Technical Communication Unit 1
Technical Communication Unit 1
Technical Communication Unit 1
Q. What is Communication?
The word "communication" has been derived from a Latin word 'communicare' which means 'sharing'.
Communication is, indeed sharing; sharing of ideas and feeling between two more persons.
Communication is a two-way affair which aims at passing on or receiving a specific piece of
information.
Technical communication
Technical communication is a means to convey scientific, engineering, or other technical information.
Individuals in a variety of contexts and with varied professional credentials engage in technical
communication. Some individuals are designated as technical communicators or technical writers. These
individuals use a set of methods to research, document, and present technical processes or products.
Technical communicators may put the information they capture into paper documents, web pages,
computer-based training, digitally stored text, audio, video, and other media. The Society for Technical
Communication defines the field as any form of communication that focuses on technical or specialized
topics, communicates specifically by using technology or provides instructions on how to do something.
More succinctly, the Institute of Scientific and Technical Communicators defines technical
communication as factual communication, usually about products and services. The European
Association for Technical Communication briefly defines technical communication as "the process of
defining, creating and delivering information products for the safe, efficient and effective use of
products (technical systems, software, services)"
Whatever the definition of technical communication, the overarching goal of the practice is to create
easily accessible information for a specific audience.
Short stories, dramas, poems, essays, novels etc. are some of the forms of general communication.
Reports, applications, research papers, articles are some of the forms of technical communication.
Technical and general communications are different from each other from various points of view. Some
basic differences between technical and general communication are as follows:
Encode Channe
Sende Receiver
Message l
r
Feedback (Response)
Decode
The writer or the communicator conveys the message. He /she encodes (selects the relevant information
which is to be send) the message it to the reader. The receiver decodes (understand the information
which is received) the message and responds (send the feedback) to the sender.
The transmission of the receivers respond to the sender is called feedback. Feedback is very important
for effective communication. The process of communication can not be complete until feedback is
taken.
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Whatever an individual visualizes thinks or looks through the thought process in his/her mind carry
images and memorizes these experiences, which shape our ideas and influence our thoughts and actions,
the moment we experience something new we alter our viewpoint. Hence individuality is the sum of all
these myriad experiences, this is the reason people have varied new points. Language is used by the
people to give shape to their experiences but language too is subject to error and many a times leads to
misunderstanding. Language is essentially a means of communication among the members of a society.
In the expression of culture, language is a fundamental aspect. It is the tool that conveys traditions and
values related to group identity.
A. The main purpose of technical communication is to make technology more useful and meaningful. It
serves the primary communication link between technology and its uses. It is a central factor in the
engineering knowledge society where technocrats and professionals are facing new communication
challenges.
Killingworth describes the three basic purpose of technical writing – to inform, to instruct, to persuade.
The first and foremost purpose of all technical writings is to inform.
1. To Inform- In government or semi-government offices, schools and hospitals, hospitals, people have
to supply and also receive information. A research should know how to prepare the documents, giving
the information about the result of the experiment, similarly, a mechanical engineer has to furnish the
information about the operation of a new machine.
2. To Instruct: The technical writers give instructions for using equipment and alsofor performing
duties. For e.g. The consumers are instructed how to use a new product, the medical practitioners are
directed how to use a machine.
3. To Persuade: Technical writing aims at persuading the readers. A technical writer, for instance, may
prepare a document to persuade readers to do certain things.
Reading:
Reading is defined as a cognitive process that involves decoding symbols to arrive at meaning. The
reading is of different types:
1. Intensive Reading
2. Extensive Reading
3. Critical Reading
Intensive Reading: To read intensively is to completely deconstruct a text, with the goal of absorbing
as much meaning from it as possible. This is done by taking a text, and systematically looking up every
word, phrase, or collocation that you do not understand.
This is an activity that requires great mental effort and focus. Because of this, the learner who engages in
intensive reading must be careful to follow specific guidelines, or else risk boredom and burnout.
Specifically, if you wish to read a text intensively, you must take care to read texts that
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are interesting and short, to read only for brief periods of time, and to do so when you have the most
mental energy.
Extensive Reading
To read extensively is to simply read as much as possible, without concerning oneself with the minutia
of meaning and the occasional unknown word. This is done by reading for large swaths of time, and
looking up words only when you deem it absolutely necessary to your understanding of the text.
Critical Reading:
Critical reading is a more ACTIVE way of reading. It is a deeper and more complex engagement with a
text. Critical reading is a process of analyzing, interpreting and, sometimes, evaluating. When we
read critically, we use our critical thinking skills to QUESTION both the text and our own reading of it.
