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2024 archives

  1. Using AI to mine log messages from reference doc builds (Prompt engineering series) | Dec 19, 2024

  2. AI stream journaling experiment | Dec 17, 2024

  3. Biohacking your glucose with AI | Dec 17, 2024

  4. Q&A about adoc Studio, with Frank Blome | Dec 16, 2024

  5. Q&A about Paligo -- modern CCMS -- with VP of Product Rasmus Petersson | Dec 1, 2024

  6. Should you join Bluesky? | Nov 23, 2024

  7. Using AI to design landing pages (prompt engineering series) | Nov 17, 2024

  8. Why designing landing pages is hard | Nov 13, 2024

  9. Unpacking the issues from AI — thoughts on Alan Porter's post Am I the AI Luddite? and Fabrizio Benedetti's How I'm using AI as a technical writer | Nov 11, 2024

  10. To establish value, focus more on high priority projects: Reading Michael Lynch's post on why he quit Google to work for himself | Nov 11, 2024

  11. Sadik-Khan's Streetfight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution, plus a visual account of Seattle's downtown biking and pedestrian infrastructure | Nov 3, 2024

  12. From engineer interviews to written draft, with chain of thought reasoning | Nov 3, 2024

  13. New API course on mastering documentation by Mark Wentowski on Docsgeek | Nov 3, 2024

  14. Symposium on Usability and Design in France in April 2025 | Nov 3, 2024

  15. Strategies for making doc bugs actionable | Oct 20, 2024

  16. Escaping the Productivity Trap: Experiments with Burkeman's Four Thousand Weeks — guest post by David Kowalsky | Oct 20, 2024

  17. NotebookLM podcasts -- the missing piece in the GenAI puzzle? | Oct 6, 2024

  18. [Podcast] GenAI and Document360: Conversation with Saravana Kumar | Oct 6, 2024

  19. Using AI to jump-start code samples | Sep 29, 2024

  20. Unified Knowledge powered by Zoomin -- Q&A with Paul Maass | Sep 15, 2024

  21. Two days in my life as a technical writer, followed by reflection and analysis of fragmenting microtasks | Sep 8, 2024

  22. What a day in the life of a Technical Writer in the energy industry looks like -- Guest post by Bonnie Denham | Aug 28, 2024

  23. Routines and habit stacking | Aug 26, 2024

  24. Podcast: Task decomposition and complex tree diagrams | Jul 28, 2024

  25. Podcast: Using long-token contexts to quality check an entire API doc set | Jul 28, 2024

  26. Podcast: Using file diffs for better release notes in reference docs | Jul 28, 2024

  27. Podcast: Populating documentation templates using AI | Jul 28, 2024

  28. Podcast: Gathering source material for context input | Jul 28, 2024

  29. Podcast: Creating high-fidelity, thematically organized notes from engineering meetings using AI | Jul 28, 2024

  30. Blogging as personal training? | Jul 26, 2024

  31. Using long-token contexts to quality check an entire API doc set | Jul 15, 2024

  32. Seeing invisible details and avoiding predictable, conditioned thought (ZAMM series) | Jun 26, 2024

  35. [Podcast] Uncovering and communicating the value of your tech comm teams' work, with Keren Brown | May 30, 2024

  36. [Prompt engineering series] Using file diffs for better release notes in reference docs | May 25, 2024

  37. Updates two years later on my smartphone experiment | May 21, 2024

  38. Thoughts on Docs as code being a broken promise | May 21, 2024

  39. Get Better at Using Prompts With Deliberate Practice: One technical writer's little experiment — guest post by Diana Cheung | Apr 23, 2024

  40. Prompt engineering series: Creating scripts to automate doc build processes | Apr 21, 2024

  41. What should your documentation metrics look like? Q&A with Zoomin about their 2024 Technical Content Benchmark Report | Apr 14, 2024

  42. AI is accelerating my technical writing output, and other observations | Apr 14, 2024

  43. Upcoming conference: AI the API docs | Apr 3, 2024

  44. Prompt engineering series: Gathering source input | Mar 20, 2024

  45. Prompt engineering series: Error checking the output | Mar 20, 2024

  46. Integrating AI with your content delivery platform and documentation: Zoomin Q&A with Keren Brown | Mar 18, 2024

  47. Showcasing your API technical writer portfolio and projects — guest post by Peter Gustafson | Mar 12, 2024

  48. Prompt engineering series: Reverse engineering the recipe for excellent documentation | Mar 4, 2024

  49. Prompt engineering series: Populating documentation templates using AI | Mar 4, 2024

  50. Prompt engineering: Task decomposition and complex tree diagrams | Feb 20, 2024

  51. Prompt engineering: Creating high-fidelity, thematically organized notes from engineering meetings using AI | Feb 20, 2024

  52. Visualizing APIs with tree diagrams, partly generated with AI | Feb 13, 2024

  53. Walking and chatting with ChatGPT | Jan 21, 2024

  54. Moved AI pages into their own collection and space | Jan 20, 2024

  55. Coffee Chat recording: Ask Me Anything about Managing API documentation projects | Jan 8, 2024

  56. Evaluating my 2023 site analytics -- why did my traffic drop? | Jan 7, 2024

  57. [Podcast] Breaking ground: New API documentation course at UW, with Bob Watson | Jan 5, 2024

2023 archives

  1. Book review: Understanding Girls with ADHD: How They Feel and Why They Do What They Do | Dec 31, 2023

  2. Etto, a new AI co-pilot for Heretto — Q&A with Casey Jordan | Dec 18, 2023

  3. Podcast: Notes and themes from Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig | Dec 15, 2023

  4. Webinar recording: Experiments and use cases for AI from a tech writer’s perspective | Dec 13, 2023

  5. 30+ ways I’m using AI in everyday writing life as a technical writer, blogger, and curious human | Dec 4, 2023

  6. Podcast: The evolution of podcasting, with Ed Marsh | Dec 3, 2023

  7. Webinar: Let's talk API docs: a discussion about issues impacting documentation for APIs | Dec 3, 2023

  8. Podcast: Tech writing and Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, with Dan Grabski | Nov 18, 2023

  9. You've heard of 'Docs as code' -- Now get ready for 'Code as docs': Q&A with Speakeasy | Nov 9, 2023

  10. Doing research with AI tools -- avoiding the trap of fabricated URLs | Nov 9, 2023

  11. Notes for Building the Cycling City: The Dutch Blueprint for Urban Vitality | Nov 6, 2023

  12. Movemate standing board review — fixing your back, legs from sedentary decline from a tech job | Oct 29, 2023

  13. My experience trying to write original, full-length human-sounding articles using Claude AI | Oct 25, 2023

  15. What is Diátaxis and should you be using it with your documentation? | Oct 18, 2023

  16. [Podcast] AI and APIs: What works, what doesn't | Oct 14, 2023

  17. Forrester Report, Coding jobs, Hyper-personalization, RFPs, Call center replacement (Oct 9, 2023) | Oct 9, 2023

  18. What I learned in using AI for planning and prioritization: Content strategy might be safe from automation | Oct 6, 2023

  19. Open-source contribution myths, Hiring poets to train LLMs, Problems with 'content', AI agents (Oct 6, 2023) | Oct 5, 2023

  20. Embracing professional redefinition | Oct 3, 2023

  21. Documentation failures, Bestiaries, AI Explain post mortem, Inside TechComm podcast (Oct 3, 2023) | Oct 2, 2023

  22. New article: AI and APIs: What works, what doesn't | Sep 28, 2023

  23. Claude versus ChatGPT -- and a few thoughts on using AI chatbots on an Alaskan cruise | Sep 18, 2023

  24. Alphadoc: Build API documentation that tells your API's story | Sep 17, 2023

  25. New API course topic: Using AI for summaries | Sep 7, 2023

  27. New API doc course topic: Using AI for glossary definitions | Sep 4, 2023

  28. New API doc course topic: Using AI for comparison tasks with API responses | Aug 28, 2023

  29. New API doc course topic: Using AI For thematic analysis | Aug 28, 2023

  30. New API doc course topic: Using AI for language advice | Aug 9, 2023

  31. New API doc course topic: Using AI to create doc updates based on bugs | Aug 9, 2023

  32. New API doc course topic: Using AI to learn coding | Jul 25, 2023

  33. New topic in API course: Using AI tools to write build and publish scripts | Jul 19, 2023

  34. New topic in API doc course: AI document engineering with pattern-based prompts | Jul 6, 2023

  35. First Look at Oxygen XML's Positron AI Assistant [API doc course] | Jul 4, 2023

  36. Adding a new AI section to my API doc course | Jul 4, 2023

  37. First look at the Oxygen XML's AI Positron Assistant | Jul 4, 2023

  38. Telling your conversion story into tech comm | Jun 25, 2023

  39. Chapter PDFs for API doc course | Jun 25, 2023

  40. How to meet other technical writers in Seattle -- WTD Seattle coffee chats | Jun 25, 2023

  41. How the blog-to-book experiment is going: challenges and thoughts | Jun 15, 2023

  42. Blog and API doc course are now one site | Jun 9, 2023

  43. Doctave Q&A with Niklas Begley | Jun 8, 2023

  44. News turns the content wheel of advertising | May 19, 2023

  45. Newsletter: Endless news cycles, style checkers, finding research, noticing things around you | May 19, 2023

  46. How to find academic research to back up your tech comm decisions | May 19, 2023

  47. Book review of the Art of Noticing, by Rob Walker | May 19, 2023

  48. AI starting to diminish work for student essay ghostwriters | May 19, 2023

  49. From DITA to docs-as-code and Docusaurus: Q&A with Mike Howes | May 16, 2023

  50. Newsletter: Copilot for Docs, Wappalyzer, Illusions, Late projects, Forbidden Fruit | May 11, 2023

  51. Newsletter: Doctave, Chatbase, SiteGPT, small CLs, TC bibliography | May 9, 2023

  52. What’s missing from the AI workflow: incentives for content creators to provide training data | May 4, 2023

  53. Newsletter: Content creator ROI, Netlify, Madbot, and Hollywood | May 4, 2023

  54. Newsletter: AI doc alerts, state of tools, saying easy or just, automated writing teams | May 2, 2023

  55. Newsletter: Docusaurus, Lens, Docs-as-Code, 2022 site analytics, and HTML Table formatting | Apr 27, 2023

  56. Newsletter: Markprompt Q&A, LearningDITA, Snowflake docs, AI Commits | Apr 24, 2023

  57. Meandering thoughts on my 2022 site analytics | Apr 23, 2023

  58. Markprompt Q&A with Michael Fester | Apr 23, 2023

  59. Newsletter: Alphadoc, vocab lookup, field, Open Assistant, Markprompt, content ops | Apr 20, 2023

  60. Newsletter: GPT-4 tutors, Phind.com, Dark user manuals, interfaces for reading docs, automation scripts, and bball | Apr 17, 2023

  61. AI chat interfaces could become the primary user interface to read documentation | Apr 17, 2023

  62. Using AI tools to look up words and provide mini-poems to help remember their meaning | Apr 16, 2023

  63. A script that creates a new Jekyll post and populates it with YAML frontmatter, and also makes a curl call to add a Rebrandly shortlink | Apr 16, 2023

  64. Newsletter: Docs-as-ecosystem, structure in WordPress, identity crisis, and pencils | Apr 14, 2023

  65. Newsletter: AI and tech comm survey results, Zoomin's predictions, Beating an ATS, ChatGPT plugin docs | Apr 11, 2023

  66. Survey results: Technical writers on AI | Apr 10, 2023

  67. Newsletter: Why engineers need to write, tech writers in pop culture, 101 subreddit, Cambrian period of AI (April 4, 2023) | Apr 4, 2023

  68. Survey on the impact of AI on tech comm | Apr 3, 2023

  70. Beyond 'parts' documentation: Moving towards systems thinking with developer portals | Mar 26, 2023

  71. The influence of language-generative AI tools on tech comm: parlor tricks or disruption? | Mar 13, 2023

  72. Updates on my standing experiment: surprisingly good for the lower back | Mar 11, 2023

  73. Presentation recording: Specialization myopia syndrome and the content journey | Mar 7, 2023

  74. Podcast: All about Redocly, with founder Adam Altman | Feb 26, 2023

  75. Building your own balance board for a standing desk | Feb 24, 2023

  76. Finally got Covid -- my experience | Feb 13, 2023

  77. Five ways to leverage big-picture thinking as a technical writer | Feb 12, 2023

  78. New Job-Hunter Support Group course offered by Bobby Kennedy | Jan 26, 2023

  79. New series: Sitting, standing, and walking | Jan 25, 2023

  80. Approaching the college personal essay: Tips as a parent helping your student write a compelling essay | Jan 17, 2023

2022 archives

  1. Book review: May I Ask a Technical Question, by Jeff Krinock and Matt Hoff | Dec 26, 2022

  2. Thoughts on ChatGPT after reading Crawford's Why We Drive: whatever skill you outsource, atrophies | Dec 11, 2022

  3. Having fun with ChatGPT | Dec 7, 2022

  4. Two examples where high-level overviews are essential: Macbeth and Elon Musk | Nov 28, 2022

  5. Pulling readers through long documents | Nov 16, 2022

  6. Stoplight tutorial update -- practically every screenshot updated | Nov 1, 2022

  7. Podcast about Archbee -- a new documentation tool with a block-based editor, API publishing capability, content re-use, and more | Oct 31, 2022

  8. Attempting to write a Life of a [something] narrative | Sep 23, 2022

  9. 'Putting together things': Articulating a thesis about the effects of hyper-specialization on documentation | Sep 22, 2022

  10. Expanding from cross-product newsletters to a book club and site | Aug 21, 2022

  11. Some advice if you're just starting out your technical writing career | Aug 16, 2022

  12. Systems thinking: Limits to Growth, Complex Cause and Effect, and Shifting the Burden | Aug 9, 2022

  13. Systems thinking and developer portals | Jun 22, 2022

  14. Blobr API portal (API doc topic) | Jun 8, 2022

  15. The impact of technical diversity on documentation -- epiphanies on a trip to IKEA | Jun 5, 2022

  16. Technical diversity/pluralism/fragmentation in tech comm | Jun 4, 2022

  17. My Commute Seattle Spotlight | May 15, 2022

  18. Review of Peter Norton's Autonorama: The Illusory Promise of High-Tech Driving | Apr 25, 2022

  19. Docs as Code | Apr 3, 2022

  20. Inline ads -- updated advertising offerings | Apr 2, 2022

  21. Keynote presentation to STC India 2022 | Mar 26, 2022

  22. Remote work | Mar 22, 2022

  23. Git and GitHub | Mar 20, 2022

  24. API documentation | Mar 19, 2022

  25. Every page is page one | Mar 16, 2022

  26. Marcom and tech comm | Mar 14, 2022

  27. Scrum | Mar 13, 2022

  28. Let's Talk Docs podcast -- episode on measuring API documentation quality | Mar 7, 2022

  29. The History of Content -- Content Components podcast with Patrick Bosek and Sarah O'Keefe | Mar 7, 2022

  30. Preparing for technical writing jobs and interviews -- posts from Aaron Redshaw | Mar 7, 2022

  31. Content strategy | Mar 5, 2022

  32. DITA | Mar 4, 2022

  33. WordPress and web CMSs | Feb 27, 2022

  34. Quick reference guides | Feb 27, 2022

  35. Screencasting | Feb 26, 2022

  36. Faceted filtering | Feb 25, 2022

  37. Wikis and crowdsourcing | Feb 24, 2022

  38. Help authoring tools (HATs) and single-sourcing | Feb 23, 2022

  40. [Podcast] Become a technical writer: conversation with Bobby Kennedy about the technical writing courses he offers | Feb 21, 2022

  41. My multimodal commuting strategies | Feb 19, 2022

  42. Archbee product review -- first look at a new online platform for writing and managing documentation | Feb 14, 2022

  43. Part 6: The newsletter as the social content of corporations | Feb 11, 2022

  44. MEGAComm recording: How to increase awareness of tech comm inside corporate walls | Feb 10, 2022

  45. Updated Metrics and Measurement section in API course to remove scoring aspect | Feb 8, 2022

  48. Webinar recording of 'Using MadCap Flare to Generate API Documentation' | Feb 2, 2022

  49. Part 5: More specifics about finding a focus | Jan 27, 2022

  50. Part 4: Creating engaging content: A balance of interests | Jan 26, 2022

  51. Part 3: Five basics for building an audience on the web | Jan 25, 2022

  52. Part 2: Initial attempts and failures with workplace content | Jan 24, 2022

  53. Part 1: Introduction to influence on the web | Jan 23, 2022

  54. Themes from 2021: working from home and podcasting | Jan 12, 2022

  55. Site analytics for 2021 -- a few observations and reflections | Jan 2, 2022

2021 archives

  1. PDF and eBook formats available for API doc course | Dec 29, 2021

  2. One year later after moving to Seattle | Dec 22, 2021

  3. Broadcasting your meeting notes (API documentation topic) | Dec 11, 2021

  4. Barefoot shoes, basketball, and how to avoid recurring calf strains | Nov 28, 2021

  5. "The writing process"-- a new section in my API doc course | Nov 19, 2021

  6. HastyDocs: A new approach to keeping API documentation up-to-date, by Jarek Piotrowski | Nov 15, 2021

  7. Urban sprawl and car dependence -- some thoughts on solutions | Oct 31, 2021

  8. Write the Docs Podcast Episode 35: Docs for Developers book, with Jared Bhatti and Zachary Sarah Corleissen | Oct 31, 2021

  9. Presentation recording -- 'Best practices in API docs: Product overviews and getting started tutorials' | Oct 29, 2021

  10. The existentialism of technical writing | Oct 22, 2021

  11. New article in API doc course: Using Oxygen XML in docs-as-code workflows | Oct 14, 2021

  12. Biking and public transportation in Renton and Seattle: Solving the first-mile and last-mile problems | Oct 7, 2021

  13. tcworld China 2021 keynote: 'Tech comm and marketing: How to make your tech comm group more visible to those within your company' | Sep 16, 2021

  14. New article in API doc course: 'Ensuring documentation coverage with each software release' | Aug 31, 2021

  15. Sending doc status reports -- a tool for visibility and relationship building [API doc course] | Aug 15, 2021

  16. Recording of 'Product overviews vs. getting started tutorials: striking a balance between read-first and try-first user behaviors' | Aug 7, 2021

  17. Review of "Hashtag #TechComm: An Overview of Members, Networks, and Themes from 2016-2019" | Jul 22, 2021

  18. New sections in API doc course exploring causes for poor product overviews and getting started tutorials | Jul 12, 2021

