Writing Technical Papers CSCI 327

Outline for Today 1.Finding Appropriate Sources 2.Document Formatting Standards 3.Appropriate Writing Style 4.Typical Technical Documents

Questions Where can you find technical information? How do you know if those sources are reliable?

Where to Find Information Web Sources –Wikipedia how trustworthy is it? –.com sites they have an agenda - don't trust them for opinions –.edu sites Print Sources –Papers in Academic Journals have been reviewed!!!!!!! –Newspapers good for facts and quotes be aware of opinions

Example Search 1.Go to Winthrop's homepage 2.On left menu, select Library, then Database List 3.select A 4.select ACM Digital Library differences in Journals, Proceedings, etc. Special Interest Groups

Formatting Typical Outline of a Research Paper 1.abstract short overview 2.introduction and background information context of this investigation 3.new information the "what we did" 4.analysis and conclusions the "so what" 5.summary and future work

Formatting ACM SIG Format Section Headers –number the sections so that the reader can move back and forth –number subsections as well –refer to other sections

Formatting Figures and Tables –a figure goes after the first reference –number figures and tables, and include a title –use courier font in tables References –cite everything that was not your idea!!!!!!!!!!!!! –make it crystal clear what is yours and what is theirs –citing web sources…

Web Citations Important Information who when where Examples Smith, Bob. "My Opinion about Open-Source Software." Daily Tech Blog. July 14, Building Poor Web Sites. June 14, 2012.

Writing Style Use examples and figures to illustrate your point Define terms –on the first use of an acronym, spell it out Use formal language –keep to facts and analysis, this is not about you –No slang terms –No first person

Tech Documents o' Plenty User Manual Project Proposal Statement of Work Software Project Management Plan System Requirements Specification System Design

Possible Format of a Business Proposal 1.Executive Summary 2.Statement of Work 3.Management Plan 4.Corporate Qualifications 5.Staffing Plan 6.Pricing and Contract Requirements

NSF Proposal Format Cover Sheet title dates and total amount requested signatures Project Summary one page max "intellectual merit" and "broader impact" Table of Contents Project Description 15 page max also includes results from prior support References Cited Biographical Sketches Budget