Reading Comprehension
Reading comprehension refers to the ability to understand information presented in written form. While
this skill usually entails understanding textbook assignments, articles in newspapers and journals,
various business documents, reading passages given in competitive examinations etc.; one’s level of
reading comprehension skills will affect even one one’s interpretation of directions, such as ‘what to do’
and when to do’ that appear on certain documents such as instruction manuals, puzzles, etc. hence it is
important to strengthen one’s skill in comprehending various texts. One needs to understand the
difference between factual and inferential comprehension, to know why one is unable to interpret certain
texts, one should also try and assess one’s ability to comprehend the entire text through some tests.
Reasons for Poor Comprehension
The reason for lack of understanding could be situational, depending on the type of reading matter, the
subject of the material and your mental or physical state. Not all failures in all contexts can be attributed
to the same factor. For example, inability to understand a biology text may be due to vocabulary
problems or unfamiliar technical jargon, while failure to comprehend a mathematical text may be
conceptual, or lack of understanding of the fundamental concepts. The main reasons for poor reading
comprehension are:
Inability to understand a word.
Inability to understand a sentence.
Inability to understand how sentences relate to one another.
Inability to understand the information fits together in a meaningful way (organization).
Lack of interest or concentration
Therefore, it is helpful for you to d3evelop a number of strategies in order to deal effectively with
different situations.
Improve Comprehension Skills: Improved reading comprehension skills can positively impact many
facets of a student’s academic performance. Students who have effectively read and understood reading
assignments are better prepared for class, leading to improved class participation and more accurate and
complete notes. Performance in exams and quizzes could greatly improve as students become more
proficient and effective readers. Their interest in a subject is often fostered when they understand the
reading assignments. In addition, as students gain proficiency in reading, self-esteem improves.
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Similarly, professionals also read a lot of material related to their work, and it is important for them to
have good reading comprehension skills.
The following are some of the ways in which comprehension skill can be improved:
Read a variety of materials. Do not limit yourself to textbooks only.
Read a fairly long portion of the material. It would be difficult to assess reading comprehension
basedon one or two paragraphs. Try to read an entire section or chapter instead.
Circle unknown or unfamiliar words as you read.
After reading, recall as much of the4 information as possible. Jot down points if you like. Then
check the accuracy and completeness of your recollections. If the main ideas are presented in a
particular order, see if you can recall the structure.
Consider how interesting the subject matter is and how much you already know about the
subject.
Answer questions about the material after reading it.
Technical Writing
Technical writing is a type of writing where the author is writing about a particular subject that requires
direction, instruction, or explanation. This style of writing has a very different purpose and
different characteristics than other writing styles such as creative writing, academic writing or business
writing.
Tips for Good Technical Writing
Regardless of the type of document which is written, technical writing requires the writer to follow the
properties of knowing their audience, writing in a clear, non-personal style and doing extensive research
on the topic. By including these properties, the writer can create clear instructions and explanations for
the reader.
Know your audience. An expert in the field will understand certain abbreviations, acronyms, and
lingo that directly applies to such a field. The novice will not understand in the same manner and,
therefore, every detail must be explained and spelled out for them.
Use an impersonal style. Write from a third person perspective, like a teacher instructing a
student. Any opinions should be omitted.
The writing should be straightforward, to the point, and as simple as possible to make sure the
reader understands the process or instruction. This at times may appear as simply a list of steps to
take to achieve the desired goal or may be a short or lengthy explanation of a concept or abstract
idea.
Know how to research. Gather information from a number of sources, understand the
information gathered so that it can be analyzed thoroughly, and then put the information into an
easy to understand format to instruct those who read it. The more inexperienced your audience, the
more information you will need to gather and explain.
Be thorough in description and provide enough detail to make your points; but, you also have to
consider that you need to use an economy of words so that you do not bore your reader with
gratuitous details.
A good technical writer can make a difficult task easy and can quickly explain a complex piece of
information.
Q. What are different kinds of sentence?
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The kind of sentences used in a particular piece of writing will depend on the type and nature of the
message. It may be descriptive, narrative, expository or argumentative depending on the purpose of
communication.
Descriptive sentence: - It describes a situation or situation in words, it may describe any object or a
process in also provides a critical explanation.
Narrative Sentence: - It provides an account or event in sequence or time.