  19. Five basketball strategies and how they might apply to tech comm | Jul 7, 2021

  20. Balancing product overviews with getting started tutorials | Jul 6, 2021

  21. Write the Docs Podcast Episode 34: Adding personality to documentation, with Fabrizio Ferri | Jun 26, 2021

  22. Five project management responsibilities of senior technical writers | Jun 4, 2021

  23. Trying to get back to normal | Jun 2, 2021

  24. Paligo: Structured Authoring and Component Content Management made easy | Jun 2, 2021

  25. Experiments: Leaving reviews on Google Maps | May 27, 2021

  26. 10 characteristics of ambiguous content | May 19, 2021

  27. Experiments: Will reading a physical newspaper improve the way I consume news? | May 18, 2021

  28. Experiments: What would happen if I exercised 2 hours a day? | May 15, 2021

  29. Balancing action with narration: Creating product overviews and getting started tutorials to satisfy both try-first and read-first learning modes | May 3, 2021

  30. An in-depth look at MadCap Flare 2021’s New Markdown Import Feature | May 2, 2021

  31. Finding a focus | Apr 29, 2021

  32. Updated API Getting Started tutorial | Apr 19, 2021

  33. Technical writing course Q&A -- 'Become a Technical Writer', with Bobby Kennedy | Apr 18, 2021

  34. Updated Stoplight tutorial | Apr 12, 2021

  35. Switching from Skype to Zoom for podcasting tools | Mar 23, 2021

  36. Videocast: Micro content and Flare -- Conversation with Kate Schneider | Mar 21, 2021

  37. Updated glossary article with technical examples [API doc course] | Mar 18, 2021

  38. My life story, or reflections on what shaped my life's career trajectory | Mar 18, 2021

  39. Analyzing doc portals by looking at developer journeys -- recommended podcast episode from Cherryleaf | Mar 18, 2021

  40. Who can make documentation requests | Feb 18, 2021

  41. Some good decisions and minor mistakes | Feb 17, 2021

  42. 10 observations after using my API documentation checklist in a real scenario | Feb 15, 2021

  43. Adding last modified timestamps to content | Feb 15, 2021

  44. Product overviews -- a tricky space where documentation and marketing overlap | Feb 3, 2021

  45. Q&A about Xeditor -- online XML editor -- with founder Matthias Kraus | Feb 2, 2021

  46. Write the Docs Podcast episode 33: Simplified user interfaces, with Anton Bollen | Jan 19, 2021

  48. Measuring documentation quality -- a rubric for developer docs | Jan 12, 2021

2020 archives

  1. Cherryleaf collects tech writer goals for 2021 | Dec 27, 2020

  2. Moving to Seattle and making housing decisions using virtual tools | Dec 11, 2020

  3. Job transition: from Amazon to Google | Dec 3, 2020

  4. Content Strategy Insights podcast with Larry Swanson about API documentation | Dec 2, 2020

  5. The most perfect 17-mile biking loop in Santa Clara | Nov 28, 2020

  6. Finished up the section on documentation processes (for now) | Nov 26, 2020

  7. New API course article: Processes for changing internal doc culture | Nov 26, 2020

  8. New API course article: Processes for external contributors | Nov 26, 2020

  9. Documentation templates and The Good Docs Project -- guest post by Ankita Tripathi | Nov 17, 2020

  10. The story behind Document360 -- podcast with founder Saravana Kumar | Nov 17, 2020

  11. Process for collecting feedback post-release (new article in API doc course) | Nov 16, 2020

  12. How does Document360 handle challenges with API documentation? | Nov 10, 2020

  13. Write the Docs Podcast episode 32: Self-publishing and AsciiDoc, with Mehmed Pasic | Nov 2, 2020

  14. Processes for maintaining existing documentation (new article in API doc course) | Oct 30, 2020

  15. Developer experience (DevX) usability (new article in API doc course) | Oct 12, 2020

  16. Does working outside with the world as your office actually work? | Oct 8, 2020

  17. Coffee and Content webinar recording: Treat Code Like Code; Treat Prose Like Prose | Oct 2, 2020

  18. New article in API course: Processes for reviewing documentation | Sep 23, 2020

  19. On cultivating a garden while the world is crumbling around you | Sep 18, 2020

  20. SmartBear's 2020 API report finds 'Accurate and detailed documentation' to be second-most important characteristic of APIs | Sep 10, 2020

  21. Write the Docs Podcast episode 31: Site search, with Peter Levan | Sep 9, 2020

  22. Redocly tutorial added to API course | Sep 8, 2020

  23. New article in API course -- Questions to ask during a documentation kickoff and demo | Sep 2, 2020

  24. Inexpensive media hosting and CLI uploading with Wasabi? | Sep 1, 2020

  25. ISTC article on developer documentation trends | Aug 31, 2020

  26. Playing a product design role as a content designer -- podcast with Jonathon Colman | Aug 24, 2020

  27. When 10X translates into -10X: debunking the myth of the 10X technical coder/writer | Aug 20, 2020

  28. SDK release process article added to API doc course | Aug 19, 2020

  29. DX content strategy article added to API doc course | Aug 19, 2020

  30. Processes for managing large documentation projects and small documentation requests | Aug 13, 2020

  31. Webinar -- Optimizing Content Development: Grow Your Content Faster Than You Grow Your Team | Aug 13, 2020

  32. Part VI: Results from the survey correlating org models and tech writer value | Jul 26, 2020

  33. A tip for doc reviews -- bring a list of questions | Jul 24, 2020

  34. Write the Docs Podcast episode 30: Documentation templates, with Juan Lara | Jul 20, 2020

  35. Writing productivity tip: Focus sessions | Jul 12, 2020

  36. Part VI: Conclusion, analysis, and feedback | Jul 1, 2020

  37. Part V: On being strategic, interpersonal, and sponsored | Jul 1, 2020

  38. Part IV: Engaging deep enough to blur the lines between content and product design | Jul 1, 2020

  39. Part III: Correlating organization models with low value estimations | Jul 1, 2020

  40. Part II: Personal layoff stories and reasons | Jul 1, 2020

  41. Part I: Introduction and background | Jul 1, 2020

  42. Developer portal strategies for complex landscapes -- conversation with Kristof van Tomme | Jun 24, 2020

  43. What makes a good covid sign? | Jun 18, 2020

  44. Treat code like code and prose like prose | Jun 16, 2020

  45. Diversity in tech comm -- Conversation with John Paz | Jun 12, 2020

  46. What's the point of site search? | Jun 12, 2020

  47. Making a comfortable office environment when working from home is harder than it seems | Jun 4, 2020

  49. WTD Australia event recording -- 'Remote discussion: Techcomm in the times of pandemic' | May 31, 2020

  50. Guest post: Why are technical writers often treated as such an unimportant part of a company? | May 31, 2020

  51. Results of Pandemic Impact on Tech Comm survey | May 26, 2020

  52. Podcast: Building Great Documentation -- WAPI FM radio hour | May 7, 2020

  53. Short survey about quarantine/pandemic impact on tech comm | May 7, 2020

  54. Connecting micro content with search analytics -- notes on the first MadCap Flare and MadCap Central 2020 Release | May 7, 2020

  55. A user manual for your death? | Apr 28, 2020

  56. API doc course update: Re-architecting the OpenAPI spec tutorials to start with visual modeling tools first, then code | Apr 28, 2020

  57. My Knowledgebase Ninjas podcast episode -- Metrics don't work | Apr 15, 2020

  58. API The Docs Virtual Series 2020 -- Upcoming presentations and thoughts on the virtual format | Apr 14, 2020

  59. Write the Docs Podcast episode 29: Salary Survey results and WFH tips, with Eric Holscher | Apr 13, 2020

  60. Are technical writers increasingly playing non-technical roles? Some thoughts on the evolution of technical writing roles | Mar 30, 2020

  61. Podcast: Users as producers of knowledge -- conversation with Nupoor Ranade about how tech writer roles are changing | Mar 29, 2020

  62. Staying updated about what developers are changing -- my techniques for information sleuthing | Mar 26, 2020

  63. Write the Docs Podcast episode 28: UX writing processes and considerations | Mar 24, 2020

  64. Tech comm podcasts are growing -- here's a list | Mar 24, 2020

  65. Life on reset -- new dynamics emerging | Mar 23, 2020

  66. Working from home — things I've bought | Mar 22, 2020

  67. How life has changed with the pandemic | Mar 16, 2020

  69. Introduction to API documentation - Recording from Los Angeles API documentation workshop | Mar 11, 2020

  70. Is there a place for exploratory writing in the workplace? | Mar 10, 2020

  71. Podcast: How Paligo is filling a niche in the CCMS market for complex documentation, with Anders Svensson | Mar 9, 2020

  72. The Manuscript Podcast, with Breno Barreto -- Episode 2, How technical should a tech writer be? | Mar 8, 2020

  73. Checklist of different types of API docs | Feb 25, 2020

  74. Podcast with Andrew Davis: Hiring API doc writers -- an inside look at fixing broken processes | Feb 23, 2020

  75. Write the Docs Podcast episode 27: Starting a doc group/process when you're the first | Feb 21, 2020

  77. New podcast: Unifying Technical Content Sets into a Broader Ecosystem, with Cruce Sanders at [A] | Feb 14, 2020

  78. Tools FAQ for API doc site | Feb 13, 2020

  79. Autonomous Agile Teams and Enterprise Content Strategy: An Impossible Combination? | Feb 13, 2020

  80. From API docs to developer portals | Feb 9, 2020

  81. Site update: Switched from Disqus to Commento | Jan 30, 2020

  82. What is a DITA Content Management System (CMS)? guest post by John Baker | Jan 27, 2020

  83. Learning about event planning -- life pro tips from Jack Molisani | Jan 24, 2020

  84. Updated Intro to API documentation topic | Jan 9, 2020

  85. Reflections on my 2019 site analytics | Jan 8, 2020

2019 archives

  1. Write the Docs Podcast episode 26: Technical writing and Reddit, with Alan Bowman | Dec 31, 2019

  2. 2020 Developer documentation survey | Dec 31, 2019

  3. Podcast: API Design and Usability with Arnaud Lauret (API Handyman) | Dec 7, 2019

  4. When reference docs lack a tutorial -- a look at Wescheme's Bootstrap documentation for students learning programming | Dec 6, 2019

  5. Upcoming API Documentation Workshop in Los Angeles, Calif., on January 23, 2020 | Dec 2, 2019

  6. Reflecting on my latest SF API doc workshop | Dec 2, 2019

  7. Follow-up to 4 Technical Writing Tests Post | Nov 12, 2019

  8. 4 Technical Writing Tests to Screen Candidates | Nov 4, 2019

  9. Write the Docs Podcast episode 25: Researching how developers use API docs, with Andrew Head | Oct 27, 2019

  10. Long-term strategies for project productivity | Oct 22, 2019

  11. Matching documentation review practices to company culture | Oct 17, 2019

  12. Some specifications docs I've been working on -- and thoughts on strategies and techniques for managing specs | Oct 14, 2019

  13. Podcast with Jacob Moses on the Not-Boring Tech Writer: Skill #26: Getting Started with API Documentation | Oct 3, 2019

  14. Podcast: Dealing with Project Overload -- Strategies to Manage Overflowing Documentation Tasks | Oct 2, 2019

  15. Podcast: 10 myths about API documentation | Sep 29, 2019

  16. Expanding embedded Swagger UI instances in your docs | Sep 29, 2019

  17. Write the Docs Podcast episode 24: Conference chatter and the Australian scene, with Swapnil Ogaler | Sep 25, 2019

  18. Write the Docs Podcast episode 23: How to write inclusive tech documentation, by Lucie Le Naour | Sep 10, 2019

  19. An inside look at DeveloperHub -- hosted documentation portals for API docs | Sep 10, 2019

  20. Upcoming API Documentation Workshop in San Francisco, Calif., on November 19, 2019 | Sep 9, 2019

  21. What I learned from organizing and running my first API documentation workshop from end to end | Sep 8, 2019

  22. New topic in API course: Following agile scrum with documentation projects | Aug 23, 2019

  23. Can you collaborate on doc projects in Git with other writers? | Aug 8, 2019

  24. New topic in API course: Five strategies for documenting code | Aug 8, 2019

  25. New topic in API course: Research on documenting code | Jul 29, 2019

  26. New topic in API course: Why documenting code is so difficult | Jul 29, 2019

  27. Write the Docs Podcast episode 22: Managing multiple doc projects across Git repositories, with Giles Gaskell | Jul 28, 2019

  28. Single-sourcing data into table templates in Jekyll | Jul 9, 2019

  29. Upcoming API Documentation Workshop in Mountain View, Calif., on August 30, 2019 | Jul 8, 2019

  30. Every project is a monster you battle and slay | Jul 3, 2019

  31. If I am learning to write developer documentation, should GraphQL be on my radar? -- guest post by Casey Armstrong | Jul 1, 2019

  33. ClickHelp -- a flexible online platform for authoring and publishing technical documentation | Jun 8, 2019

  34. My documentation project plan template | Jun 7, 2019

  35. How to avoid inefficiencies even with context switching | Jun 6, 2019

  36. Reader question: Am I specializing too much by limiting my focus to docs only? | May 22, 2019

  37. Crash course in API documentation -- a one-hour video | May 16, 2019

  38. Reader question: Is it a red flag in the hiring process if they tell you that you'll be the only tech writer, with complete control over everything? | May 15, 2019

  40. Upcoming conference: The Tech Comm Roundup, by The Content Wrangler | May 13, 2019

  41. Season of Docs -- opportunities for both tech writers and open-source organizations to benefit from each other | May 13, 2019

  42. Technical writer position for Amazon Appstore team in Seattle or Irvine | May 12, 2019

  44. The essence of technical writing, and my five stages of review for documentation | Apr 22, 2019

  45. First look at Document360 -- an authoring/publishing tool that satisfies both KB and tech pubs needs | Apr 22, 2019

  46. New video recordings of Raleigh API documentation workshop now available | Apr 21, 2019

  47. How I record audio and video in workshops — all the technical details, equipment, software, post-production techniques, and publishing methods | Apr 21, 2019

  48. Flare adds micro content feature, taking steps toward content management for AI scenarios | Apr 12, 2019

  49. When you're in the business of complexification | Apr 11, 2019

  50. Why I decided not to become a grasshopper expert, or, Not deciding your focus based on where readers are clicking | Apr 9, 2019

  51. A hypothesis on how to exert more influence and visibility inside the corporation | Apr 8, 2019

  52. Upcoming API workshops in Raleigh (April 6) and Denver (May 5) | Apr 1, 2019

  53. Recognizing Research Realities Across Technical Communication -- guest post by Kirk St. Amant | Apr 1, 2019

  54. Write the Docs Podcast episode 21: On career growth, leadership, and mentoring in Tech Writing | Mar 31, 2019

  55. Master's in technical writing at Mercer — FAQ | Mar 26, 2019

  56. Results from survey about engineers who write documentation | Mar 21, 2019

  57. My documentation takeaways from the Boeing disaster -- two essential doc questions to ask for any project | Mar 20, 2019

  58. Biking at Alviso County Park (Santa Clara) | Mar 17, 2019

  59. Should you get a degree in a tech comm program? Two considerations to keep in mind | Mar 13, 2019

  60. How to encourage risk-taking and idealism without falling prey to cynical attitudes born from experience | Mar 12, 2019

  61. XML Documentation for Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) — Integrating documentation and marketing content into a seamless whole | Mar 10, 2019

  62. How to design API documentation for opportunistic (active, experiential) learning styles | Mar 7, 2019

  63. Confronting the fear of growing older when you're surrounded by young programmers | Mar 7, 2019

  64. Write the Docs podcast episode 20: Minimum requirements for good tech docs, with Matt Reiner | Mar 3, 2019

  65. Corporate exodus narratives: A close look at the tension between the corporation and academia | Mar 1, 2019

  67. Asserting your expertise as a SME in the workplace: Q&A with Jennifer Mallette and Megan Gehrke | Feb 15, 2019

  68. How to become a 10X technical writer in the workplace | Feb 7, 2019

  69. How to motivate users to provide feedback: Show that you're listening to their input | Feb 1, 2019

  70. Write the Docs Podcast episode 19: Static site generators, with Jessica Parsons | Jan 31, 2019

  71. Recording of Trends presentation on The Content Wrangler BrightTALK channel | Jan 17, 2019

  72. Site analytics from Jan 1 to Dec 31, 2018 -- are more engineers writing docs now? | Jan 14, 2019

  73. Employment and salary outlook for technical writers based on the 2017-2018 STC Salary Database | Jan 8, 2019

  74. The absolute worst that can happen in 2019, or, Imagining a dystopian corporatocracy emerge after a permanent government collapse | Jan 7, 2019

2018 archives

  1. Is Premium Grammarly worth it for identifying style and grammar issues in tech docs? | Dec 28, 2018

  2. Obituary for my dad - David Tait Johnson, 1935 - 2018 | Dec 26, 2018

  3. Research on code documentation -- when not to comment on code | Dec 20, 2018

  4. Top 10 holiday gifts for technical writers | Dec 18, 2018

  5. My podcast about writing with Ellis Pratt on Cherryleaf | Dec 13, 2018

  6. Recording for Menlo Park API documentation workshop now available -- and some thoughts on using cardioid versus omnidirectional microphones for recording | Dec 4, 2018

  7. New post in Simplifying Complexity series -- Principle 11: Be both a generalist and specialist at the same time | Nov 30, 2018

  8. My upcoming presentation and workshop at the 2019 STC Summit in Denver | Nov 29, 2018

  10. Write the Docs Podcast episode 18: Recap and thoughts on the WTD Australia 2018 conference | Nov 25, 2018

  11. Bibliography of API documentation articles | Nov 25, 2018

  12. How to avoid being a secretary for engineers | Nov 19, 2018

  13. I'd Rather Be Writing is now an Alexa Flash Briefing skill | Nov 5, 2018

  14. Upcoming full-day API documentation workshop in Menlo Park | Oct 31, 2018

  15. The Tell-Tale Project — Guest Post by Edgar Allan Poe, Technical Writer | Oct 31, 2018

  16. Preferring technical acuity over specialized knowledge | Oct 24, 2018

  17. Write the Docs Podcast Episode 17: Structured Writing -- reasons and approaches, with Mark Baker | Oct 23, 2018

  18. Brainstorming by transposing patterns from one category to another | Oct 19, 2018

  19. The ideal number of slides for an hour-long presentation, and other thoughts on preparing slides | Oct 15, 2018

  28. Tech comm podcasts roundup and survey | Sep 15, 2018

  29. Pages at a glance -- the importance of the first two sentences of any topic | Sep 15, 2018

  30. Write the Docs Podcast episode 16: An open-source Grammarly for tech docs? | Sep 6, 2018

  31. How I handled data for about 10 device specifications on the same page -- the advantages of a flexible, customizable web-based framework like Jekyll | Aug 31, 2018

