About the Presenter I am Sandeep Kumar M, with over 6 years of experience in Technical Communications, am currently associated with Broadridge as Consultant. I hold my graduation in English Literature from Bangalore University and Philosophy from De Sales University, Pennsylvania. Began my career in Content Management with Thomson Reuters and am currently pursuing my interests in Technical Communications.

3Es of Technical Communications 05/19/2018 3Es of Technical Communications Entering, Exploring, and Evolving 2nd LEARNING SESSION – STC HYDERABAD

Agenda Introduction Historical Evolution Entering Exploring Evolving Required Skills Key Elements The Growing Demand Exploring Evolving Enroll Attend Join

Introduction Technical Communications as defined in WWW.STC.ORG Technical communication is a broad field and includes any form of communication that exhibits one or more of the following characteristics: Communicating about technical or specialized topics, such as computer applications, medical procedures, or environmental regulations. Communicating by using technology, such as web pages, help files, or social media sites. Providing instructions about how to do something, regardless of how technical the task is or even if technology is used to create or distribute that communication. Technical communication is a broad field and includes any form of communication that exhibits one or more of the following characteristics: Communicating about technical or specialized topics, such as computer applications, medical procedures, or environmental regulations. Communicating by using technology, such as web pages, help files, or social media sites. Providing instructions about how to do something, regardless of how technical the task is or even if technology is used to create or distribute that communication. Technical Communications as defined in Wikipedia. Technical Communications is a means to convey scientific, engineering, and technique or other technical information. - Johnson-Sheehan, Richard (2005). Technical Communication Today

Introduction Different professions under Technical Communications Technical Writers & Editors Indexers Information Architects Instructional Designers Technical Illustrators Globalization & Localization Specialists Usability & Human Factors Professionals Visual Designers Web Designers & Developers Teachers & Researchers of Technical Communication Trainers and E-Learning Developers

Historical Evolution 1908 1911 1940-46 1946 First Textbook A Guide to Technical Writing" by T.A. Richards, the first textbook written about technical writing, was published in 1908 to help engineers specifically. Samuel Earle's "The Theory and Practice of Technical Writing" was published. Earle was focused on "giving systematic training in technical writing." To him, technical writing was either narrative, descriptive, expository or directive. During the World War II (1940 - 1946) and for a short period afterwards, published documents regarding technical writing were practically non- existent. Technical writing experienced a boom in growth after the war due to an influx of students and a niche for technical writing. Technical writing became a legitimate profession itself during this time. First Textbook Systematic Training Non-existent Rise as a Profession

ENTERING REQUIRED SKILLS KEY ELEMENTS GROWING DEMAND Must be CLEAR & CONCISE Must have GOOD EYE FOR DETAIL Must have an EXTENSIVE KNOWLEDGE of punctuation, syntax and style, grammar Identify the AUDIENCE Understand the PURPOSE Organize the SUPPORTING MATERIALS and OUTLINE Budget the TIME to WRITE REVISE EDIT GROWTH RATE – 15% faster than average for all occupations. A COLLEGE DEGREE in Technical Subject Certificate Program in Technical Writing

WRITING STYLE & APPROACH EVOLVING INTEGRATE GRAPHICS & VISUAL AIDS SIMPLIFY THE TERMS RHETORICAL AWARENESS & USER-CENTRIC DESIGN ACTIVE VOICE & ACTION VERBS FORMAT AS PER STYLE GUIDE TASK BASED APPROACH REVISIONS & REWRITES

EXPLORING ENROLL ATTEND JOIN Enroll in a course to gain more insights. Explore the various elements Audience Awareness Organization of Information Use of Visual Aids Use of Simple language Attend Technical Communication Conferences Meet other writers in the industry. Identify a possible Mentor Networking Workshops Seminars Panel discussions Join Professional Associations Society for Technical Communication (STC) Forums (eg. STC Group) Meet other professionals Keep a track of latest developments in the industry

STC Forum Documentation and Technical Writing Management Google Group Multiple STC Google groups API, DITA, UI, General, Help Authoring Tools, GIF’s, Videos, etc… API/DITA, Chat Bot vs Doc Bot, Digitization of Technical Documents, clickable hotspots in images, etc.. Technical Writer Forum – LinkedIn Technical Writing in Nuclear sector Help + Manual From EC Software, Paligo (HAT) HAT or WIKI produces the best results? Alternatives to swagger-codegen Time spent on understanding the product vs documentation Documentation and Technical Writing Management LinkEds & Writers