Expository Sentence: - It exposes and explains ideas while argumentative attempt to persuade or
convince.
Q. What is a paragraph?
Paragraph is defined as a distinct section of the piece of writing which consists of several related
sentences and deals with one controlling idea. This controlling idea is called the topic or the theme of
the paragraph. The main function of a paragraph is to develop, support, exemplify or explain the theme.
In simple words it can be said that a paragraph is a system arrangement of sentences.
In technical and professional writing a paragraph may consist of the following three kinds of sentences.
Main Sentence or Topic Sentence: That expresses the main idea of the paragraph.
Major Supporting Sentence: Which expands, elaborate, illustrate, and strengthen, the main idea with
secondary point and major supporting details.
Minor Supporting Sentences: Which further exemplify and support the main idea with minor support
the main idea with minor supporting details is known as minor sentence.
As a technical writing needs to be purposeful, precise, and reader oriented, it is important to compose
sentences that are clear, cohesive, concise and result oriented.
Clarity and Accuracy: These are essential for good sentence writing. Inappropriate, sloppy, loose and
awkward sentence can never make effective writing. It is important to learn, to write correct and
effective sentence in order to compose a technical write up.
Brevity: It is must and the soul of good writing one must try to be as brief as possible. Every sentence
should give maximum information in the minimum number of word possible.
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Precision: Precision is the art of summarising. Precision in the use of word and phrases leads to
effective sentence writing. Moreover, in order to write good sentences one should choose appropriate
sentence patterns, avoid awkward sentence structure, sentence fragments and avoid fused sentence.
Simple and Unbiased Language: A good technical writing/paragraph is written in simple, unbiased
language. It is a document of practical utility; hence, it should be free from various forms of poetic
embellishment such as figure of speech. It should be clear, brief and grammatically correct.
Technical style: Technical writing includes a wide range of documents. They include instructions,
reviews, reports, newsletters, presentations, web pages, brochures, proposals, letters, fliers, graphics,
memos, press releases, handbooks, specifications, style guides, agendas and so on. There are so many of
them, that in order to understand the differences between them, we need to break them up into
categories. In this article, we will make an attempt to do that. The most common types include:
Traditional: Repair manuals, medical studies
End-user documentation: Electronics, consumer products
Technical marketing content: Press releases, catalogs
Each type of writing is then narrowed down with subcategories for the purpose of providing
simplified instruction for users.
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Technical Books
Similar to user help guides, technical writers are hired to write guides for users to understand the
ins and outs of a product; most often software products. It’s critical for these technical books to
be accessible and of interest to non-expert users.
Technical Marketing Content
Developers’ products wouldn’t be much use if consumers don’t understand how to properly
operate them. To avoid this, technical marketing content serves as a bridge for products,
consumers, and businesses understand each other.
White Papers and Case Studies
White papers are written to highlight a company’s success — and in this case, success with
certain products or services. Technical writers investigate problematic topics of a specific
audience and integrate a company’s product to create solutions.
Proposals and Pitches
Many business to business sale relations involve proposals and pitches written by technical
writers. Once a company presents the specs for a collaboration or solution, tech writers join the
team to explain the technical aspects of proposals. Once the business plan is set, technical
writers then gather key elements of the executive summary to create a pitch.
Brochures
Brochures in technical communications are more than pretty pictures of a tropical island you’d
like to plan a vacation to. Brochures take users to a deeper level of understanding and appeal
through clear descriptions, functions, and uses of a product.
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Interpersonal communication can be formal or informal. Depending upon the formality of the
situation, interpersonal communication takes on different style.
4. Organisational Communication: - Communication in an organisation takes place at different
hierarchical levels. Since a large number of employees are involved in several different activities, the
need to communication becomes greater in an organisation. It is of two types:
a. Internal Operational:- All communication that occurs in conducting work within an organisation is
classified as internal-operational.
b. External Operational: - The work related communication that an organisation does with the people
outside the organisation is called external operational.
5. Mass Communication: - In this communication, we require a mediator to transmit information, several
mass media such as journals, books, television, and newspapers which such communication.
Characteristics of Mass Communication:-
i. Large Reach:- For the large reach audience scattered over wide area.
ii. Impersonality:-The participants are known to each other.
iii.Presence of Gatekeeper:- Mass communication needs additional persons, institutions or organisation
to convey the message from sender to receiver. The editor is therefore, the gatekeeper in the mass
communication process.