  32. New article in Simplifying Complexity series -- Iterate and increment on content following an agile approach | Aug 31, 2018

  33. Getting a job in API documentation -- new topics and expansions in my API doc course | Aug 22, 2018

  34. Strategies for learning technology -- podcast recommendation and a poll | Aug 10, 2018

  35. If writing is no longer a marketable skill, what is? | Aug 9, 2018

  36. My conflicted thoughts about the decentralized web (while taking the Census of Technical Communicators survey) | Aug 6, 2018

  37. The right story for tech writers to tell in a corporate blog post | Aug 2, 2018

  38. Articulating stories that influence product adoption (new article in Simplifying Complexity series) | Jul 31, 2018

  39. Reciprocal knowledge networks and the iFixit Technical Writing Project -- Conversation with Guiseppe Getto | Jul 25, 2018

  40. Looking at the theoretical foundations for tech comm -- Conversation with Lisa Melonçon | Jul 24, 2018

  41. Adventures of a Techie Academic with Lightweight DITA (LwDITA): Conversation with Carlos Evia | Jul 23, 2018

  42. Write the Docs Podcast episode 15: User research, tech writer stereotypes, and conversations | Jul 22, 2018

  43. Teaching Technological Adaptability to Bridge the Gap (Guest post by Melonie McMichael) | Jul 18, 2018

  44. Combatting the "Make-It-Pretty" Philosophy: Technical Writers Fight Back (Guest post by Emily January Petersen) | Jul 18, 2018

  45. Results from my Academic/Practitioner Attitudes surveys now available | Jul 17, 2018

  46. The relationship between academics and practitioners -- Podcast with Kirk St. Amant | Jul 11, 2018

  47. Reducing the complexity of technical language (new article in Simplifying Complexity series) | Jul 11, 2018

  48. Random reflections on the throwaway mentality in our culture | Jul 3, 2018

  49. Thoughts on docs-as-code after 3 years -- it works! | Jul 3, 2018

  50. A short survey to measure academic/practitioner attitudes | Jul 2, 2018

  51. 10 ways technical writing is just like the World Cup | Jun 19, 2018

  52. MadCap Flare 2018 and MadCap Central Review for the May 2018 Release -- Guest post | Jun 19, 2018

  53. Evaluating the user experience of documentation -- Podcast with Bob Watson | Jun 18, 2018

  54. Non-Reference Content section updated in API course | Jun 12, 2018

  55. Hiding Complexity -- A new Simplifying Complexity article | Jun 12, 2018

  56. New article in Simplifying Complexity: Reconstructing the absent user | May 31, 2018

  57. The reason I always find time to write on this blog | May 18, 2018

  58. Stoplight -- creating a single source of truth to drive the API lifecycle | May 11, 2018

  59. My site now has Algolia search integrated | May 2, 2018

  60. Replaced the previous weather API example in my API course to now use OpenWeatherAPI | Apr 28, 2018

  61. Do you have to relocate to an urban tech hub to find a technical writing job? | Apr 27, 2018

  62. Strategies from pickup basketball -- Why you shouldn't guard the worst player or focus too much on the documentation no one reads | Apr 19, 2018

  63. New Simplifying Complexity article on shaping information into familiar schemas, especially story | Apr 18, 2018

  64. A Review of the MadWorld Conference -- guest post by Jayna Locke | Apr 18, 2018

  65. New article on Simplifying Complexity: Reduction, layering, and distillation as a strategy for simplicity | Mar 28, 2018

  66. The math game my daughter and her friend created with Codesters | Mar 28, 2018

  67. What can we learn from the homogenous profiles in the Stack Overflow 2018 survey? | Mar 27, 2018

  68. Write the Docs Podcast episode 14: Humanizing your documentation | Mar 23, 2018

  69. Recording of API documentation workshop in Denver | Mar 12, 2018

  70. Guest post: The story behind DocToolHub, a site for finding tech comm tools | Mar 9, 2018

  71. Recording of Docs-as-code tools and workflows presentation | Mar 9, 2018

  72. Recording of STC San Francisco presentation: Beyond mere endpoint reference — the overlooked content in API documentation | Mar 8, 2018

  73. New article in Simplifying Complexity -- Ensuring information harmony in the larger documentation landscape | Mar 7, 2018

  74. Perspectives on tech comm from the VP Candidates — Q&A with Pam Brewer | Feb 20, 2018

  75. Perspectives on tech comm from the VP Candidates — Q&A with Ben Woelk | Feb 20, 2018

  76. Recording of OpenAPI and Swagger presentation (for STC and WTD San Diego) | Feb 14, 2018

  77. Two open-ended surveys to gauge practitioner/academic attitudes | Feb 6, 2018

  78. New Simplifying complexity tutorial: Discoverability through metadata | Feb 5, 2018

  79. New section on my site: Simplifying complexity | Jan 24, 2018

  80. Write the Docs Podcast episode 13: Postman for API development and docs — Interview with Postman Founder | Jan 22, 2018

  81. Recording of WTD South Bay presentation: Publishing tools for API documentation | Jan 19, 2018

  82. Unexpected realizations after a comprehensive review of my 2017 site metrics | Jan 11, 2018

  83. New STC Intercom article: How to Research What You Need to Learn to Be Successful as a Technical Writer | Jan 3, 2018

2017 archives

  1. Part VIII: Conclusion | Dec 28, 2017

  2. Part VI: Deepening documentation's value by simplifying complexity | Dec 28, 2017

  3. Part V: Influencing the content experience | Dec 28, 2017

  4. Part IV: Enabling information flow | Dec 28, 2017

  5. Part III: Determining value through usage | Dec 28, 2017

  6. Part II: Reviewing past research | Dec 28, 2017

  7. Part I: Introduction to the series | Dec 28, 2017

  9. Write the Docs Podcast episode 12: Founding ideas behind Write the Docs | Dec 14, 2017

  10. Biking down Coyote Creek Trail | Dec 10, 2017

  11. How to become a voracious reader | Dec 1, 2017

  12. Write the Docs Podcast episode 11: Exploring the Mozilla Developer Network's Web Docs project | Nov 28, 2017

  13. How do you communicate user progress in a course without a Learning Management System (LMS)? | Nov 28, 2017

  14. Case study: Switching tools to docs-as-code | Nov 21, 2017

  15. Intro to API Documentation -- recording of presentation to STC Silicon Valley chapter on 11/20/2017 | Nov 19, 2017

  16. Balancing writing, editing, and learning in equal measures | Nov 18, 2017

  17. New OpenAPI 3.0 specification tutorial in my API Course | Nov 7, 2017

  18. The Untold Story of Techwriter.pl: A Polish website about technical communication for technical writers, trainers, and translators | Oct 31, 2017

  19. Question: Which software tools should I use if my goal is to write API docs? | Oct 12, 2017

  20. Write the Docs Podcast episode 10: What's going on in our lives as documentarians and product owners | Oct 10, 2017

  21. SwaggerHub: A collaborative platform for working on OpenAPI/Swagger specification files, and more | Oct 5, 2017

  22. Convert Google Docs content to Markdown or HTML using the gd2md-html add-on | Sep 22, 2017

  23. Has plain language deepened or ruined our delight in language? | Sep 20, 2017

  24. Write the Docs Podcast episode 9: Chatbots in Documentation | Sep 19, 2017

  25. Discoveries and realizations while walking down the Docs-as-Code path | Aug 23, 2017

  26. Write the Docs Podcast episode 8: Stack Overflow's Documentation Failure and Open Source Challenges | Aug 22, 2017

  27. Why Stack Overflow's Documentation effort failed -- a few thoughts from a technical writer's perspective | Aug 5, 2017

  28. Tech docs and Agile: Alternatives to integrating into engineering Scrums (Part 2) | Aug 4, 2017

  29. Tech docs and Agile: Problems with integrating tech writers into engineering Scrums (Part 1) | Aug 4, 2017

  30. Why simple language isn't so simple: the struggle to create plain language in documentation | Jul 27, 2017

  31. When the pain of ignorance exceeds the pain of learning | Jul 23, 2017

  32. Transparency in documentation: dealing with limits about what you can and cannot say | Jul 13, 2017

  33. Write the Docs Podcast episode 7: Let The Robots Do The Work | Jul 6, 2017

  34. Circle review -- How to manage your kids' access to Internet devices | Jun 30, 2017

  35. My second-chance points strategy with documentation | Jun 25, 2017

  36. The problem with Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) in documentation | Jun 23, 2017

  37. Recording of my WTD Portland 2017 presentation on Building navigation for your doc site -- 5 best practices | Jun 8, 2017

  38. Write the Docs Podcast episode 6: Metadata and UI copy | Jun 8, 2017

  39. Limits to the idea of treating docs as code | Jun 2, 2017

  40. How big should your documentation repo be? | May 26, 2017

  41. Impressions from the Write the Docs Conference -- and thoughts on achieving sustainability without selling out to vendors | May 23, 2017

  42. Slides for Write the Docs Portland presentation on doc navigation best practices | May 14, 2017

  43. Testing your documentation -- updates in API doc course | May 4, 2017

  44. Write the Docs Podcast episode 5: Where do we belong? | May 1, 2017

  45. My Calm Meditation app -- another experiment to test my docs | Apr 27, 2017

  46. Tutorial on converting an HTML site into a Jekyll theme | Apr 13, 2017

  47. Following instructions involves learning a new language -- adventures with Tinker Crate projects | Apr 13, 2017

  48. Write the Docs Podcast app now on Fire TV, and the importance of testing your docs with sample apps | Apr 9, 2017

  49. Amazon begins pilot with voice-interactive user manuals | Apr 1, 2017

  50. Tutorials versus docs -- why you need both | Mar 30, 2017

  51. Moved my API doc site into separate repo | Mar 30, 2017

  52. Simplifying my life and writing | Mar 15, 2017

  53. Guest post -- The effects of terminology consistency on the reader's comprehension and attitude | Mar 10, 2017

  54. Crowdsourcing docs with docs-as-code tools -- same result as with wikis? | Mar 8, 2017

  55. Write the Docs Podcast Episode 4 -- Continuous Integration and Docs as Code | Mar 6, 2017

  56. Adobe FrameMaker 2017 -- time, tools, and the tech writer’s focus on content | Mar 6, 2017

  57. Upcoming 2017 Write the Docs Conference in Portland | Mar 3, 2017

  58. Guest Post -- MadCap Central: A Review for Companies Delivering Technical Communication Services | Mar 2, 2017

  59. How do you learn what you need to learn to be successful as a technical writer? | Feb 24, 2017

  60. Guest post: Design choices for organizing API reference content with other documentation | Feb 21, 2017

  61. Recording of User-Centered Design Principles for Organizing Documentation | Feb 18, 2017

  64. Simplified Technical English and HyperSTE | Jan 25, 2017

  65. Recording: Modern Technical Writing, by Andrew Etter (STC Silicon Valley chapter) | Jan 24, 2017

  66. Recording: Writing tech docs like a hacker with Jekyll | Jan 18, 2017

  68. Swagger presentation recording -- Harnessing the Chi of Swagger in your REST API documentation | Jan 17, 2017

  69. FrameMaker and the mobile web: Evaluating Adobe FrameMaker's responsive HTML5 output | Jan 16, 2017

  70. MadCap Central -- a first look at MadCap’s new cloud-based collaboration and publishing solution | Jan 16, 2017

  71. How much code do you need to know to create API developer documentation? | Jan 6, 2017

  72. Attend my upcoming TC Dojo presentation on Swagger on Jan 9, 2017 | Jan 6, 2017

  73. TC Camp in Santa Clara to be held Jan 21, 2017 | Jan 6, 2017

2016 archives

  1. Generalist versus specialist: What should you focus on with knowledge building in your tech writing role? | Dec 20, 2016

  2. Write the Docs Podcast Episode 2 (which Focuses on Findability) Now Available | Dec 18, 2016

  3. Updating a single page versus updating the documentation as a whole | Dec 14, 2016

  4. Write the Docs Podcast episode 1: New podcast from the Write the Docs community | Nov 23, 2016

  5. Recording of Open Authoring -- Collaboration Across Disciplines presentation, by Ralph Squillace | Nov 15, 2016

  6. Review of Coding for Writers course by Peter Gruenbaum on Udemy | Nov 13, 2016

  8. How to avoid becoming extinct in your technical writing career | Nov 6, 2016

  9. How to get crisp text callouts like in Apple's new Touch bar documentation -- and why you might not want to with translation projects | Nov 1, 2016

  10. Markdown or reStructuredText or DITA? Choosing the right format for tech docs | Oct 28, 2016

  11. How to tell if you're a content strategist | Oct 26, 2016

  12. Apple's Two-Step Verification versus Two-Factor Authentication, or, When Marketing's lingo makes it impossible to communicate with plain speech | Oct 25, 2016

  13. How to respond to product disasters: Analyzing Samsung's response to their exploding phones in contrast to Dyn's response to the DDoS attack | Oct 23, 2016

  14. How to deliver newsletters for your Jekyll site | Oct 23, 2016

  15. Coding the sidebar navigation element for documentation websites | Oct 23, 2016

  16. From podcasts to audio books and now back to podcasts -- experimenting with a new angle | Oct 22, 2016

  17. Saving Your Sanity Through Better Client Relations -- with Alisa Bonsignore | Oct 18, 2016

  18. My gravity towards tools | Oct 17, 2016

  19. Zooming out and in with navigation | Sep 25, 2016

  20. Kanban may be a better fit than scrum when you support large numbers of engineers | Sep 23, 2016

  21. How can technical writers thrive in agile environments? Event recording and details | Sep 20, 2016

  22. Implementing Swagger in your API documentation -- My ISTC article | Sep 8, 2016

  23. Recording of Let's Tell a Story -- Scenario-Based Documentation, by Matt Ness (STC Silicon Valley Presentation) | Sep 2, 2016

  24. Balancing the never-ending list of documentation to write with your natural interests and passions | Sep 2, 2016

  25. The variety of tools tech comm professionals use | Aug 21, 2016

  26. Presentation recording: Hunting for API developer documentation jobs in the San Francisco Bay area, by Andrew Davis | Aug 15, 2016

  27. The complexities of translation and the need for dynamic variables in the build process | Aug 15, 2016

  28. Will the docs-as-code approach scale? Responding to comments on my Review of Modern Technical Writing | Aug 1, 2016

  29. The Story of Paligo: A new browser-based CCMS with all the features you'd ever want | Aug 1, 2016

  30. Review of Andrew Etter's ebook on Modern Technical Writing | Jul 26, 2016

  31. Applying Tim Ferriss' 4-hour work week rules to tech comm projects | Jul 20, 2016

  32. Thoughts on Transforming Documentation Processes presentation at WTD: Evaluating the trend to treat documentation as code | Jul 15, 2016

  33. Context switching and efficiency -- Kanban to the rescue? | Jul 13, 2016

  34. Why Programming Sucks and the fallacy of documentation in the context of code chaos | Jul 12, 2016

  35. Thoughts on Documentation Avoidance for Programmers | Jul 9, 2016

  36. How the Solve This! meetup format turned out -- plus some unachieved parallels with the Dead Poet Society | Jun 30, 2016

  37. The difference between marketing writing and technical writing in one small sign | Jun 28, 2016

  38. A jump in Google traffic due to content quality? | Jun 23, 2016

  39. Attend the "Solve This!" Write the Docs Meetup tomorrow (June 23, 2016) | Jun 22, 2016

  40. Examples of visual communication in developer documentation with the Android Vocabulary Glossary | Jun 21, 2016

  41. My technical communication contribution to the UX Careers Handbook | Jun 21, 2016

  42. Advanced formatting with Markdown using Jekyll and Includes | Jun 6, 2016

  43. More complex user process maps in documentation systems | Jun 3, 2016

  44. Interested in working as a technical writer at Amazon? | Jun 3, 2016

  45. Examples of linear workflow user maps built with JS and CSS | May 30, 2016

  46. 8 image translation issues for tech doc — guest post by Jeanine Shepstone | May 26, 2016

  47. 11 images issues for tech doc systems — guest post by Jeanine Shepstone | May 26, 2016

  48. Presentation recording: Move Fast And ... Document Things? Lessons learned in building documentation culture at a startup, by Ruthie Bendor | May 22, 2016

  49. Recording of 'Move fast and ... document things,' by Ruthie Bendor at Write the Docs | May 22, 2016

  50. Recording of 'Two great teams that work great together: Bridging the gap between documentation and support,' by Neal Kaplan at Write the Docs | May 22, 2016

  51. Some post-STC Summit thoughts | May 20, 2016

  52. Slides for Writing Tech Docs Like a Hacker with Jekyll presentation | May 17, 2016

  53. Slides for Documenting REST APIs Workshop — 2016 STC Summit Anaheim, Calif. | May 14, 2016

  54. How do you establish more context in a topic-based writing model? | May 11, 2016

  55. Getting sharp, clear text in screen captures — and making sense of Retina displays | May 10, 2016

  56. Jekyll Conf 2016 slides and video: Overcoming Challenges in Using Jekyll for Tech Docs | May 7, 2016

  57. Creating professional looking graphics in the easiest, simplest way possible | May 5, 2016

  58. Visual communication overview | May 1, 2016

  59. Three types of knowledge every technical writer needs to be successful | Apr 27, 2016

  60. Recording of WTD presentation on Video Documentation, by Alicia Avrach | Apr 24, 2016

  61. Recording of STC-SV presentation on the Shape of a Modern Technical Communication Organization, by Sanborn Hodgkins | Apr 24, 2016

  62. Seeing things from the perspective of a learner | Apr 20, 2016

  63. Eight reasons why documentation fails for users, and what to do about it | Apr 12, 2016

  64. API documentation workshop opportunity at the STC Summit | Apr 7, 2016

  65. Lightning talks from San Francisco Write the Docs meetup | Apr 3, 2016

  66. Xeditor, a CMS editor for XML content | Mar 30, 2016

  67. REST API documentation workshop recording (STC Sacramento) | Mar 27, 2016

  68. Version 5.0 of my Documentation Theme for Jekyll now available | Mar 23, 2016

  69. Hi there – Let’s get casual… Guest post by Lavanya Krishnamurthy | Mar 21, 2016

  70. Shannon got into Stanford's MA Liberal Arts program | Mar 13, 2016

  71. Selling Girl Scout cookies | Mar 13, 2016

  72. Starting a new series on visual communication | Mar 12, 2016

  73. 10 minute podcast on API technical writing with Ryan Weber on Stitcher | Mar 12, 2016

