills, and
must understand the highly evolved conventions of modern technical
communications.

Technical writers work under titles such as Information

Development, Technical Documentation, or Technical Publications.
Technical Writers may be called Information Developers,
Documentation Specialists, Documentation Engineers, or Technical
Content Developers. Technical writers explain complex ideas to
technical and nontechnical audiences. This could mean telling a
programmer how to use a software library, or telling a consumer how to
operate a television remote control. Technical writers gather information
from existing documentation, and from subject matter experts.

A subject matter expert (SME) is any expert on the topic the writer is
working on. Technical writers usually are not SMEs themselvesunless
they're writing about creating good technical documentation. Workers at
many levels, and in many different fields, have a role in producing and
distributing technical communications.

WHERE IS IT APPLIED?

Technical Writing is applied in diverse fields like computers, hardware,

software, chemistry, biotech, finance, consumer electronics, aerospace
industry and many more.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD TECHNICAL WRITER

Good technical writing clarifies technical jargon. It presents useful

information in a clear and easy to understand way, and, is directed at the
intended audience. Poor technical writing, creates unnecessary technical
jargon, and confuses the reader. The TW should write a lot. A Technical
Writer should write at least 10 pages a day on a variety of subjects.
Good writers blossom into good technical writers. A good technical
writers thinks, plans, conducts research and reviews, interviews, reads,
writes, makes right decisions at the right time, and above all, never gets
out of the readers zone. This means the Technical Writer stays in the
readers shoes all the time. Technical writers cannot tolerate mistakes in
documents. They obsessively proof-read all mistakes and fix them. Good
English is a must for technical writers. Commas, apostrophes, articles,
and capitalization are commonplace to the technical writers. Compulsive
reading of articles, magazines, news, and blogs impregnate the technical
writers mind with language semantics, structures besides ideas and
information. In due course, the technical writers starts proof-reading
everything that he reads. It becomes a way of life for him.

TECHNICAL WRITER'S EVOLUTION

Technical writers become versatile users of some fascinating and state-

of-the-art applications. A technical writer needs to know how to use
publishing programs, help authoring tools, web design, and graphics
packages.

Publishing Tools: FrameMaker, MSWord, InterLeaf, ArborText, Quark

Express, PageMaker, QuadralayWebworks Publisher, Authorit

Graphic Programs: Illustrator, Corel Draw, PhotoShop, PaintShop Pro

Help Tools: RoboHelp, ForeHelp, Doc-To-Help

Web Tools: Front Page, DreamWeaver, HomeSite, Cold Fusion

Learning and adapting to changing info technology scenario is a must

for the TW. They learn a new application quickly. They can figure it out
or learn how to use it on their own, with a reference book or manual.

Style and presentation are most averred by the TW. The TW documents
have great looks. Their pages have white space, neat, properly-aligned
numbered steps, bullets, and text.

The best technical writers create pages and screens that look like a
freshly cleaned bathroom - shiny chrome faucets, clean, folded white
towels, gleaming floor, a fresh, new bar of soap. Good tech writers use
the principles of good graphic design to achieve this attractive effect.
[They often hire real graphic artists to help them select great-looking
fonts, covers, and page layouts.] TW dont allow big, long paragraphs.
People do not wish to read long paragraphs.

TECHNICAL WRITER'S DELIVERABLES

Technical writing is most often associated with Online Help and User
Manuals. There are other forms of technical content created by technical
writers. They are:

Requirements documentation, Scientific reports, Installation guides,

Magazine articles, Network administrators' guides, Multimedia
Tutorials, Developer Guides, Feature Design documentation,
Network recovery guides, Policies and procedures, Presentations,
Specifications, Technical papers, Training materials,
Troubleshooting guides, Corporate Annual Reports, Corporate
disclaimers, Proposal (business), Reference documents, Release
notes, Reports, ,Business Guides, Contracts, Certification and
accreditation activities, Site preparation guides, Maintenance and
repair procedures, User guides, White papers, Application
programming interface programmers' guides, Assembly
instructions, Network configuration guides.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/technical-writing-what-all-prasad-gopal