Q. Describes the flow of communication?
Information flows in an organisation both formally and informally. Internal operational and eternal
operational communication can be described as formal. Informal channels, such as policy or procedural
changes, offers, instructions, confidential reports, etc. are classified as formal
communication.Communication can flow in various directions:
1. Downward Communication: - The communication flows from high official to inform instruct,
advice, or request their subordinates is known as downward communication. Such
communication increases awareness about the organisation among subordinates and employees.
It can take any form-memos, notices, face to face interaction, or telephone conversation
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For e.g. When a sales manager communicates directly with the vice president (production), who is not
only in a different division but also at a higher level in the organisation, they are engage in diagonal
communication.
The increased use of e-mail also encourages cross-wise communication.
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Q. What is Noise?
A.Any interference in the message sent and message received leads to the production of noise.
The term ‘barrier’ means ‘hurdle’, hindrance’ or obstacle’. Thus, barriers to communication imply
hurdles or obstacles on the way to transmission of ideas from the sender to the receiver. Barriers are
called as hindrance or obstacle in the free flow of communication. These can be because of several
causes. The classification of barriers according to the process of message formation and delivery, are as
follows:
1. Intrapersonal Barrier
2. Interpersonal Barrier
3. Organisational Barrier
1. Intrapersonal Barrier: - Individuals differ from each other because of their inbuilt capabilities
like, experience, education, value and personality.
Certain causes are responsible for the individual's inbuilt barriers. They are: -
a. Wrong assumptions
b. Varied perceptions
c. Differing background
d.Wrong inferences
e. Impervious categories
f.Categorical thinking
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Wrong Assumption: - These are generally made because the sender or the receiver does not have
adequate knowledge about each other's background or entertains certain false notion, which are fixed in
their mind.
Varied Perceptions: - It occurs with the individuals who perceives situation in different ways. It
happens only when a narrow perspective of the issue is used in communication.
Differing Background: - It occurs when the communication takes place between the speakers of
different backgrounds with listener of different backgrounds. Backgrounds differ in education, culture,
language etc.
Wrong Inferences: - The inference in fact and confusion because of difference between what actually
exists and what had assumed to exit. This is wrong inference.
Impervious Categories: - When Individuals react positively to information only if it is in consonance
with our own views and attitudes. Conversely, when individuals information that does not conform to
our personal views, habits and attitudes or appears unfavourable to them, they tend to react negatively or
even disbelieve. This is impervious categories.
Categorical Thinking: - When individuals react like pansophists (Known it all); they refuse to accept
any further information which they feel that the information is known to them.
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3. Organisational Barrier: - Communication barriers are not limited to an individual or two
people but it exist in entire organisation. Irrespective of size, all organisations have
communication complexity of this protocol usually cause communication barriers.
In an organisation, a rigid, hierarchical structure usually restricts the flow of
communication because of numerous transfer points which result to distort, delay or lose of
message.
The main organisational barriers are enumerated below: -
I. Too Many Transfer Station: - The reasons for filtering or distorting the message, having
too many transfer stations is always a deterrent to effective communications.
II. Fear of Superiors: - In rigidly structured organisations, fear or awe of the supersiors stops
the people to communication frequently by which communication does not flow freely.
III. Negative Tendencies: - Communication barriers occur in an organisation due to confusion
of idea between members and non-members of a group. These groups may be formal or
informal and generally consists of people who shares values, attitudes, opinions, beliefs and
behaviours.
IV. Use of Inappropriate Media: - The common media used in an organisation are graphs,
charts, telephones etc, while choosing the medium, we should consider time, cost, type of
message and intended audiences. If there is no balance between the factors of medium, it
leads to barrier.
V. Information Overloaded: - The availability of huge amounts of data which the receiver is
unable to handle effectively is known as information overloaded. It is one of the major
problems faced in the organisations today.
Effectiveness of the communication largely depends on the reciprocal understanding; mutual exchange
of ideas, facts, and information for it is not one-sided game or the exclusive affair of the transmitter of
the message. The characteristics of a good communication system are as follows:
For a good communication system mutual understanding between the transmitter and the receiver of the
message is very important.
Existence of healthy interpersonal relationship between the upper level employees and the subordinates
is also an indicator of a good system of communication.
Clarity of Message:
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Clarity is a very important for the free of communication. The information must be as clear as possible.
No ambiguity should creep into it. The message should be encoded in direct and simple language so that
the receiver is able to understand it without much difficulty.
Feedback:Communication cannot attain its goal unless the feedback is given. Through feedback system
only can understand the impact of the delivered message.
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