  74. Retrospective — Looking back at the good and bad of previous experiences | Feb 27, 2016

  75. So People Don't RTFM? Write a FM That's Worth R'ing — Guest post by Marcia Riefer Johnston | Feb 24, 2016

  76. Lightweight DITA article in Technical Communication Journal | Feb 23, 2016

  77. I'm starting a new job at Amazon Lab126 | Feb 21, 2016

  78. Answering questions in James Gill's upcoming book, How to Get Started as a Technical Writer | Feb 21, 2016

  79. What is the ideal tool for developer documentation environments? | Feb 21, 2016

  80. Updating from redcarpet and Pygments to Kramdown and Rouge on Github Pages | Feb 21, 2016

  81. Why didn't WordPress take off with tech docs? | Feb 16, 2016

  82. Two upcoming API documentation events this Thursday | Feb 16, 2016

  83. Is the only way to plug into a documentation CCMS through DITA/XML? | Feb 12, 2016

  84. Three models for single source publishing — and challenges with each | Feb 11, 2016

  85. My YAML tutorial in the context of Jekyll | Feb 8, 2016

  86. The third API course from Peter Gruenbaum on Udemy | Feb 8, 2016

  87. Upcoming REST API documentation workshop in Sacramento | Feb 8, 2016

  88. New section in API documentation course: The Job Market for API technical Writers | Feb 8, 2016

  89. Challenges in documenting long JSON objects | Jan 21, 2016

  90. How to apply agile processes to manage your life's projects | Jan 21, 2016

  91. The problem with adopting bleeding-edge tools | Jan 10, 2016

  92. Spec-driven Development with RAML -- presentation by Michael Stowe to STC Silicon Valley chapter | Jan 9, 2016

  93. First video for API documentation course -- your feedback? | Jan 7, 2016

  94. Are technical writing blogs growing or dying? | Jan 5, 2016

  95. What is the technical writer's role in content marketing? | Jan 4, 2016

  96. Analyzing top posts on my blog during 2015 — Deciding between brand versus readership | Jan 1, 2016

2015 archives

  2. Recording of Creating Documentation for Startups: Panel Discussion -- Write the Docs San Francisco | Dec 22, 2015

  3. My upcoming 2016 STC Summit workshop and presentation | Dec 22, 2015

  4. How do you stay updated with changes developers are silently making? | Dec 20, 2015

  5. Those pesky authoring tool questions, and an update on my adventures with Jekyll | Dec 19, 2015

  6. Recording of Version Control, Writers, and Worfklows by Richard Mateosian | Dec 17, 2015

  7. Question: How long does it take to ramp up on your Jekyll theme? | Dec 14, 2015

  8. Swagger UI probably the coolest thing I've done in API docs | Dec 13, 2015

  9. 10 realizations as I was creating my Swagger spec and Swagger UI | Dec 10, 2015

  10. Guest Post: Could Software Perform Technical Writing? by Robert Desprez | Dec 4, 2015

  11. Single sourcing the Swagger spec and main documentation using Jekyll | Dec 3, 2015

  12. Version 4.0 released for the Jekyll Documentation Theme | Dec 3, 2015

  13. Planning my API doc course | Nov 29, 2015

  14. Upcoming Write the Docs Meetup | Nov 17, 2015

  15. My pros and cons of using Jekyll for documentation | Nov 17, 2015

  16. Can you replace a CCMS with version control such as Git or Mercurial? | Nov 6, 2015

  17. Tell me about your career as a technical writer... | Nov 4, 2015

  18. Why incremental regeneration in Jekyll 3.0 is such a big deal | Nov 4, 2015

  19. Increase efficiency 24 times faster when fixing errors — implications for technical writers on agile teams | Oct 27, 2015

  20. Podcast: Spec-driven Development of REST APIs, with a focus on RAML -- interview with Michael Stowe | Oct 12, 2015

  21. Udemy podcast (with me) and infographic on technical writing | Oct 6, 2015

  22. 5 REST API resources to add to your reading list | Oct 3, 2015

  23. Tutorial for creating interactive consoles with RAML | Oct 3, 2015

  24. Question: If you weren't a technical writer, what would you be? | Oct 2, 2015

  25. Why so little focus on API doc at tech comm conferences? | Sep 30, 2015

  26. Question: Can I earn a living blogging? | Sep 30, 2015

  27. Question: How long has your API doc course been available? | Sep 29, 2015

  28. Question: How are you publishing and delivering your docs? | Sep 29, 2015

  29. Question: How do I tell what platform people are using for API docs? | Sep 28, 2015

  30. Experimenting with a shorter post style | Sep 26, 2015

  31. Added native library API section to API doc course | Sep 26, 2015

  32. Upcoming "Ask Me Anything" (AMA) session | Sep 14, 2015

  33. Swagger tutorial for REST API documentation | Sep 14, 2015

  34. Survey analyzing skill requirements in job postings | Sep 12, 2015

  36. Editing workflows and reviews through Github's pull requests | Sep 10, 2015

  37. Comparing object-oriented design to content reuse | Sep 10, 2015

  38. How authorization works with APIs | Sep 4, 2015

  39. What is a REST API? | Aug 28, 2015

  40. Proposals for 2016 *STC Silicon Valley Chapter* presentations now accepted | Aug 27, 2015

  41. My process for creating vector diagrams with Illustrator | Aug 23, 2015

  42. Version 3.0 of my Documentation theme for Jekyll released | Aug 13, 2015

  43. Question: What qualities should technical writers have to work at startups? | Aug 12, 2015

  44. Podcast: The divide between academics and practitioners -- Interview with Lisa Meloncon | Aug 10, 2015

  45. Why is there a divide between academics and practitioners in tech comm? | Aug 5, 2015

  46. When are wikis ever successful? | Jul 30, 2015

  47. An easy way to support my site: Sign up for technical writing job alerts | Jul 30, 2015

  48. Podcast: How do design, length, and relevance affect how people use API reference docs -- interview with Bob Watson | Jul 30, 2015

  49. LearningDITA.com: A new online learning resource for DITA by Scriptorium | Jul 28, 2015

  50. How do you test content that's beyond your skill level? | Jul 28, 2015

  51. Should you add your testing scenarios into your documentation? | Jul 27, 2015

  52. Peter Gruenbaum has released part 2 of his Udemy course on API technical writing | Jul 24, 2015

  53. Survey results about the possible REST API workshop | Jul 24, 2015

  54. Is it inefficient to frequently switch contexts among multiple projects? | Jul 23, 2015

  55. Survey about possible REST API workshop — your feedback would be helpful | Jul 20, 2015

  56. Getting mobile friendly display and responsive design just right, especially with ads | Jul 17, 2015

  57. Reader question: How do I move forward out of a stagnant tech writing career? | Jul 15, 2015

  58. Should technical writers care about more than documentation? | Jul 14, 2015

  59. Build a technical writing portfolio by writing documentation for startups | Jul 10, 2015

  60. Communicating feedback from testing documentation | Jul 10, 2015

  61. Guest post: 10 New Things to Love and Hate About Flare | Jul 9, 2015

  62. Should QA test documentation? | Jul 9, 2015

  63. Listen to Ed Marsh's Content Content podcast with me as a guest | Jul 8, 2015

  64. The key to writing good documentation: Testing your instructions | Jul 7, 2015

  65. Pingdom reports with WordPress on Bluehost/MaxCDN versus with Jekyll on Github | Jul 7, 2015

  66. Three questions people ask me each week | Jul 1, 2015

  67. Slides, notes, and lessons learned at the STC Summit 2015 in Columbus, Ohio | Jun 29, 2015

  68. My upcoming workshop and presentation at the STC Summit 2015 in Columbus, Ohio | Jun 18, 2015

  69. How to avoid early death from sitting down all day | Jun 18, 2015

  70. How do you authenticate your documentation? | Jun 17, 2015

  71. My daughter published a real video game through "Girls Make Games" camp | Jun 17, 2015

  72. Check out my conversation on ContentHug | Jun 17, 2015

  73. How can technical writers cut through engineering jargon and decode complex information? | Jun 8, 2015

  74. Why no one stopped by my technical writing booth at career fair day | May 31, 2015

  75. Moved my blog from WordPress to Jekyll | May 29, 2015

  76. Integrating Documentation into engineering code and workflows | May 26, 2015

  77. API technical writing course on Udemy from Peter Gruenbaum, and some thoughts on documenting JSON | May 22, 2015

  78. Switched commenting systems to Disqus | May 17, 2015

  79. Introduction to technical writing -- slides and audio recording | May 16, 2015

  80. API Documentation presentation to East Bay STC chapter -- slides and recording | May 16, 2015

  81. How to design documentation for non-linear reading behavior | May 15, 2015

  82. Recording and slides from "Jekyll vs. DITA: Bridging the Gap Between Tech Comm and the Web" presentation | May 14, 2015

  83. User-centered documentation slides | May 14, 2015

  84. Upcoming presentation: Jekyll versus DITA: Bridging the Gap between Tech Comm and the Web | May 10, 2015

  85. New series: User-centered documentation | Apr 23, 2015

  86. Final analysis between DITA and Jekyll | Apr 15, 2015

  87. Producing PDFs in DITA versus Jekyll | Apr 14, 2015

  88. Reviewing content in DITA versus Jekyll | Apr 13, 2015

  90. Newbie to Technical Writer in 4 Easy Steps | Apr 3, 2015

  91. Building a table of contents with DITA versus Jekyll | Apr 2, 2015

  92. Creating re-usable chunks (conref) in Jekyll versus DITA | Apr 1, 2015

  93. Variables and conditional processing in Jekyll versus DITA | Mar 26, 2015

  94. Authoring with Markdown in Jekyll versus Authoring with DITA in OxygenXML | Mar 26, 2015

  95. Check out Ed Marsh's podcast, and also My New series: Jekyll versus DITA | Mar 23, 2015

  96. Some thoughts on attending tcworld India 2015 | Mar 22, 2015

  97. PDF still trumps browser-based help? | Mar 19, 2015

  98. Recording of API documentation workshop (REST and Javadoc) at tcworld India 2015 | Mar 19, 2015

  99. Recording of Innovation in Technical Communication keynote at tcworld India 2015 | Mar 18, 2015

  100. Slides for tcworld India 2015 presentations | Mar 11, 2015

  101. Reveal JS: An HTML5 alternative to PowerPoint, with support for SVG graphics | Mar 11, 2015

  102. Pushing content into any format with Jekyll | Mar 6, 2015

  103. How to create a help API | Mar 4, 2015

  104. Static site generators start to replace web publishing platforms like WordPress | Feb 27, 2015

  105. Some web tools worth using in help solutions | Feb 26, 2015

  106. Piggybacking onto the innovation of the web | Feb 24, 2015

  107. Microsoft and the last 5 great technological innovations | Feb 20, 2015

  108. Interactive video workshop in San Jose this Saturday, 1-5pm | Feb 19, 2015

  109. The genius of Github and how it can transform tech comm | Feb 18, 2015

  110. XML and the web: drifting farther apart? | Feb 13, 2015

  111. The only significant innovation for tech comm | Feb 13, 2015

  112. A long list of technical innovations semi-relevant to technical writers | Feb 12, 2015

  113. Sustaining and disruptive innovations | Feb 10, 2015

  114. Podcast: The upcoming tcworld India conference on March 12-13, with Akash Dubey | Feb 9, 2015

  115. Why do we need PDFs? | Feb 5, 2015

  116. Upcoming workshop: Creating Interactive Video Tutorials, with Bernard Aschwanden on Feb 21 | Feb 5, 2015

  117. Best practices for API documentation -- podcast with Andrya Feinberg | Feb 4, 2015

  118. Survival strategies for API documentation -- slides and recording | Feb 3, 2015

  119. Creating context-sensitive help by converting your help into a JSON API with Jekyll | Feb 1, 2015

  120. Writing is like sorting laundry -- practical advice for tackling documentation projects | Jan 29, 2015

  121. 10 reasons for moving away from DITA | Jan 28, 2015

  122. API workshop video + audio + slides + workshop files from TC Camp | Jan 27, 2015

  123. Reinventing the table of contents | Jan 26, 2015

  124. Implementing ScrollSpy with Jekyll to auto-build a table of contents | Jan 20, 2015

  125. Moving from passive to reactive documentation -- recording of presentation by Greg Koberger, ReadMe.com founder | Jan 19, 2015

  126. Most important factor in APIs is complete and accurate documentation | Jan 15, 2015

  127. API doc survey: Do engineers write API doc in the source code? | Jan 15, 2015

  128. API doc survey: How much of your doc process is automated? | Jan 15, 2015

  129. Several REST API tutorials using the EventBrite, Klout, and Flickr APIs | Jan 14, 2015

  130. Experimenting with Jekyll for tech comm | Jan 14, 2015

  131. API doc survey: Most challenging aspect of API documentation | Jan 12, 2015

  132. Jan 12 Silicon Valley STC meeting: Passive vs. reactive doc + readme.com | Jan 11, 2015

  133. Question: How do I add my DITA content in Confluence for SME review? | Jan 9, 2015

  134. Podcast: Unifying the API doc publishing toolchain, with Mark Baker | Jan 8, 2015

  135. API doc survey result: How to learn what you need to know? | Jan 7, 2015

  136. API doc survey result: How do you get the source files that contain code comments? | Jan 6, 2015

  137. API doc survey result: Automating REST API documentation | Jan 6, 2015

  138. Podcast: Automating REST API documentation, with Peter Gruenbaum | Jan 5, 2015

  139. New cost-per-click feature for advertising on I'd Rather Be Writing During 2015 | Jan 5, 2015

  140. My *real* top 10 technical writing trend predictions for 2015 | Jan 5, 2015

  141. Top 10 posts, podcasts, tweets of 2014 -- and what it all means | Jan 5, 2015

  142. API doc survey: Do you create API doc by looking at source code? | Jan 2, 2015

  143. API doc survey: What IDE do you use? | Jan 2, 2015

  144. API doc survey: Do you test out the API calls used in your doc yourself? | Jan 2, 2015

2014 archives

  1. Various Site updates: Added third column with dynamic sidebar, and more | Dec 29, 2014

  2. Question: Where are API documentation jobs for technical writers located? | Dec 24, 2014

  3. API doc survey: Authoring tools preferred by API documentation writers | Dec 24, 2014

  4. Learning how developers think, and other API doc insights: Podcast with Joe Malin | Dec 22, 2014

  5. API doc survey: The most common programming languages tech writers know | Dec 22, 2014

  7. Getting a job in API documentation: Podcast with Andrew Davis | Dec 17, 2014

  8. I need your responses to my API Documentation Survey | Dec 12, 2014

  9. Authoring tools for startups -- Guest post by Vinish Garg | Dec 11, 2014

  10. Podcast download stats kind of mind-blowing | Dec 9, 2014

  11. DITA: Glossary terms and acronyms | Dec 4, 2014

  12. Free from limitations and imaginary lines | Dec 4, 2014

  13. Convert Markdown Content to DITA in 20 seconds | Dec 3, 2014

  14. The Upcoming TC Camp Unconference and my morning API workshop | Nov 28, 2014

  15. Upcoming API Workshop with Sarah Maddox | Nov 28, 2014

  16. Tech comm on a map: See all the tech comm groups, meetups, conferences, events, and consultants on a Google map | Nov 25, 2014

  17. Dynamic content filtering with OxygenXML's webhelp output | Nov 19, 2014

  18. Add a mini-TOC to your OxygenXML webhelp topics | Nov 13, 2014

  19. Crystal Springs Reservoir ride, and other details | Nov 9, 2014

  20. Impressions from my first Write the Docs meetup | Nov 8, 2014

  21. The Evolution of Technical Writing | Nov 7, 2014

  22. Flat file systems versus database models for help | Nov 5, 2014

  23. The Author Experience -- Interview with Rick Yagodich | Nov 5, 2014

  24. Simplifying DITA authoring by using a Markdown to HTML to DITA workflow | Oct 29, 2014

  25. Celebrating Lucy and her timeline | Oct 28, 2014

  26. Santa Clara to San Carlos bike ride | Oct 26, 2014

  27. API and SDK documentation: Notes from Ed Marshall's Workshop at Information Development World | Oct 25, 2014

  28. Slides and recording for "Perfecting the audio narration in instructional video" at Info Dev World | Oct 23, 2014

  29. Upcoming presentation at #InfoDevWorld: "Perfecting the Audio Narration in Instructional Videos" | Oct 21, 2014

  30. DocOps: Interview with Jim Turcotte | Oct 21, 2014

  31. San Francisco city-to-ferry loop bicycle ride | Oct 19, 2014

  32. Biking trip to Yosemite | Oct 16, 2014

  33. API Doc presentation slides and recording (San Francisco STC chapter) | Oct 16, 2014

  34. Import DITA's XHTML Output into WordPress | Oct 14, 2014

  35. Outside the tech comm tool bubble, there is a wide, wide world | Oct 9, 2014

  36. Why developers will never adopt DITA | Sep 30, 2014

  37. Natural Bridges | Sep 28, 2014

  38. Maisie's peak and more | Sep 28, 2014

  39. Two major Confluence problems: poor content re-use and lack of wiki markup | Sep 24, 2014

  40. Using collapsible sections to bring tasks and concepts together (DITA) | Sep 22, 2014

  41. Foreword to Developing User Assistance for Mobile Apps, 2nd Edition | Sep 19, 2014

  42. Adding code comments through a sliding jQuery Sidr panel (DITA) | Sep 16, 2014

  43. STC Intercom Issue Entirely Dedicated to API Documentation | Sep 10, 2014

  44. Using WordPress natively for single source publishing and conditional content | Sep 8, 2014

  45. Upcoming presentation in downtown San Francisco: Publishing strategies for API documentation | Sep 2, 2014

  46. Challenges in using WordPress for publishing DITA content | Sep 2, 2014

  47. Thirteen life hacks | Sep 1, 2014

  48. Author in DITA, publish with WordPress | Aug 19, 2014

  49. Woes of conditional text and topichead elements (DITA best practices) | Aug 10, 2014

  50. Benefits of tool diversity, part II | Aug 7, 2014

  51. Is tool fragmentation in tech comm a good thing? | Aug 5, 2014

  52. Reviewing draft DITA content with subject matter experts: 6 essential points | Jul 31, 2014

  53. My DITA quick reference guide (QRG) | Jul 30, 2014

  54. Book Review: The Goldfinch, by Donna Tartt | Jul 27, 2014

  55. Writing documentation in an interactive world: Some thoughts on using easyDITA and OxygenXML | Jul 25, 2014

  56. The part of the brain you should listen to when writing | Jul 16, 2014

  57. Content Re-use is so much better with DITA (and esp. with OxygenXML) | Jun 29, 2014

  58. Strategies for content re-use in Confluence | Jun 24, 2014

  59. 10 technical writing principles to live by | Jun 20, 2014

  60. Information Development World and the Customer Experience -- A Podcast with Scott Abel and Val Swisher | Jun 18, 2014

