Comments on: Blogging: A New Role for Technical Communicators

By: niche keywords help

niche keywords help — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 10:33:30 +0000

This is acceptable in terms of SEO. Nada looks to rag against them than this.Funnily enough, this is just was worried about ten years prior at the last internet about search engine optimization some number of years ago in 1994!

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best shampoo for oily hair — Wed, 20 May 2009 05:55:49 +0000

Formerly, Technical Writing, 5th edition, the new 6th edition embraces the multidimensional aspects of a technical communicator. By incorporating a process approach to writing many different technical documents (email, web pages, blogs) coupled with scenarios to bring to life real-world challenges, the text allows students to write successfully. Updated technology tips include the most up-to-date software applications (Microsoft Word 2007 and Vista 2007). The authors’ student-friendly style engages students in the writing process and encourages hands-on application as well as discussions about ethics, audience identification, electronic communication, and the role of technical writing in the workplace.

By: Surfing the Web During Work Boosts Productivity | Shanghai Tech Writer

Surfing the Web During Work Boosts Productivity | Shanghai Tech Writer — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 00:02:54 +0000

[...] web on company time. What about blogging on company time? Tom Johnson wrote an excellent post about technical communicators as corporate bloggers. Technical writers are perfect candidates for blogging about company products from a personal, [...]

By: Words on a page » A few links for the end of the week

Words on a page » A few links for the end of the week — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 10:08:07 +0000

[...] Johnson discusses blogging as a new role for technical communicators. Tom’s post applies to writers of other stripes, [...]

By: mike

mike — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 19:53:34 +0000

Tom, perhaps you could at some point address the issue of where documentation ends and blogs begin. Some topics around that issue might include:

* What you might be able to blog that you would not document (perhaps your “tips and tricks” suggestion can fall into this category). For example, we might blog about the internals of a function that we would never officially document, or the reasons for certain design decisions.

* Whether it is legitimate to link from (online) documentation to blog entries. Some groups I know of are freely linking to blog posts instead of folding the content of the blog post into the “official” docs. Are the blog posts then part of (or endorsed as) official documentation?

* How “official” a blog post might be if it’s written by a) a third party, b) a tech writer on a doc team, c) an executive or other decision-maker at a company. We’ve noted some confusion among readers about this, in particular where blog posts and docs are not in agreement, or when a blog post reveals information that the docs do not.

I think there’s a theoretical distinction (most blogs have disclaimers about how they represent an individual’s thoughts), but so much information is now available on blogs (sometimes only on blogs) that it’s easy to understand why readers might not be expected to make fine distinctions about the source of information.

By: Eddie Gear

Eddie Gear — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 02:08:58 +0000

Hi Tom,

This is very true. Today, more and more technical communicators are taking up blogging as a new means to develop and showcase their writing skills.

Cheers,
Eddie Gear

By: Tom

Tom — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 13:51:09 +0000

Thanks everyone for the comments on this article. All good points. I agree that over-polished and edited posts lack the light playful tone and spirit of blogs. Too much editing can turn the blog into more of an online magazine. I hadn’t thought of that before, so thanks Gordon and Alistair.

Justelise, what you say about technical communicators just discovering the usefulness of blogs after a decade is harsh but true. It seems that many writers in the tech comm community lag 5 yrs behind the web community. But the challenges I describe in this article deal mainly with companies that make it difficult for technical writers to get into this medium.

Craig, good point about the billable question in a recession. Blogs can be something that generates high value for a company, but this is a case to make, not something that comes automatically.

Collin, I too dislike Facebook. I’ve set up my Twitter feed to syndicate to it, and I occasionally receive comments from within Facebook that way, but it’s not my favorite platform.

By: Craig

Craig — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 17:08:52 +0000

In this economic climate, I wouldn’t even ask. As you said, “Technical writers may not receive any billable time allocated to write for the blog.” At my company, every task is assigned a job number. Every task is billable, or it is not done. Period.

By: justelise

justelise — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 16:00:14 +0000

Blogs have been around for the better part of a decade. I am saddened that some Technical Communicators are just discovering their usefulness now.

By: marketing,twitter,blogs,friendfeed,facebook,blogging,roles,writing,technical communication, | Have Notebook Will Travel

Wed, 08 Apr 2009 14:29:42 +0000

[...] Johnson recently wrote in his post “Blogging: A New Role for Technical Communicators” Although it may be early to tell, surely some keeping up with web trends is in order. As [...]