Technical Writing Defined
Contrary to what some people may think, technical writing is not writing about technology; rather it is conducted within a discipline by someone with specialized knowledge and expertise for a specific audience or user group. As such, technical documentation can be broadly categorized into three types, depending on the style of writing, the level of knowledge transferred, and the target audience:
End-user assistance or documents that help a user understand a software or hardware product.
Traditional technical documentation communicates to a specialized audience and ranges from repair manuals and engineering specifications to research papers, annual reports, and articles for technical journals.
Marketing communication communicates to a broader audience than traditional technical documentation but still communicates a targeted message. As such, technical writers can sometimes develop these types of texts that range from product catalogs and brochures to web texts and public relations pieces.
This means technical writing is represented throughout many disciplines. For example, a scientist writing an account of a specific experiment, an ethnographer writing about a specific study, a teacher writing about specific teaching methods, or a business executive writing an annual report are all engaged in some form of technical writing.
In the academic world, and more specifically in the world within the classroom, technical writing is not the norm; rather the essay or paper is the main form of writing that takes place and, while there are clear distinctions between these two genres, there are similarities between them as well. For example both styles of writing are concerned with:
•The application of rhetorical principles to texts.
•The contextual analysis of text.
•The importance of mechanics in writing texts.
Technical writing differs from traditional academic style writing in that it is the creation of designed texts. That is these texts are used in some manner by the reader to accomplish a task. Therefore, a technical writer must understand principles of:
•Visual Strategies.
•Layout and design strategies.
•Usability and readability.
This is a critical distinction of technical writing as a genre and affirms the importance of understanding the technical writing process.
End-user assistance or documents that help a user understand a software or hardware product.
Traditional technical documentation communicates to a specialized audience and ranges from repair manuals and engineering specifications to research papers, annual reports, and articles for technical journals.
Marketing communication communicates to a broader audience than traditional technical documentation but still communicates a targeted message. As such, technical writers can sometimes develop these types of texts that range from product catalogs and brochures to web texts and public relations pieces.
This means technical writing is represented throughout many disciplines. For example, a scientist writing an account of a specific experiment, an ethnographer writing about a specific study, a teacher writing about specific teaching methods, or a business executive writing an annual report are all engaged in some form of technical writing.
In the academic world, and more specifically in the world within the classroom, technical writing is not the norm; rather the essay or paper is the main form of writing that takes place and, while there are clear distinctions between these two genres, there are similarities between them as well. For example both styles of writing are concerned with:
•The application of rhetorical principles to texts.
•The contextual analysis of text.
•The importance of mechanics in writing texts.
Technical writing differs from traditional academic style writing in that it is the creation of designed texts. That is these texts are used in some manner by the reader to accomplish a task. Therefore, a technical writer must understand principles of:
•Visual Strategies.
•Layout and design strategies.
•Usability and readability.
This is a critical distinction of technical writing as a genre and affirms the importance of understanding the technical writing process.
Course Goals and ObjectivesAfter completing this course you should be able to:
1.Understand the role of technical communication as a genre and within the workplace environment. 2.Understand the writing patterns used to create a variety of technical documents. 3.Understand the visual strategies used to create a variety of technical documents. 4.Work with presentation strategies that include visual strategies and oral presentation strategies. 5.Work with usability and contextual design practices to create effective technical documents. |
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