  61. Introduction to API documentation: Interview with Scot Marvin | Jun 16, 2014

  62. Started a new job | Jun 12, 2014

  63. Lessons learned as a novice API technical writer -- Interview with Mary Linderman (podcast) | Jun 8, 2014

  64. The future of tech comm is developer doc | Jun 3, 2014

  65. Creating code samples for API/SDK documentation (webinar recording, slides, and audio) | May 30, 2014

  66. How to embed looping videos on your web page | May 18, 2014

  67. My Intercom article on gamification and user engagement | May 18, 2014

  68. Recording of my STC Sacramento presentation -- Why users can't find answers in help material | May 18, 2014

  69. What does DITA-structured help look like? | May 15, 2014

  70. Complex tools versus simple tools | May 10, 2014

  71. Upcoming webinar: Creating code samples for API/SDK documentation | May 9, 2014

  72. DITA: Nested subheadings and the concept element | May 8, 2014

  73. DITA: Limitations with the chunk="to-content" attribute in relationship tables | May 2, 2014

  75. DITA: Why DITA, metadata, working in code and author views, and relationship tables | Apr 25, 2014

  76. DITA: Folder hierarchy, conref, mapref, and more | Apr 22, 2014

  77. My DITA journey begins | Apr 16, 2014

  78. The need for robust tech comm authoring tools | Apr 13, 2014

  80. STC Chapter provides lavish "all expenses paid" outing to San Diego zoo for members | Apr 1, 2014

  81. Now that debts are paid off, plan to travel the world for a year, documenting things | Apr 1, 2014

  82. Dita Von Teese to give keynote at DITA North America 2014 Conference | Apr 1, 2014

  83. New hot coals event to be highlight at Lavacon conference | Apr 1, 2014

  84. The Content Wrangler Announces New 52 Mini-Conference Model | Apr 1, 2014

  85. Using metadata to control online navigation through portlets | Mar 27, 2014

  86. Writing skills versus technical skills, or, What I realized in solving a Sudoku puzzle | Mar 19, 2014

  87. soap! A new conference for technical writers in Poland | Mar 18, 2014

  88. Two months after leaving the church -- an update | Mar 16, 2014

  89. Do I need to take courses in technical writing? Guest post by Laura Palmer | Mar 7, 2014

  90. Videos and reflections from the 2014 Intelligent Content Conference | Mar 3, 2014

  91. Tobi Crabtree on Virtual Agents (Intelligent Content 2014) | Mar 3, 2014

  92. Val Swisher on Translation Without Borders at Intelligent Content 2014 | Mar 3, 2014

  93. Noz Urbina on The Biological Imperative for Intelligent Content (Intelligent Content 2014) | Mar 3, 2014

  94. Mark Baker on Every Page Is Page One (Intelligent Content 2014) | Mar 3, 2014

  95. Rahel Bailie on the Language of Content Strategy (Intelligent Content 2014) | Mar 3, 2014

  96. Don Day on Connecting Intelligent Content with Micropublishing (Intelligent Content 2014) | Mar 3, 2014

  97. Theresa Putkey on Diagnosing and Solving Content Problems (Intelligent Content 2014) | Mar 3, 2014

  98. Kyle Wiens on gamification and iFixit / Dozuki at Intelligent Content 2014 | Mar 3, 2014

  99. Sarah O'Keefe on The Many Facets of Content Strategy (Intelligent Content 2014) | Mar 3, 2014

  100. Marcia Riefer Johnston on Writing (Intelligent Content 2014) | Mar 3, 2014

  101. Tom Johnson on Blogging (Intelligent Content 2014) | Mar 3, 2014

  102. Writers needed for Intercom issue on API documentation | Feb 26, 2014

  103. A simple way to write, edit, and publish documentation online using Google Docs and Markdown | Feb 25, 2014

  104. How can we know something that is totally unfamiliar to us? | Feb 20, 2014

  105. An argument for complexity rather than simplicity in technical communication | Feb 7, 2014

  106. Gamification and user engagement in e-learning and documentation | Feb 4, 2014

  107. Will structure and style make documentation processes less costly? | Jan 26, 2014

  109. Upcoming interviews at the Intelligent Content Conference | Jan 16, 2014

  110. Why I left the Mormon church | Jan 16, 2014

  111. Single-page docs versus "Click Insanity" | Jan 12, 2014

  112. Upcoming presentation to Sacramento STC Chapter on Jan 16 | Jan 12, 2014

  113. Tips for writing code comments in developer documentation | Jan 11, 2014

  114. Recording of STC Berkeley presentation on why users can't find answers in help | Jan 8, 2014

  115. DITA's output does not require separation of tasks from concepts | Jan 5, 2014

  116. The appeal of DITA | Jan 4, 2014

  117. Upcoming API Workshop in San Jose on Feb 8, 2014 | Jan 1, 2014

2013 archives

  1. How to lose weight without starving yourself | Dec 31, 2013

  2. WordPress tip: Create a series of posts | Dec 29, 2013

  3. Researching the right keywords (search engine optimization) | Dec 23, 2013

  4. Get a technical writing internship or on-the-job experience without having much time for it | Dec 18, 2013

  5. My Christmas wishlist on Techwhirl | Dec 18, 2013

  6. Single sourcing and duplicate content (search engine optimization) | Dec 16, 2013

  7. Introduction, frames, iframes, and tech comm tools (search engine optimization) | Dec 13, 2013

  8. Collapsible header sections -- more problematic than helpful | Dec 11, 2013

  9. TC Camp Unconference in San Jose, Calif. on January 25, 2014 | Dec 10, 2013

  10. Making website banner ads more visible | Dec 5, 2013

  11. Is Atlassian Marginalizing Confluence Power Users? Guest Post by Steve Goldberg | Dec 3, 2013

  12. A bucket list for a career in tech comm? | Nov 26, 2013

  13. Questions from readers: How to organize reviews, and whether a dedicated editor is worthwhile | Nov 21, 2013

  14. A few things tech writers frequently say: Videos tedious, topics best when short, people just use Google, and more | Nov 19, 2013

  15. The Bug Badge | Nov 17, 2013

  16. Balancing new and familiar: Avoiding the Groundhog day syndrome | Nov 7, 2013

  17. Imperfect content and the difficulty of writing video scripts | Nov 4, 2013

  18. Everything I needed to know about technical writing I learned in preschool... | Oct 30, 2013

  19. Recording and slides for "Why users can't find answers in help" presentation to STC Silicon Valley | Oct 23, 2013

  20. What to do with old manuals from products you own | Oct 8, 2013

  21. My Upcoming Presentation at the STC Silicon Valley Chapter -- "Why Users Can't Find Answers to Their Questions in Help Content" | Oct 5, 2013

  22. Learning How to Communicate Visually in Documentation | Oct 3, 2013

  23. How to Search Engine Optimize (SEO) Your Help Documentation | Sep 22, 2013

  24. Narrative Workflow Topics: Helping Users Connect the Dots Among Topics | Sep 12, 2013

  25. Reader Question: How do I create online help, how to guides, quick start tutorials, or video tutorials? | Sep 11, 2013

  26. Recommended Article: APIs are delivering on their promise (SD Times: Software Development News) | Sep 10, 2013

  27. Creating Good Content Requires Cross-Department Collaboration | Sep 6, 2013

  28. Sticking with Obvious Information Versus Creating Information that Users Need | Sep 4, 2013

  29. Subheadings: Perhaps the Most Useful Technique in Technical Writing | Aug 23, 2013

  30. Examples Are a Primary Way That Complicated Concepts Become Clear | Aug 20, 2013

  31. Interactive Poll: Why Can't Users Find Answers to Their Questions in Help? | Aug 15, 2013

  32. Why I Test Nearly Everything | Aug 8, 2013

  33. When Organizing Big Data Content, It's Okay To Be Messy | Aug 7, 2013

  34. 7 Ways to Learn Difficult Subjects in Order to Write Useful Content | Aug 1, 2013

  35. Turning Around the Disdain for Help by Focusing on Content | Jul 18, 2013

  36. Messages from Sponsors -- July 2013 | Jul 16, 2013

  37. Sample Chapter from Word Up! How to Write Powerful Sentences and Paragraphs, by Marcia Riefer Johnston | Jul 12, 2013

  38. Finding a Starting Point: Answering Questions or Addressing Purpose? | Jul 10, 2013

  39. Abandoning the Social Network and Q&A Idea | Jun 29, 2013

  40. How do you answer every user's question? | Jun 28, 2013

  41. What Have Been My Most Successful Experiences in Connecting Help Material with Users? | Jun 26, 2013

  42. Notes from Future of Technical Communication Webinar | Jun 25, 2013

  43. Recording of "Video Tutorials for User Assistance" (UA Europe Presentation) | Jun 24, 2013

  44. Recording of "Making Content More Findable When Users Browse and Search" (UA Europe Presentation) | Jun 24, 2013

  45. Do We Need a New Approach to Help? Why Are Users So Apathetic Towards Help after 50 Years of Innovation? | Jun 18, 2013

  46. How Things Will Be in Tech Comm … After the Singularity? | Jun 15, 2013

  47. Version 2.0 of I'd Rather Be Writing -- More Community Driven | Jun 10, 2013

  48. Structured Authoring By For And Or Nor With In the Web | Jun 8, 2013

  49. Reader Question: How Do I Restrict Content by Role in the Same Output? | Jun 6, 2013

  50. Exploring Markdown in Collaborative Authoring to Publishing Workflows | Jun 4, 2013

  51. Can Help Content Have Recognizable Facets? | May 29, 2013

  52. Faceted Search and Query Reformulation | May 28, 2013

  53. On Metadata and Help Content | May 27, 2013

  54. Moving Beyond the TOC in Organizing Help Content -- Illustrated Edition | May 22, 2013

  55. What Does Content Re-Use Look Like in a Web CMS? | May 17, 2013

  56. Is Structured Authoring (like DITA) a Good Fit for Publishing on a Website? | May 14, 2013

  57. Why Long Topics Are Better for the User | May 6, 2013

  58. Do Short Topics Make Information More Findable? | May 5, 2013

  59. Does Merging Support Content with Documentation Increase Findability? | May 1, 2013

  60. What makes Basketball Fun? Gamifying Exercise | May 1, 2013

  61. Does DITA Encourage Authors to Fragment Information into a Million Little Pieces? | Apr 22, 2013

  62. How Do You Teach New Users Programming? | Apr 19, 2013

  63. How Can a Technical Writer Develop a Love of Programming Code? | Apr 18, 2013

  64. How Do You Gamify Writing? | Apr 17, 2013

  65. Why Do People Rank High on the MindTouch #Techcomm Influencer Report? | Apr 11, 2013

  66. Why Does Content Become Disorganized? | Apr 9, 2013

  67. Adding Syntax Highlighting to Code Examples Online and in Microsoft Word | Apr 4, 2013

  68. Sample Expand and Collapse Code with Twisting Buttons | Mar 31, 2013

  69. Evaluating the Usability of Collapsible Sections (or jQuery's Content Toggle) | Mar 25, 2013

  70. Avoiding Quadrant Four | Mar 24, 2013

  71. How to Organize Page-Level Content | Mar 16, 2013

  72. Gamifying Chores | Mar 11, 2013

  73. What I Learned in Searching for a Job | Mar 3, 2013

  74. Moving to California and Starting a New Job | Feb 15, 2013

  75. Two Competing Help Models: One-Stop Shopping or Specialized Stores? | Feb 13, 2013

  76. Single Sourcing and Redundancy | Feb 2, 2013

  77. How to Get Programmers to Change User Interfaces | Jan 26, 2013

  78. Four Less Common Types of Technical Writers Companies Are Looking For | Jan 24, 2013

  79. Import DITA Webhelp Output into WordPress | Jan 21, 2013

  80. Single Sourcing Screen Captures to Print, Online, and Mobile Using Flare and Capture | Jan 20, 2013

  81. Looking at Search Analytics to Improve Help Content | Jan 19, 2013

  82. Top 10 Most Frequently Asked Questions about Technical Writing | Jan 17, 2013

  83. Connection Points with the Tech Comm Role | Jan 14, 2013

  84. Girl Scouts Painting and Comic Art Badges | Jan 13, 2013

  85. Discovering Girl Scouts | Jan 13, 2013

  86. Create a Child Theme to Customize a WordPress Theme | Jan 10, 2013

  87. Message from Sponsors — January 2013 | Jan 7, 2013

2012 archives

  1. Reader Question: "My Wish List for Technical Writing Tools" | Dec 31, 2012

  2. Moving Between the Agora and the Desert | Dec 16, 2012

  3. 7 Ways to Increase Flare's Search Engine Optimization in Google's Results | Dec 15, 2012

  4. Knowledge Has a New Shape, and It's Not the Book | Dec 12, 2012

  5. Podcast: Include It All, Filter It Afterwards -- Interview with Mark Baker | Dec 11, 2012

  6. The Rebirth of My Podcast | Dec 11, 2012

  7. My Upcoming Presentations at User Assistance Europe in Manchester, England | Dec 8, 2012

  8. A Few Notes from Too Big To Know | Dec 6, 2012

  9. What Does "Every Page Is Page One" and "Include It All, Filter It Afterward" Mean? | Dec 4, 2012

  10. Five Ways to Avoid the "Congratulations" Cliche as You Start a User's Guide | Nov 29, 2012

  11. Book Review: Your Brain at Work, by David Rock | Nov 27, 2012

  12. Incorporating Learning into Tech Comm Deliverables | Nov 26, 2012

  13. Implementing Highlighting in Madcap Flare's HTML5 Output | Nov 25, 2012

  14. Creating Video Tutorials for Android and iPhone Mobile Apps | Nov 20, 2012

  15. Exploring Flare's Mobile Webhelp Format in Depth | Nov 11, 2012

  16. Retina Display and Screen Capture Sizes in Online Help | Nov 10, 2012

  17. 10 Realizations While Writing Documentation for a Mobile App | Nov 8, 2012

  18. Staying Out of Maintenance Mode | Oct 29, 2012

  19. Writing in the Trenches Versus Writing on the Sidelines | Oct 27, 2012

  20. Upcoming STC Editing SIG Webinar: Writing and Editing Scripts for Video Tutorials | Oct 27, 2012

  21. Halloween Human Organ Donation Station | Oct 27, 2012

  22. Company Strategies for Blog Content That Avoids Controversy | Oct 22, 2012

  23. PowerPoint Slides from Lavacon Presentation on Producing Professional Sounding Audio in Video Tutorials | Oct 17, 2012

  24. The Double-Edged Sword of Hiding Controversial Information | Oct 16, 2012

  25. Podcast on Technical Writing | Oct 15, 2012

  26. Professional Technical Writing Careers -- Answers to Questions, by Cheryl Landes | Oct 15, 2012

  27. Book Review: No Easy Day | Oct 12, 2012

  28. Specializing in the Next Big Thing: A Few Lingering Thoughts from Lavacon | Oct 11, 2012

  29. Professional Technical Writing Careers -- Questions and Answers, by Steve Goldberg | Oct 7, 2012

  30. Exploring the Tech Comm Paradox | Oct 1, 2012

  31. How to Create Video Tutorials -- A Five Step Process | Sep 27, 2012

  32. How to Change the World | Sep 24, 2012

  33. Incorporating Elements of Speech into Writing | Sep 18, 2012

  34. Keeping Scripts Fluid When Recording Video Tutorials | Sep 17, 2012

  35. Why Isn't Spoken Language Easier for Writers? | Sep 15, 2012

  36. Bringing the Scientific Mind to Tech Comm | Sep 11, 2012

  38. Comparing Zumba to Technical Writing | Sep 5, 2012

  39. First Day of School | Sep 2, 2012

  40. The Blame Game of RTFM | Aug 30, 2012

  41. Blending Tech Comm with Support | Aug 26, 2012

  42. Messages from Sponsors -- August 2012 | Aug 22, 2012

  43. Summer Is Over, School Begins Again | Aug 20, 2012

  44. Guest Post: Core Skills for Technical Writers Often Overlooked | Aug 16, 2012

  45. Using the Proximity Principle to Design Online Help Navigation | Aug 13, 2012

  46. Why Glossaries Help Users Find Information | Aug 9, 2012

  47. This Theme Is Now Responsive | Aug 9, 2012

  48. Applying Progressive Information Disclosure to Online Help Navigation | Aug 9, 2012

  49. Misconceptions about Topic-Based Authoring | Jul 31, 2012

  50. The Importance of Contextual Navigation, or Cross References in Topics | Jul 23, 2012

  51. Unconscious Meaning Suggested from the Structure and Shape of Help | Jul 18, 2012

  52. Why Do We Need Navigation At All? | Jul 12, 2012

  53. Writing as a Holy Calling | Jul 9, 2012

  54. Taxonomy, Metadata, and Search: Notes from Seth Earley's Confab Workshop | Jun 25, 2012

  55. Returning to Findability | Jun 25, 2012

  56. How Can Newbies Learn Tech Comm Tools Given Their Cost? | Jun 21, 2012

  57. Writing User-Centered Documentation, or, My Best Days as a Technical Writer | Jun 21, 2012

  58. Turning Point (Wikis) | Jun 17, 2012

  59. Writing Is Harder Than Most Think (Wikis) | Jun 16, 2012

  60. A Guiding Metaphor (Wikis) | Jun 15, 2012

  61. Community and Collaboration (Wikis) | Jun 14, 2012

  62. Some Wiki Basics (Wikis) | Jun 13, 2012

  63. Is Collaborative Authoring Over-Hyped? | Jun 12, 2012

  64. The Need for Constant Updates (Wikis) | Jun 12, 2012

  65. My Journey To and From Wikis: Why I Adopted Wikis, Why I Veered Away, and a New Model | Jun 11, 2012

  66. Upcoming STC Webinar: Creating Help in a Wiki Environment | Jun 5, 2012

  67. An Ingenious Way to Solicit Community Contributions, or, How to Replace the Screen for an Asus Laptop UL50AG | Jun 1, 2012

