1. Exploring different genres of Technical Writing and its allied fields
Presentation by:
1. Rahul Prabhakar (Technical Writer, Oracle India Private Limited)
2. Saravanan Manoharan (Technical Documentation Engineer, think3 Designs)
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2. Objectives
After completing this presentation, you should be able to do the following:
Analyze the role of Technical Writers in varied domains, organizations, and sectors
Understand the relevance of each role to a Technical Writer
Develop some of the strategies for obtaining the position
Determine the factors/ questions disturbing our community
Identify the job outlook for Technical Communication
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3. Fact Files
OJ Simpson Trial

4. OJ Simpson Trial
During police testimony, it was discovered that the evidence-gathering manual produced by Los Angeles Police Department’s (LAPD) hadn’t always been followed by officers in the chain of evidence.
Tainted evidence became one of the defense team’s major concerns.
LAPD revised the evidence-gathering material and updated the training class.
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5. Fact Files
Persian Gulf War

6. Persian Gulf War
TWs prepared a surrender leaflet that was dropped into enemy lines. It was revised based on information from captured prisoners.
Highlights
Removed color red (sign of danger in Iraq)
Inserted picture of a bearded soldier in place of clean-shaven Allied soldier (a bearded man in Iraq is more trusted)
Added Bananas to the bowl of fruit picture (delicacy in Iraq)
Almost 87,000 enemy soldiers defected without firing a shot
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7. Education - Academic Background
2002 Survey of STC members showed the seven academic backgrounds most common among technical communicators:
English: 32%
Technical Communication: 22%
Business Administration: 10%
Computer Science: 9%
Science: 9%
Engineering: 8%
Journalism: 7%
Others: 28%
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8. Questions disturbing our community
Where are we going?
Will we disappear?
Should we re-invent ourselves to face requirements?
What do we need to do differently?
What we need to be thinking about to survive?

9. The Bottom Line The TC change is a fact of life The products evolve
The documents that we work on changes constantly or so it seems

10. Genres of Technical Writing
Computer Software
Engineering and Manufacturing
Marketing Writing
Technical Marketing Literature
Medical Writing
Courseware or Training materials
Government and Military Writing
Education
Science
Journalism
Computer Hardware
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11. What are the prerequisites?
College degree in any field that promotes analytical thinking and clear communication
Strong problem-solving, writing, and communication skills
Basic computer skills, especially word processing at the intermediate level
Ability to conduct research and learn technical information quickly
Dedication to providing quality documentation to customers

12. What are the prerequisites?
Willingness to be proactive in seeking information
Ability to learn and use sophisticated publishing tools
Ability to plan milestones and meet deadlines
Ability to work as part of a team and independently

13. Computer Software
Development documents, which include business requirements or specifications, usability features, process flows, high-level and low-level design documents, API manuals, and programmers guide.
User documents (to help the users understand and use the software), which include user manuals, quick reference guides, and training guides.
Online help, online user support tools, such as wizards for troubleshooting.
Software documentation (books), online and hard copy.
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14. Engineering/ Manufacturing
Process flows
Work instructions
Maintenance procedures
Non-computer equipment guides
Technical reports
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15. Marketing Writing Ad copy and layout (design) Presentations
Sales force materials
Packaging design
Promotional materials
Information materials
Annual reports
Trade or news articles
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16. Technical Marketing Literature
White papers
Technical proposals
Online demonstrations
Technical reports
Trade or news articles
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17. Medical Writing Newspapers Magazines Public relations (press releases)
Scientific writing within organizations
Professional journals
Pharmaceutical writing
Reference material
Technical reports
Annual reports
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18. Courseware or Training Materials
Online tutorials and training (Instructor Led Training and eClass material)
Quick reference guides
Trade or news articles
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19. Government and Military Writing
Internal policies and procedures
Internal engineering documents
Reference material
Organizational material
Annual reports
Technical reports
Trade or news articles
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20. Education Textbooks, online, and hard copy Scholarly journals
Online tutorials and training
Reference material
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21. Science Scholarly journals Professional journals Magazines Proposals
Reference material
Technical reports
Trade or news articles
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22. Journalism Newspapers Magazines Promotional materials
Trade or news articles
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23. Computer Hardware
Maintenance and service guides, which involve procedures, graphics, and some software documentation
User support tools, such as help panels on printers
Books, online, and hard copy
Reference material
Quick reference guides
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24. Strategies for obtaining the position
Determine what fields interest you
Take a class in a related topic
Become familiar with publishing software
Join a professional body like the Society for Technical Communication (STC)
Prepare for interviews
Research the company
Anticipate questions and come up with answers before the interview
Put together a portfolio
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25. How the job outlook is Did you know that
The average monthly salary for technical writers is 25,833 Rupees (STC India’s 2003 technical communicator salary survey).
In the last ten months, more than 1,000 jobs have been advertised on the Technical Writers of India mailing list.
This is just 10 per cent of the actual demand; there are opportunities for at least 10,000 technical writers today (Hindu – April 19th 2004).
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26. Driving Factors Global competition and translation requirements
Customized products and niche marketing
Convergence of software and documentation
Shrinking cycle time and budgets
Value-added documentation to assist the end users in decision making support
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27. Where can I go from here Trainer Customer Service Engineer
Consultant/Contractor
Product Manager
Product Marketing Analyst
Publications Analyst
Publications Department Supervisor
Marketing Communication Engineer
Owner of a publications shop managing several consultants
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28. Where can I go from here (Contd.)
Project Manager
Systems Engineer
QA Engineer
Technology Analyst
Programmer
Systems Analyst
Information Architect
Project Leader
Usability Specialist
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29. What every writer has to know
The types of work that you do well
Which of that work makes you feel the best
How those map into what needs to be done in the business world
Remember:
Your background is nowhere near as important as
your skills.
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30. Transition to Technical Writing from other professions
From Journalism
From Teaching
From Academia
From Marketing
From Law
From Software Development
From Quality Assurance
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31. Sources
Technical Communication - Journal of the society for Technical Communication August 2004, Volume 51, Number 3
Solitary Scrivener - Newslet-ter of the Lone Writer SIG,Volume 3, No. 1

32. Sources (Contd.)

33. Sources (Contd.)

34. Summary In this presentation, you should have learned how to:
Analyze the role of Technical Writers in varied domains, organizations, and sectors
Understand the relevance of each role to a Technical Writer
Develop some of the strategies for obtaining the position
Determine the factors/ questions disturbing our community
Identify the job outlook for Technical Communication in India
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35. Q&A Session
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36. Thanks Rahul Prabhakar: rahulpr_2002@yahoo.com
Saravanan Manoharan:
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