  68. Content Strategy Workshops: Interview with Rahel Bailie | May 25, 2012

  69. When Wikis Succeed and Fail | May 23, 2012

  70. Confab 2012: Thoughts and Reactions | May 19, 2012

  71. 15 Tips for a Successful Conference Experience | May 18, 2012

  72. How Character Drives Story -- Book Review of Ann Patchett's State of Wonder | May 14, 2012

  73. Q&A: What should my major be for a career in technical writing? | May 12, 2012

  74. Trying New Things, Changing Interests | May 9, 2012

  75. Book Review: Mistborn, by Brandon Sanderson | May 8, 2012

  76. Stuck in a system | May 7, 2012

  77. Asking questions is more important than finding answers -- why? | Apr 27, 2012

  78. Differences between blogs and wikis, and why you might need both | Apr 19, 2012

  79. Leveraging the wisdom of the 80/20 rule: Focusing on content that matters | Apr 17, 2012

  80. A Love Affair with Grapefruit | Apr 15, 2012

  81. Guest Post: Why I Love Wikis | Apr 14, 2012

  82. Finally Biking to Work | Apr 11, 2012

  83. Subpage Titles on Wikis -- Challenges, Conventions, and Compromises | Mar 22, 2012

  84. Guest Post: Wikis Are the Future of Technical Documentation | Mar 20, 2012

  85. Guest Post: A Week in My Life as a Technical Writer (with some humor) | Mar 17, 2012

  86. Guest Post: Is Technical Writing Creative? | Mar 14, 2012

  87. Thinking About a Social Media Strategy: A Few Elements to Consider | Mar 8, 2012

  88. Technical Communication Metrics: What Should You Track? | Mar 2, 2012

  89. Conferences I'm Attending This Year | Feb 28, 2012

  90. Why don't technical writers use wikis — or do they? | Feb 24, 2012

  91. Incensed at "Laid-back" Categorization of Technical Writing Career | Feb 24, 2012

  92. Why I Love Audible | Feb 21, 2012

  93. My New Email Strategy: The Email Game and ActiveInbox | Feb 20, 2012

  94. Webinar Recording: Designing Quick Reference Guides | Feb 18, 2012

  95. Webinar Recording -- Organizing Help Content: Breaking Out of Topic-Based Hierarchies | Feb 18, 2012

  96. Looking at The Peter Principle, Dilbert Principle, and Parkinson's Law | Feb 15, 2012

  97. On Being an Individual Contributor | Feb 10, 2012

  98. A Life of Its Own: An Essay About an Article That Was Never Published | Feb 8, 2012

  99. A Reverse Approach to Help Authoring: Writing Documentation Post-Release | Feb 2, 2012

  100. Brainstorming Solutions to Volunteer Management/Engagement | Feb 1, 2012

  101. Messages from Sponsors -- January 2012 | Jan 30, 2012

  102. STC Certification: An In-Depth Interview with Steve Jong | Jan 26, 2012

  103. Interview with Ugur Akinci about Technical Communication | Jan 23, 2012

  104. Upcoming Webinar: Designing Quick Reference Guides | Jan 23, 2012

  105. Graduate Research Findings about Technical Communication and Blogs in the Workplace | Jan 22, 2012

  106. Using JIRA to Track Writing Assignments | Jan 18, 2012

  107. A Lifetime of Reading Versus a Lifetime of Writing | Jan 13, 2012

  108. The "Home Depot Model" of Findability, or, Social Search | Jan 10, 2012

  109. Looking at Breadcrumbs in a New Way | Jan 5, 2012

2011 archives

  1. What I Learned About Tech Comm During 2011 | Dec 28, 2011

  2. The Urge to Correct: Frustrations with Language Translation and Misuse | Dec 27, 2011

  3. Using Tags to Increase Findability | Dec 26, 2011

  4. What Tools Do Technical Writers Use | Dec 19, 2011

  5. Kanban and Limiting the Scope of Work | Dec 18, 2011

  6. Matrix Foretells Future of Learning | Dec 15, 2011

  7. What I Like About Grandpa | Dec 14, 2011

  8. Grandpa Reading Runaway Bunny | Dec 14, 2011

  9. Buffalo on Antelope Island | Dec 14, 2011

  10. Hanging Out at Home | Dec 14, 2011

  11. Sitting Around at Home | Dec 14, 2011

  12. Kids Singing | Dec 14, 2011

  13. Misleading Documentation Metrics | Dec 14, 2011

  14. Writing My Last Chapter | Dec 13, 2011

  15. Counting Calories | Dec 11, 2011

  16. How Avery Got Earrings | Dec 11, 2011

  17. Grandma Nana Comes to Visit | Dec 11, 2011

  18. We Moved Downstairs | Dec 11, 2011

  19. King Size Bed Fits Four | Dec 11, 2011

  20. Some Thoughts on Technical Writing in the Cloud | Dec 9, 2011

  21. Slides from STC Webinar on Organizing Content (Findability) | Dec 5, 2011

  22. My STC Webinar on Organizing Content -- This Thursday at 4pm EST | Nov 30, 2011

  23. Regret Over a Missed Career in Astronomy | Nov 27, 2011

  24. Discovering Antelope Island | Nov 27, 2011

  25. Reading Mistborn | Nov 27, 2011

  26. Cooking Tamales | Nov 27, 2011

  27. Wiki Culture, Reader/Writer Distinctions, and Divergence from Structured Authoring | Nov 19, 2011

  28. Should Technical Writing Be Taught in High School? (Collaborative Post) | Nov 19, 2011

  29. Why I Returned to Wikis for Help Authoring | Nov 14, 2011

  30. Messages from My Tech Comm Sponsors -- November 2011 | Nov 11, 2011

  31. Survey about Technical Writers and Blogging Activities | Nov 11, 2011

  32. Senior Technical Writer Job Opening at the LDS Church | Nov 8, 2011

  33. Moving Towards the "Dark Side": From Technical Writing to Content Marketing | Nov 7, 2011

  34. Managing 60 + Volunteer Writers | Nov 6, 2011

  35. Using Treejack as a Method for Evaluating Your Help's Navigation | Nov 2, 2011

  36. The Importance of a Personal Face -- On Halloween | Nov 1, 2011

  37. Blog Versus Web Log: Back to Origins | Oct 31, 2011

  38. Adding Captions to Youtube Videos | Oct 24, 2011

  39. Building Trust in a Corporate Blog | Oct 21, 2011

  40. The Conference Proposal I Didn't Submit | Oct 19, 2011

  41. Customizing the "No Results Found" Page with Helpful Wayfinding Tips | Oct 17, 2011

  42. Appearing on The Forge Show from TechSmith Today at 2pm EST | Oct 13, 2011

  43. Visual Storytelling Guides: A New Deliverable in Technical Communication? | Oct 12, 2011

  44. Visually Appealing Documents Combine Text with Images | Oct 10, 2011

  45. Why Rubrics Fail as a Means of Measuring Documentation Quality | Oct 5, 2011

  46. What I've Learned from Lunchtime Creative Writing Workshops | Sep 30, 2011

  47. How I Took Back My E-mail Inbox | Sep 29, 2011

  48. Recordings of Fathers Blessings | Sep 27, 2011

  49. The Proximity Problem for Technical Writers | Sep 23, 2011

  50. Book Review: The Hunger Games, and a Possible Parallel for Technical Writers | Sep 21, 2011

  51. Should You Get a Graduate Degree in Technical Writing? | Sep 19, 2011

  52. Collaborative Post: Why Is the "Technical" More Important Than the "Writing" | Sep 18, 2011

  53. What Does It Mean to Know How to Write? | Sep 9, 2011

  54. My Review of the New Testament | Sep 8, 2011

  55. Three Solutions to the Corporate Blogging Paradox | Sep 2, 2011

  56. Book Review: The Lonely Polygamist, by Brady Udall | Aug 31, 2011

  57. Interview with Kevin Cuddihy, Editor of the STC Notebook Blog | Aug 23, 2011

  58. Stewart Falls: One Last Outing Before Summer Ends | Aug 21, 2011

  59. How Swimming Has Changed | Aug 19, 2011

  60. Blown Away by Author-it Aspect | Aug 18, 2011

  61. Storm Returns Home | Aug 18, 2011

  62. The Big Hill | Aug 17, 2011

  63. Book Review: A Practical Guide to Designing with Data, by Brian Suda | Aug 16, 2011

  64. Windy Night and a Stray Cat | Aug 14, 2011

  65. Messages from Sponsors -- August 2011 | Aug 12, 2011

  66. My Problem with Fiction, and How I Tried to Resolve It | Aug 11, 2011

  67. Sidewalk Chalk at Thanksgiving Point Gardens | Aug 9, 2011

  68. Familiarity Affects Preferences for Text or Video | Aug 8, 2011

  69. Guest Post: CMS UX Woes. It Shouldn't Be This Hard. | Aug 4, 2011

  70. Book Review: Developing User Assistance for Mobile Apps, by Joe Welinske | Aug 2, 2011

  71. Swimming at the Lehi Legacy Center | Jul 31, 2011

  72. Thanksgiving Point Gardens Outing | Jul 26, 2011

  73. Thinking More About Family | Jul 25, 2011

  74. Our Spring View Farms Trail Adventure | Jul 24, 2011

  75. Up and Down Directions | Jul 24, 2011

  76. A Few Notes from Usability Testing: Video Tutorials Get Watched, Text Gets Skipped | Jul 22, 2011

  77. Google Plus as a Professional Communication Tool | Jul 18, 2011

  78. Collaborative Post: Giving Guidance to a Masters Student about Technical Writing Careers | Jul 14, 2011

  79. Building on Past Successes for Future Directions | Jul 13, 2011

  80. Groupon's Copywriting Style | Jul 10, 2011

  81. On Content Strategy and Identity | Jul 1, 2011

  82. "One Day I'm Going to Figure Out the Solution to Help..." | Jun 28, 2011

  83. I want to be a spy .... | Jun 26, 2011

  84. The Most Important Stories ... Aren't the Ones I'm Writing | Jun 25, 2011

  85. The Value of Content | Jun 24, 2011

  86. On Prayer | Jun 22, 2011

  87. Why Is Corporate Blogging So Hard? | Jun 21, 2011

  88. On telling real stories | Jun 21, 2011

  89. Presentations Versus Conversations | Jun 17, 2011

  90. Technical Writing in China | Jun 15, 2011

  91. MindTouch Webinar — Organizing Help Content: The Problem of Findability | Jun 9, 2011

  92. Diverging Directions for Tech Comm: Social Media or Structured Authoring | Jun 9, 2011

  93. Does Translation Mean You Should Omit Illustrations? | Jun 7, 2011

  94. Message from Sponsors -- June 3, 2011 | Jun 3, 2011

  95. Join the LDSTech Blog Project and Write Articles for Your Portfolio | Jun 2, 2011

  96. Making Up Stories | May 30, 2011

  97. The Moment | May 30, 2011

  98. Where Topic-Based Authoring Fails: End-to-End Scenarios | May 25, 2011

  99. What Does It Mean to Be Innovative? | May 24, 2011

  100. Moving from Google Reader to Twitter Hashtags | May 21, 2011

  101. Podcast: Organizing Help Content: Breaking Out of Topic-based Hierarchies | May 18, 2011

  102. Every Page Is Page One | May 16, 2011

  103. WordPress Workshop Outline for the STC Summit | May 15, 2011

  104. Examples of Help Systems that Provide Users with Multiple Entry Points? | May 13, 2011

  105. Will We Still Know Us, Tomorrow? | May 10, 2011

  106. Mooer's Law and Findability | May 9, 2011

  107. Avoiding Burnout as a Technical Writer [Collaborative Post] | May 6, 2011

  108. Messages from Sponsors -- May 4, 2011 | May 4, 2011

  109. Collaborative Posts Q&A | May 4, 2011

  110. A Paradox of Navigation Metaphors for the Web | May 2, 2011

  111. The Butterfly Paths | May 2, 2011

  112. Saratoga Hot Springs | May 1, 2011

  113. Content Strategy for Content Agility | Apr 30, 2011

  114. Predicting Tech Comm's Future for Mobile | Apr 29, 2011

  115. Cedar Fort cemetery | Apr 28, 2011

  116. Introducing Technical Writing World, a New Social Network for Technical Writers | Apr 28, 2011

  117. Topic Chunking and The Broken Alarm Clock | Apr 27, 2011

  118. The Importance of Chunking for Sorting | Apr 18, 2011

  119. Guest Post: To each their own | Apr 16, 2011

  120. Book Review: Everything is Miscellaneous, by David Weinberger | Apr 15, 2011

  121. Book Review: Letting Go of the Words, by Ginny Redish | Apr 8, 2011

  122. Getting Others to Work for You -- The First Step Toward Scalability | Apr 7, 2011

  123. Messages from My Sponsors -- April 6, 2011 | Apr 6, 2011

  124. Podcast: Content Strategy and Agility, with Noz Urbina | Apr 5, 2011

  125. How to Become a Content Strategist [Collaborative Post] | Apr 1, 2011

  126. Book Review: Elements of Content Strategy, by Erin Kissane | Mar 29, 2011

  127. Book Review: Search Patterns, by Peter Morville and Jeffrey Callender | Mar 28, 2011

  128. New Content Strategy Podcast and Other Good Resources | Mar 25, 2011

  129. Seven Methods of Classification in a Hymnbook | Mar 24, 2011

  130. Organizing Help Content: Breaking Out of Topic-Based Hierarchies | Mar 21, 2011

  131. Podcast: A Practical Guide to Information Architecture, with Donna Spencer | Mar 18, 2011

  132. Arguments for and Against Tripane Help | Mar 17, 2011

  133. Podcast -- Visual Composing: Document Design for Print and Digital Media, with Jo Mackiewicz | Mar 14, 2011

  134. The Real Source of Findability | Mar 10, 2011

  135. Update on the Search for Enterprise Authoring | Mar 8, 2011

  136. Podcast with Alan Houser -- Candidate for STC Vice President | Mar 7, 2011

  137. Podcast with Victoria Koster-Lenhardt -- Candidate for STC Vice President | Mar 7, 2011

  138. Lots of Conferences Taking Place | Mar 4, 2011

  140. Post-Publishing Word Count Can Be Three Times as Long | Feb 25, 2011

  141. I am perhaps finishing my basement, someday | Feb 23, 2011

  142. WordPress Tips: Alternatives to Akismet, Design Software, and Dummy Content | Feb 22, 2011

  143. The Enterprise Help Authoring Problem | Feb 16, 2011

  144. "Powerful as a consumer, lame as an employee" | Feb 15, 2011

  145. Formalizing My Help Strategy | Feb 8, 2011

  146. The Problem of Free and the Long Tail of Content Production | Feb 7, 2011

  147. From DITA to VITA: Tracing Origins and Projecting the Future | Feb 2, 2011

  148. Making Help Content Enjoyable to Read -- Impossible Quest? | Jan 25, 2011

  149. Free Ticket to Intelligent Content 2011 Conference | Jan 24, 2011

  150. Less Text, Please: Contemporary Reading Behaviors and Short Formats | Jan 21, 2011

  151. Minimalistic Callouts Heighten Visual Appeal | Jan 17, 2011

  152. WordPress Tip: Add a Calendar to Your WordPress Site | Jan 14, 2011

  153. Findability and The Information Paradox | Jan 12, 2011

  154. *Don't know how you do it all*: Some Thoughts on Productivity | Jan 11, 2011

  155. Structured Authoring Survey from Scriptorium | Jan 10, 2011

  156. Are Certificate Programs Helpful for Transitioning into Technical Writing? [Collaborative Post] | Jan 6, 2011

  157. My Review of the Old Testament (really) | Jan 5, 2011

2010 archives

  1. Martin Luther and Technical Communication | Dec 29, 2010

  2. Technical Writing – Making Resolutions for the New Year | Dec 27, 2010

  3. When Your WordPress Upgrade Fails | Dec 26, 2010

  4. Screencasting Tip: Self-Dub the Audio | Dec 26, 2010

  5. Participatory Economics: Are Companies Budgeting for Social Media? | Dec 23, 2010

  6. Why I'm So Visible | Dec 22, 2010

  7. Content Curation versus Content Creation | Dec 22, 2010

  9. Give the Perfect Gift this Season: A Laminated Quick Reference Guide | Dec 20, 2010

  10. "Known Limitations": Making the Negative Space of Help Content a Little More Explicit | Dec 16, 2010

  11. Do community efforts work? | Dec 14, 2010

  12. My Comments on "Best Careers 2011: Technical Writer - US News and World Report" | Dec 10, 2010

  13. Simplicity in a 550 page manual? | Dec 9, 2010

  14. WordPress Tip: Integrating a WordPress Blog into your Website | Dec 9, 2010

  15. The Perfect Voice -- Professional or Authentic? | Dec 7, 2010

  16. Doc Plan Pains and Empowerment | Dec 3, 2010

  17. Adobe Illustrator and InDesign Integration with Layered Images [Visual Imagination #3] | Dec 2, 2010

  18. Technology vs. Content, or Why Teaching WordPress Is Frustrating | Nov 29, 2010

  19. Review of Alan Porter's Wiki: Grow Your Own for Fun and Profit | Nov 25, 2010

  20. Forum → Wiki → Blog Workflow | Nov 24, 2010

  21. Podcast: Educational Programs and Workplace Practices | Nov 23, 2010

  22. Tactics for Survival: A Technical Writers Field Guide to Overcoming the Forces of Petty PMs and Broken IT Environments | Nov 22, 2010

  23. My Brand Is ... | Nov 18, 2010

  24. Diverse Content and the Long Tail of Search Engine Metrics | Nov 16, 2010

  25. 10 Quick Tips for Project Managers about Help Content | Nov 11, 2010

  26. When Help Content Is Forgotten | Nov 10, 2010

  27. Text Matters | Nov 5, 2010

  28. "I need your help with some documentation" (Xtranormal Movies) | Nov 4, 2010

  29. What Is Chartjunk? [Visual Imagination #2] | Nov 1, 2010

  30. Being Contrarian | Oct 29, 2010

  31. What's the Statistical ROI of Technical Documentation? [Collaborative Post] | Oct 27, 2010

  32. Strategy Versus Tactics and the Ongoing Debate about Roles | Oct 26, 2010

  33. Why Help Content Fails and #contentstrategy | Oct 22, 2010

  34. Technical Writing Is More Than "Click This, Select That" [Podcast] | Oct 21, 2010

  35. Why Tech Comm Is a Career Path of Last Resort for Students | Oct 19, 2010

  36. Are Academics Just Talking to Themselves? | Oct 18, 2010

  37. Technical Communication Careers: Getting Started and Finding Your Niche (BYU Idaho Presentation) | Oct 13, 2010

  38. Guest Post on Firehead Blog -- "Finding a Content Strategy for Your Blog" | Oct 11, 2010

  39. Paper.li as an Alternative to Google Reader [Screencast] | Oct 8, 2010

  40. Podcast: Finding and Creating Relevant Content -- Strategies for Social Media | Oct 8, 2010

  41. Podcast: Developing a Personal Voice in Audio (Intermountain-STC event) | Oct 6, 2010

  42. Seeing Before Reading: Messages Encoded in the Design of Information [Visual Imagination #2] | Oct 5, 2010

  43. The Increasing Momentum of Content Strategy | Oct 4, 2010

  44. Eight Defining Questions that Shape Content Organization [Organizing Content #29] | Oct 1, 2010

  45. Students Contemplate Whether a Technical Writing Career Will Be Fulfilling | Sep 30, 2010

  46. Visuals Engage Users -- Why Aren't There More Illustrations in Help Content? [Visual Imagination #1] | Sep 28, 2010

  47. Organizing Content for Constructivist Learning [Organizing Content #28] | Sep 27, 2010

  48. Substandard Wages for Technical Writers: A Growing Trend? | Sep 23, 2010

  49. Is Rhetoric Relevant? Considering the "Message in Context" [Organizing Content #27] | Sep 22, 2010

  50. WordPress Tip: The Concept of Inheritance with CSS | Sep 19, 2010

  51. WordPress Tip: Change Your Post Title Color | Sep 18, 2010

  52. Why No One Will Hire You: 40 Professionals Give Advice on Improving a Technical Writer's Resume [Collaborative Post] | Sep 17, 2010

  53. Downloading Audio from the STC Summit | Sep 17, 2010

  54. WordPress Tip: Changing the Styles on Your WordPres Blog | Sep 16, 2010

  55. Instructional Design Versus Technical Communication | Sep 16, 2010

  56. Searching STC Resources for Information | Sep 15, 2010

  57. WordPress Tip: Making Your WP-CONFIG File Secure | Sep 14, 2010

  58. You learn more from users in 5 minutes than you do from 2 weeks of project meetings | Sep 14, 2010

  59. WordPress Tip: Editing Posts in Bulk | Sep 13, 2010

  60. WordPress Tip: Inserting a Gallery of Images into a Post | Sep 12, 2010

  61. WordPress Tip: Adding Custom Fields in Posts | Sep 11, 2010

  62. 40 Foundational Books for Technical Writing | Sep 10, 2010

  63. WordPress Tip: Implementing Photo Galleries | Sep 9, 2010

  64. Why Learning Software Is So Hard, and Organizing Content into Levels [Organizing Content #26] | Sep 9, 2010

  65. WordPress Tip: Moving Images with Site Migrations | Sep 8, 2010

  66. WordPress Tip: Adding an Edit Link for Each Post | Sep 7, 2010

  67. More Students Questions about Technical Writing | Sep 7, 2010

  68. The Importance of Visual Communication, or How to Build a Dirt Sifter | Sep 6, 2010

  69. WordPress Tip: Showing Ads in Your Sidebar | Sep 6, 2010

  70. Answers About the Field of Technical Writing for Students | Sep 6, 2010

  71. WordPress Tip: Making Elements Overlap on Your Site | Sep 5, 2010

  72. WordPress Tip: Eliminating Spam | Sep 4, 2010

  73. New Baby Molly | Sep 3, 2010

  74. Organizing for Learnability [Organizing Content #25] | Sep 1, 2010

  75. WordPress Tip: Showing the Full Content Versus the Excerpt | Aug 31, 2010

  76. WordPress Tip: Improve Your Blog's Loading Speed | Aug 30, 2010

  77. Perspectives on a Career in Technical Writing: Responses from 16 Tech Comm Professionals | Aug 30, 2010

  78. I miss working with my hands | Aug 25, 2010

  79. 100 Rejected Summit Proposals | Aug 24, 2010

  80. Best Practices for Writing Interface Text [Organizing Content #24] | Aug 13, 2010

  81. The Interface Is Text [Organizing Content #23] | Aug 11, 2010

  82. WordPress Tip: When you Forget your WordPress Username and Password | Aug 10, 2010

  83. The Technical Writer as an Outsider: How Ambitious Are You? [Organizing Content #22] | Aug 6, 2010

  84. WordPress Tip: Embed a Video into a Post Using WordPress's Auto-Embed Feature | Aug 4, 2010

  85. Editorial Strategies and Mind Games | Aug 3, 2010

  86. Introduction to WordPress -- Recording of WordPress Webinar | Aug 2, 2010

  87. Principles for Organizing Print Material [Organizing Content #21] | Jul 30, 2010

  88. The Role of the Gatekeeper | Jul 28, 2010

  89. Relying on the Wisdom of the Crowds with Help Authoring [Organizing Content #20] | Jul 27, 2010

  90. WordPress Tip: Integrate Constant Contact with WordPress | Jul 27, 2010

  91. Moving into Technical Writing -- A DICE Article and More Links | Jul 22, 2010

  92. WordCamp Utah is August 28 | Jul 22, 2010

  93. Emergence [Organizing Content #19] | Jul 20, 2010

  94. Replaceability | Jul 19, 2010

  95. Captivate Versus Camtasia Studio | Jul 18, 2010

  96. Message from the Sponsors, July 16 | Jul 16, 2010

  97. Problem Solving and Sprinkler Repair | Jul 15, 2010

  98. WordPress Webinar July 13 with the STC Consulting and Independent Contracting SIG | Jul 12, 2010

  99. Add WordPress 3.0 Navigation System to Your Site | Jul 12, 2010

  100. Free Copy of Camtasia Studio 7 and Snagit 10 | Jul 12, 2010

  101. 24 Hours of Screencasts with Camtasia Studio | Jul 12, 2010

  102. Showing Youtube Captions by Default in Another Language | Jul 8, 2010

  103. Separating Basic from Advanced Topics: How Twitter Organizes Their Help [Organizing Content #18] | Jul 8, 2010

  104. Do Some Project Managers Suffer from the Dunning-Kruger Effect? | Jul 7, 2010

  105. "Load config.xml failed" message with Notepad++ | Jul 6, 2010

  106. Does a Technical Writer Need to Understand Web Design? | Jul 6, 2010

  107. Save $50 on Registration to Lavacon Conference in San Diego | Jul 4, 2010

  108. Breaking Things as a Form of Creativity | Jul 1, 2010

  109. Organizing Content as Story [Organizing Content #17] | Jun 29, 2010

  110. Tiny Tasks and Content Dilution | Jun 29, 2010

  111. With Blog Usability, Provide Context and Avoid Mystery Puzzles | Jun 28, 2010

  112. Experimenting with a New STC Chapter Meeting Model | Jun 28, 2010

  113. Designing from the Content/Story Out | Jun 28, 2010

  114. Can Blogs Work as a Web Platform for Help? [Organizing Content 16] | Jun 23, 2010

  115. Madcap Software Launches MadNewz Newsletter | Jun 22, 2010

  117. Lavacon's Web 2.0 Conference Website | Jun 18, 2010

  118. Dr.Explain is a Gold Sponsor of the European User Assistance Conference 2010 | Jun 17, 2010

  119. e-Learning Event Coming Up This Friday (Utah location) | Jun 17, 2010

  120. Faulty Assumptions About the Scope of Help Content? [Organizing Content 15] | Jun 11, 2010

  121. The Semantic Web and Content Findability: Interview with Patrick Warren [Organizing Content 14] | Jun 10, 2010

  122. Using Mediawiki Templates to Organize Content [Organizing Content 13] | Jun 9, 2010

  123. New Menu Navigation System in WordPress 3.0 | Jun 9, 2010

  124. Help Authoring Tool Comparison from Sarah Maddox | Jun 9, 2010

  125. From Help Authoring Tools to Web Tools, Especially Wikis [Organizing Content 12] | Jun 3, 2010

  126. WordPress Tip: There's a Plugin for That | May 30, 2010

  127. Search Engine Optimizing Your Help Content for Google [Organizing Content 11] | May 28, 2010

  128. Figuring Out Search Algorithms [Organizing Content 10] | May 27, 2010

  129. Browse Versus Search: Stumbling into the Unknown Unknown [Organizing Content 9] | May 26, 2010

  130. Second-Level Faceted Navigation [Organizing Content 8] | May 25, 2010

  131. WordPress Tip: Backing Up Your Database | May 24, 2010

  132. Implementing Faceted Classification/Search with a Help Authoring Tool [Organizing Content 7] | May 21, 2010

  133. Faceted Classification, Faceted Search [Organizing Content 6] | May 20, 2010

  134. Topic-Based, Hierarchical Navigation [Organizing Content 5] | May 19, 2010

  135. Imposing Order Versus Observing Order [Organizing Content 4] | May 18, 2010

  136. Things Fall Apart, The Centre Cannot Hold [Organizing Content 3] | May 17, 2010

  137. Introducing Project Swordfish [Organizing Content 2] | May 17, 2010

  138. New Series: Organizing Content [Organizing Content 1] | May 17, 2010

  139. 25 Facets for Navigation [Organizing Content 5] | May 17, 2010

  140. Changing Your Career to Technical Writing [Guest Responses from Bill Albing and Alyssa Fox] | May 16, 2010

  141. "Tom Johnson: A Modern Day Technical Writer" -- NIU Article | May 16, 2010

  142. WordPress Tip: Creating WordPress Themes to Match Existing Sites | May 15, 2010

  143. A Few Ways to Make the Next STC Summit Better, #stc10 | May 11, 2010

  145. Finding Time to Draw: Ben Minson at the STC Summit in Dallas, #stc10 | May 9, 2010

  146. New Variables for Technical Writing Project Managers: Larry Kunz at the STC Summit in Dallas, #stc10 | May 9, 2010

  147. Tough Situations for Technical Communication Managers: Saul Carliner at the STC Summit in Dallas, #stc10 | May 9, 2010

  148. The Do-It-Yourself Philosophy: Saul Carliner at the STC Summit in Dallas, #stc10 | May 9, 2010

  149. SXSW Conference Versus STC Summit: Anne Gentle and Janet Swisher at the STC Summit, #stc10 | May 9, 2010

  150. Simple Tips for Website Accessibility: Brenda Huettner at the STC Summit in Dallas, #stc10 | May 9, 2010

  151. Old Guard Versus New Guard: Whitney Hess at the STC Summit in Dallas, #stc10 | May 9, 2010

  152. Pay-per-Content Versus Free: Char James-Tanny and Bill Swallow at the STC Summit in Dallas, #stc10 | May 7, 2010

  153. Upcoming Books from XML Press: Richard Hamilton at the STC Summit in Dallas, #stc10 | May 7, 2010

  155. Breaking into the Mobile Market: Joe Welinski at the STC Summit in Dallas, #stc10 | May 7, 2010

  156. The Art of Questioning: Rich Maggiani at the STC Summit, #stc10 | May 6, 2010

  157. Storytelling for User Experience: Whitney Quesenbery at the STC Summit #stc10 | May 6, 2010

  159. Trust and Transparency: Leadership Day at the STC Summit #stc10 | May 3, 2010

  160. What I'm presenting on at the STC Summit in Dallas, #stc10 | May 1, 2010

  161. The Compulsion to Figure Things Out | Apr 30, 2010

  162. Quoted in Technical Writing Careers Blurb in U.S. News & World Report | Apr 29, 2010

  163. “Blogs are Still Where Substantive Conversations are Happening.” | Apr 29, 2010

  164. Typography for Lawyers | Apr 29, 2010

  165. Podcast: From Overlooked to Center Stage (Overlooked) | Apr 28, 2010

  166. Message from the Sponsors -- April 27, 2010 | Apr 27, 2010

  167. Why Tech Comm Professors Don't Teach Video | Apr 27, 2010

  168. Story (Overlooked) | Apr 26, 2010

  169. Why Usability is Praised and Tech Comm is Ignored | Apr 26, 2010

  170. Podcast: “Anyone Can Write”: Changing Roles for Technical Communicators | Apr 26, 2010

  172. Epiphany: Cross Pollination (Overlooked) | Apr 25, 2010

  173. Crisis Point: Problems with Multiple Roles (Overlooked) | Apr 24, 2010

  174. Catalyst 4: Wiki Manager (Overlooked) | Apr 23, 2010

  175. Catalyst 6: QA Testing (Overlooked) | Apr 22, 2010

  176. Catalyst 2: User Experience (Overlooked) | Apr 21, 2010

  177. Catalyst 1: Audiovisual Role (Overlooked) | Apr 20, 2010

  178. The Long Tail Applied to Writing | Apr 20, 2010

  179. The Yearning: Career Trajectory (Overlooked) | Apr 19, 2010

  180. WordPress Tip: Quick Tip for Reducing Spam | Apr 18, 2010

  181. The Problem: "Just a Writer" (Overlooked) | Apr 18, 2010

  182. Intro to From Overlooked to Center Stage (Overlooked) | Apr 17, 2010

  183. Presenting at the Atlanta Currents Conference (Overlooked) | Apr 11, 2010

  184. Podcast: Ten Voiceover Techniques (PodcampSLC) | Apr 11, 2010

  185. Why "This American Life" Is My Favorite Podcast | Apr 7, 2010

  186. My STC Summit Proceedings paper on voiceover techniques (Voiceover) | Apr 7, 2010

  187. Feasibility, Believability, and Fixability: Three Reasons Not to Use a Professional Voiceover Actor | Apr 2, 2010

  188. Comparing Creative Writing with Technical Writing (2 min Videocast) | Apr 1, 2010

  189. Message from the Sponsors — March 30, 2010 Dr. Explain, Madcap Software, & more | Mar 30, 2010

  190. When Social Media Becomes Hollow | Mar 29, 2010

  191. Breathing correctly (Voiceover) | Mar 26, 2010

  192. Recording with the right microphone (Voiceover techniques) | Mar 25, 2010

  193. Adding inflection (Voiceover) | Mar 23, 2010

  194. Fixing Fumbled Sentences | Mar 17, 2010

  195. WordPress Tip: Integrate Google Calendar into WordPress | Mar 16, 2010

  196. Avoiding phlegm in your throat with voiceovers (Voiceover) | Mar 12, 2010

  197. Smiling while you narrate (Voiceover) | Mar 11, 2010

  198. Avoiding plosives and breathing noises (Voiceover) | Mar 10, 2010

  199. Avoiding a sense of rambling (Voiceover) | Mar 9, 2010

  200. Sounding natural (Voiceover) | Mar 8, 2010

  201. Finding an acoustic environment (Voiceover) | Mar 4, 2010

  202. Message from the Sponsors | Mar 3, 2010

  203. Podcast: What's New in Flare 6 — Interview with Mike Hamilton | Mar 2, 2010

  204. Podcast: Documentation in the Cloud | Mar 1, 2010

  205. WordPress Tip: Avoid Getting Hacked through Bluehost's cPanel | Feb 27, 2010

  206. Finding Space to Breathe: Managing Overwhelming End-of-Project Tasks | Feb 26, 2010

  207. Together or Apart: Collaboration Models for Technical Writing | Feb 22, 2010

  208. The Art of Asking Questions | Feb 17, 2010

  209. Praise: The Worst Feedback You Can Give Developers? | Feb 15, 2010

  210. "I never really understood that feature, so I left it alone..." | Feb 12, 2010

  211. The Common Language Everyone Speaks | Feb 10, 2010

  212. Cures for the Information Exclusion Complex | Feb 8, 2010

  213. WordPress Tip: Add More Widget Areas to Your WordPress Theme | Feb 7, 2010

  214. What Would a WordPress Template for Chapter Sites Look Like? | Feb 2, 2010

  215. Fragmented Communities and the Chapter/SIG Web Site Problem | Feb 1, 2010

  216. Madcap Flare's Extensibility: Adding jQuery to Flare | Jan 26, 2010

  217. Web Site Critique and WordPress Q&A Webinar This Thursday | Jan 26, 2010

  218. Podcast: Riding the Tide of Technical Communications Consulting | Jan 21, 2010

  219. Intermountain STC Chapter Meeting This Wednesday at 7 pm | Jan 19, 2010

  220. The Turnaround Screencast | Jan 19, 2010

  221. DITA Features in Madcap Flare Webcast Tuesday at 11 a.m. EST from Scriptorium | Jan 19, 2010

  222. How to Embed Video on a Web Page | Jan 16, 2010

  223. Trying to Find a Theater Stage/Voice for an Impossible Situation | Jan 14, 2010

  224. Notes on My Latest Screencasts | Jan 12, 2010

  225. Implementing Google Custom Search on WordPress | Jan 8, 2010

  226. The Case of the Stolen Documentation | Jan 6, 2010

  227. Directions I'm Going in 2010 | Jan 4, 2010

  228. Aligning Yourself with a Cause | Jan 2, 2010

2009 archives

  1. A Creative Way to Become a Technical Writer | Dec 30, 2009

  2. If No One Reads the Manual, That's Okay | Dec 27, 2009

  3. Podcast on getting a job in technical writing (TW Job) | Dec 26, 2009

  4. Volunteer for a position in the STC or other organization (TW Job) | Dec 25, 2009

  5. Move to a tech hub city to find a job in technical writing (TW Job) | Dec 24, 2009

  6. What You Cannot Do Sitting Down | Dec 24, 2009

  7. Start a blog (TW Job) | Dec 23, 2009

  9. Podcast: The Myth of Single Sourcing | Dec 21, 2009

  10. Put together a portfolio (TW Job) | Dec 21, 2009

  11. Learn some tools (TW Job) | Dec 20, 2009

  12. WordPress 2.9 Released | Dec 20, 2009

  13. Get real experience doing technical writing (TW Job) | Dec 19, 2009

  14. Removing ice from a driveway is like .... everything | Dec 19, 2009

  15. Learn the basics of technical writing (TW Job) | Dec 18, 2009

  16. Trying Out Picture in Picture in Screencasts | Dec 17, 2009

  17. PowerPoint from Screencasting Webinar | Dec 17, 2009

  18. Upcoming Webinar on Screencasting | Dec 14, 2009

  19. WordPress Tip: How to Transfer WordPress to a New Web Host | Dec 14, 2009

  20. Design Fixations with Mediawiki Skins | Dec 14, 2009

  22. Adding the Human Element in Screencasts | Dec 8, 2009

  23. Ramping Up on Mediawiki | Dec 6, 2009

  24. About My New Site Redesign | Dec 6, 2009

  25. Site Critiques and WordPress Q&A -- Community Leaders Webinar Jan 28 | Dec 5, 2009

  26. What's the Best Microphone for Screencasting? | Dec 2, 2009

  27. My Upcoming STC Webinar on Screencasting | Nov 30, 2009

  28. Play Chess Online with ChessJam | Nov 29, 2009

  29. A Microcosm of Technical Writing in the Kitchen While Cooking a Banana Cream Pie | Nov 27, 2009

  30. Why Help Authoring Tools Will Fade | Nov 25, 2009

  31. Contingent Senior Technical Writer Opening at LDS Church's ICS Department in Riverton, Utah | Nov 21, 2009

  32. What I'm Presenting on at the Dallas Summit | Nov 20, 2009

  33. Embedding Videos into Madcap Flare | Nov 19, 2009

  34. Podcast about the Podcast Poll | Nov 18, 2009

  35. Combining Cinema with Screencasting | Nov 16, 2009

  36. How to Incorporate Twitter into Your Presentation | Nov 15, 2009

  37. What I've Been Learning in Flare | Nov 14, 2009

  38. Why Is It Important for Video Tutorials to Be User-Led? | Nov 13, 2009

  39. Minimizing Documentation | Nov 11, 2009

  40. 21% of Intermountain Chapter Members Planning to Renew STC Membership | Nov 9, 2009

  41. Design Reviews and Posting Without Answers | Nov 8, 2009

  42. How Microsoft Visual Studio Is Doing Help | Nov 7, 2009

  43. Podcast Roundtable for PodcampSLC Series | Nov 6, 2009

  44. Theme Parks and External and Internal Input | Nov 5, 2009

  45. Podcast on the seven deadly sins of blogging | Nov 5, 2009

  46. The Long Tail of Online Profitability | Nov 3, 2009

  47. Wikis and the Holy Grail of Content Independence | Nov 2, 2009

  48. Reinventing Yourself Through Your Blog | Nov 1, 2009

  49. NaNoWriMo and NaBloPoMo Start Nov 1 | Nov 1, 2009

  50. WordPress Tip: Install WordPress Locally | Oct 31, 2009

  51. Being inattentive (Sins of blogging) | Oct 31, 2009

  52. A Few Surprises in Using a Wiki for Documentation | Oct 29, 2009

  53. Being unfindable (Sins of blogging) | Oct 18, 2009

  54. Being irresponsible (Sins of blogging) | Oct 17, 2009

  55. Being unreadable (Sins of blogging) | Oct 17, 2009

  56. Forms of Play | Oct 16, 2009

  57. Survey about Framemaker and EMC Documentum Integration | Oct 15, 2009

  58. Podcast from BYU Idaho Professional Writing Panel | Oct 15, 2009

  59. Being boring (Sins of blogging) | Oct 13, 2009

  60. Technical Writer Ranks #5 in Least Stressful Jobs; Also, CNN Money Total Jobs Count Screwy | Oct 11, 2009

  61. Choosing Between Academic and Corporate Life: Did I Make the Wrong Choice? | Oct 10, 2009

  62. An Interview About Technical Writing | Oct 9, 2009

  63. Being irrelevant (Sins of blogging) | Oct 4, 2009

  64. My STC Summit Blogging Presentation Is Free | Oct 1, 2009

  65. Chrysler Drops Long Car Manuals in Favor of Short Guides + Video | Sep 30, 2009

  66. WordPress Tip: Section Widget and Advanced XML Export -- wordpress Plugin Winner and Runner Up | Sep 30, 2009

  67. Google Releases Sidewiki and Adds to the Growing Trend of Conversation | Sep 29, 2009

  68. Duct Tape Technical Writers | Sep 28, 2009

  69. Smashing Magazine Lists 10 Web Usability Guidelines | Sep 27, 2009

  70. Dallas STC Summit Proposals Due Oct 5 | Sep 27, 2009

  71. New Content Strategy SIG | Sep 27, 2009

  72. STC 2008 Salary Database -- See Salaries for Technical Writers in Your State | Sep 27, 2009

  73. Tips to Get Around Age Discrimination | Sep 26, 2009

  74. Information Overload -- Conversation with Ricardo Amigo | Sep 23, 2009

  75. Introduction to getting a job in technical writing (TW Job) | Sep 22, 2009

  76. "Tell me a story" -- Advice from Writers | Sep 17, 2009

  77. Being fake (Sins of blogging) | Sep 15, 2009

  78. The Appeal of Adobe InDesign | Sep 11, 2009

  79. STC: Quo Vadis? Mike Hughes gets introspective about the STC situation | Sep 11, 2009

  80. The Content Wrangler Moves to WordPress | Sep 10, 2009

  81. How Do Blogs and Wikis Fit Together? | Sep 8, 2009

  82. NY Times criticized for letting Pogue maintain Apple bias | Sep 7, 2009

  83. WordPress Tip: WordPress Worm Requires Upgrade to 2.8.4 | Sep 7, 2009

  84. Writing as Conversation -- Brainsparks Podcast with Ginny Redish | Sep 5, 2009

  85. The best time to publish your blog posts | Sep 1, 2009

  86. Creativity in the Workplace | Sep 1, 2009

  87. Avoiding the Shut Down Mode | Aug 30, 2009

  88. STC's Online Certificate Courses | Aug 29, 2009

  89. Clive Thompson on the New Literacy | Aug 28, 2009

  90. An argument for slowing down in an age of rapid online exchanges | Aug 28, 2009

  91. Why teens don't use Twitter | Aug 28, 2009

  92. Podcast with Anne Gentle about her Conversation and Community book | Aug 26, 2009

  93. Review of Conversation and Community: The Social Web for Documentation | Aug 24, 2009

  94. Converting Lurkers into Contributors in Online Communities -- Nielsen's 90-9-1 Rule | Aug 20, 2009

  95. A Refreshing Angle on the Name of our Profession | Aug 19, 2009

  96. Making Spaces in Cluttered Houses and Cluttered Lives | Aug 19, 2009

  97. A Few Software Tips to Make Technical Writing Easier | Aug 18, 2009

  98. Humor essay about a car manual's diction | Aug 16, 2009

  99. "Social Documentation" -- Cool but Problematic | Aug 16, 2009

  100. The Importance of LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook in Job Searches | Aug 16, 2009

  101. Students Engaged by Discussion, Not Smart Classrooms | Aug 15, 2009

  102. Three Books on DITA | Aug 15, 2009

  103. Convert RSS Feeds into a Magazine Format with Zinepal | Aug 15, 2009

  105. Productivity Tip: Paper Number Piles | Aug 15, 2009

  106. Carcast: Friday Thoughts on Reading, Publish2, and Writer River | Aug 14, 2009

  107. Applying Strunk and White's "Omit Needless Words" to Life | Aug 14, 2009

  108. New Intermountain-STC Chapter Site | Aug 13, 2009

  109. All About Technical Writing -- The Writing Show | Aug 12, 2009

  110. Every piece of content matters - an interview with Gerry McGovern | Information & Design | Aug 12, 2009

  111. Apple blogger makes living from blog | Aug 11, 2009

  112. Writing Style Guides and Your Parenting Style | Aug 11, 2009

  113. Exporting Documentation to Wikis | Aug 10, 2009

  114. Write When Inspired, Rest When Tired | Aug 10, 2009

  115. Finding Business Models in the Economics of Free | Aug 9, 2009

  116. Why Free Is the Future of Business | Aug 8, 2009

  118. Exactly How Much Does a Wordcamp Cost? | Aug 5, 2009

  119. Tech Comm Lobotomies | Aug 4, 2009

  120. Discovering Relationship Tables | Aug 3, 2009

  121. Blogging as an Outlet for Technical Writers | Jul 31, 2009

  122. Perks About Working in an Office Instead of Working from Home | Jul 31, 2009

  123. Lying in a Hammock, or, Having a Single Goal without a Purpose | Jul 31, 2009

  124. Are You Irrelevant? Engaging, Provocative Video | Jul 30, 2009

  125. Screen Captures May Not Make Sense | Jul 30, 2009

  126. Tip for Usability in Context-Sensitive Help | Jul 30, 2009

  127. UAX (User Assistance Experience): Online vs. on-line | Jul 30, 2009

  128. Maker's Schedule, Manager's Schedule | Jul 30, 2009

  129. Read This If You Hate Meetings - Freakonomics Blog - NYTimes.com | Jul 30, 2009

  130. Daring Fireball: Charging for Access to News Sites | Jul 30, 2009

  131. My STC Live Webinar on Blogging This Wednesday at 1pm | Jul 28, 2009

  132. Podcast on Content Strategy: Interview with Rahel Bailie | Jul 27, 2009

  133. Moving Towards a Manifesto About Online Versus Print Formats | Jul 27, 2009

  135. What can Technical Authors learn from celebrity chefs and musicians? Cherryleaf Technical Authors Blog | Jul 22, 2009

  136. Toward Content Quality :: UXmatters | Jul 22, 2009

  137. Content Strategy: The Philosophy of Data - Boxes and Arrows: The design behind the design | Jul 22, 2009

  138. My Guest Post on Unstoppability for DMN Communications | Jul 22, 2009

  139. Three Questions to Start Thinking Like a Content Strategist | Jul 21, 2009

  140. Insight into the theory of mind | Jul 19, 2009

  141. New York Times Starts a “What We're Reading” Section | Jul 17, 2009

  142. A List Apart: Articles: Content-tious Strategy | Jul 17, 2009

  143. Content Strategy - a knol by Jeffrey MacIntyre | Jul 16, 2009

  144. Best Practices For Effective Design Of "About me"-Pages | Design Showcase | Smashing Magazine | Jul 16, 2009

  145. Is This Meeting Really Necessary? | Jul 15, 2009

  146. The Paris Review - Gay Talese: The Art of Nonfiction No. 2 | Jul 15, 2009

  147. InDesignSecrets » Learn InDesign One Feature at a Time | Jul 15, 2009

  148. Keys to Being a Trusted Source of Information: Gryphon Mountain Journals | Jul 15, 2009

  149. If You're a Writer, Write | Jul 13, 2009

  150. STC's wiki is also scheduled for demolition :: TechCommDood | Jul 12, 2009

  151. What Users Don't Care About | Jul 11, 2009

  152. Get Set Up | Jul 10, 2009

  153. Content Theory: Sheep and Chaos — MK Anderson | Jul 8, 2009

  154. A Mile Wide and 30 Seconds Deep: A Metaphor for Help from Mike Hughes | Jul 8, 2009

  155. Two New Tools I'm Learning | Jul 7, 2009

  156. Biking to Work – A Good Idea, But … | Jul 6, 2009

  157. How the Web and the Weblog have changed Writing | Jul 5, 2009

  158. Interactive Google Map of Where I Work | Jul 5, 2009

  159. Feedburner Add Customizable Subject Lines to Email Subscriptions | Jul 2, 2009

  160. Mind Hacks: In our wildest dreams | Jun 30, 2009

  161. Implementing a Department Wiki? A Writer Shares Some Dos and Don'ts (Guest Post) | Jun 30, 2009

  162. Palimpsest: This is the future of technical communication | Jun 29, 2009

  163. I Need Your Human Aggregated Content | Jun 29, 2009

  164. Secrecy versus openness in communication | Jun 28, 2009

  165. Write Articles, Not Blog Postings (Jakob Nielsen's Alertbox) | Jun 28, 2009

  166. PDF Manuals: The Wrong Paradigm for an Online Experience | Jun 28, 2009

  167. Can You Get Fit in Six Minutes a Week? - Well Blog - NYTimes.com | Jun 28, 2009

  168. 50 Free Resources That Will Improve Your Writing Skills | Developers Toolbox | Smashing Magazine | Jun 28, 2009

  169. How Google Does Help | Jun 27, 2009

  170. Real Projects for Entry-Level Writers Trying to Build Their Portfolios | Jun 26, 2009

  171. Page Layout and Design Tips from Jean-luc Doumont's Trees, maps, and theorems | Jun 25, 2009

  172. Outsourcing vs. offshoring, and how U.S.-based technical writers can stay competitive « Your Writing Dept Blog | Jun 24, 2009

  173. "What I'm Reading": A New Feature on My Site and a Tweak of Writer River | Jun 24, 2009

  174. Core Dump: STC Floundering? | Jun 24, 2009

  175. Technically Speaking » The STC Crisis: the take of a “young” writer | Jun 24, 2009

  176. Generation B - Mr. Mom, Father's Day Edition - NYTimes.com | Jun 22, 2009

  177. Identity and Authority. Why the Foundation of Documentation is Changing. | The LugIron Software Blog | Jun 22, 2009

  178. 4J's Group - THE CONTENT POOL: It's STC not STW | Jun 22, 2009

  179. Seeing the World in Clearer, Simpler Ways | Jun 22, 2009

  180. It's Time to Shoot Your Blog | Copyblogger | Jun 21, 2009

  181. Fictitious Documentation | Jun 21, 2009

  182. Inkscape: the free alternative to Adobe Illustrator | Jun 21, 2009

  183. The Blockhead Blog: Does the STC deserve to survive? | Jun 21, 2009

  184. In Which I Comment on the STC Issue — MK Anderson | Jun 20, 2009

  185. Lifelines to the STC | Jun 20, 2009

  186. Forms that Work – Interview with Caroline Jarrett (podcast) | Jun 20, 2009

  187. Palimpsest: Whither STC? | Jun 19, 2009

  188. Speakers and fees: an insiders view | Speaker Confessions | Jun 19, 2009

  189. 10 Sites That Produce Quality WordPress Content — Nathan Rice | Jun 19, 2009

  190. WordPress Single Post Templates — Nathan Rice | Jun 19, 2009

  191. Palimpsest: Flare 5 DITA feature review Part 1: Overview and map files | Jun 19, 2009

  192. Extracting Images from Visio and Inserting Them in Indesign | Jun 17, 2009

  193. Cartoon 12 [The Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway] | Jun 16, 2009

  194. How to Avoid Extinction as a Technical Communicator | Jun 15, 2009

  195. Cartoon 11 [The Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway] | Jun 15, 2009

  196. Blogging, Podcasting, and Screencasting: Eight Characteristics to Attract Devoted Followers [Part 2] | Jun 14, 2009

  197. Blogging, Podcasting, and Screencasting: Eight Characteristics to Attract Devoted Followers [Part I] | Jun 14, 2009

  198. Cartoon 10 [The Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway] | Jun 14, 2009

  199. Quick reference guide slides from the Transalpine Conference | Jun 13, 2009

  200. Social Networks and the TransAlpine Conference | Jun 13, 2009

  201. Cartoon 9 [The Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway] | Jun 13, 2009

  202. Day 8 Cartoon [The Twelve Days of Christmas in June Giveaway] | Jun 10, 2009

  204. Day 7 Cartoon [The Twelve Days of Christmas in June Giveaway] | Jun 10, 2009

  205. Day 6 Cartoon [The 12 Days of Christmas Giveaway] | Jun 9, 2009

  206. Day 5 Cartoon [Christmas in June Giveaway] | Jun 8, 2009

  207. Thinking About Vienna and the Legacy of Mozart | Jun 7, 2009

  208. Day 4 Cartoon [Christmas in June Giveaway] | Jun 7, 2009

  209. WordPress Tip: “Crunching” and “Burning” | Jun 6, 2009

  210. Day 3 Cartoon [12 Days of Christmas in June Giveaway] | Jun 6, 2009

  211. Day 2 Cartoon [The Twelve Days of Christmas in June Giveaway] | Jun 5, 2009

  212. Day 1 Cartoon -- [The Twelve Days of Christmas in June Giveaway] | Jun 4, 2009

  213. 12 Days of Christmas in June Giveaway | Jun 3, 2009

  214. Free video soft: video converter, ipod converter, mp4 converter | Jun 3, 2009

  215. Having Fun with Snagit | Jun 3, 2009

  216. WordPress Tip: Implement WordPress's Threaded Comments | May 31, 2009

  217. WordPress Tip: 10 Reasons Why I Like WordPress | May 31, 2009

  218. Anne Gentle on her Forthcoming Book, Conversation and Community: The Social Web for Documentation | May 27, 2009

  219. Following the NBA Can Make You a Better Technical Writer | May 26, 2009

  220. Your WordPress Site Can Get Hacked If You Don't Have This | May 26, 2009

  221. STC Toronto's New Five-and-Five Chapter Model | May 25, 2009

  222. Richard Hamilton's XML Press Imprint | May 25, 2009

  223. Converting Readers from Casual Subscribers to Devoted Followers | May 21, 2009

  224. Sailboats and Cruise Ships, or, How My Work Podcast Was Dwarfed by a Mega Work Podcast | May 20, 2009

  225. Madcap's Flare-DITA Solution (podcast) | May 20, 2009

  226. The State of Structured Authoring in Technical Communication (podcast) | May 19, 2009

  227. Drawing as a Tool for Thinking: The Back of the Napkin | May 19, 2009

  228. The Best Thing I Did This Week | May 17, 2009

  229. John Hedtke on Disaster Preparedness and Book Publishing | May 16, 2009

  230. Starting Points with Quick Reference Guides: Gathering Before Designing | May 14, 2009

  231. GUI Magnets -- Prototyping User Interfaces with Simple Magnets | May 13, 2009

  232. Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers and the Real Reason You Are a Successful Writer | May 13, 2009

  233. James Bond: The History of the Illustrated 007 (Podcast with Alan Porter) | May 11, 2009

  234. Mother-in-Law Tip for Reading Manuals | May 11, 2009

  235. STC Summit Atlanta Adventures: The Agony and Ecstasy of Presenting | May 8, 2009

  236. Ginny Redish -- Letting Go of the Words (Podcast Interview at STC Summit) | May 5, 2009

  237. Personal Branding: You Are What You Write About | May 3, 2009

  238. Two Stories About How to Write Help | May 2, 2009

  239. Going to Atlanta, #stc09 | Apr 30, 2009

  240. Documentation Usability: A Few Things I've Learned from Watching Users | Apr 28, 2009

  241. WordPress Tip: Recording of WordPress Webinar | Apr 27, 2009

  242. Can Others Do Your Job? | Apr 23, 2009

  243. Making Money from Blogging | Apr 22, 2009

  244. The Wind and A Lot of Thoughts About Pessimism and Optimism | Apr 21, 2009

  245. Telecommuting into Nonexistent Worlds | Apr 16, 2009

  246. Anne Gentle to Give Virtual Presentation on Wikis on Thursday, April 23 | Apr 15, 2009

  247. What to Blog/Write About | Apr 15, 2009

  248. Quick Reference Guides: Short and Sweet Documentation | Apr 10, 2009

  249. Quick Reference Guides Right Where You Need Them | Apr 9, 2009

  250. Blogging: A New Role for Technical Communicators | Apr 8, 2009

  251. Why Most Designers Will Be Freelancers Within 20 Years | Freelance Folder | Apr 3, 2009

  252. How Video Can Turn Your Career Around | Apr 2, 2009

  253. The Corporate Blogger Story | Apr 1, 2009

  254. AP Article Leads to "Helping Husbands and Fathers" Photo Project | Apr 1, 2009

  255. Site Name Change | Apr 1, 2009

  256. Adobe InDesign and Transparent Images on Color Backgrounds | Mar 30, 2009

  257. Have Notebook Will Travel | Mar 29, 2009

  258. Some Notes from Podcamp | Mar 28, 2009

  259. Interviews that Shaped My Podcasting Style and Approach | Mar 27, 2009

  260. InDesignSecrets » Blog Archive » Eliminating YDB (Yucky Discolored Box) Syndrome | Mar 26, 2009

  261. Check Your Site's Loading Time | Mar 25, 2009

  262. Survey About Technical Writers' Training Needs for 2009 | Mar 25, 2009

  263. Introduction to Technical Writing (podcast) | Mar 24, 2009

  264. Managing Writers: Interview with Richard Hamilton (podcast) | Mar 23, 2009

  265. What To Do When You're Not Picked to Be America's Next Top Tech Writer | Mar 20, 2009

  266. New Feature: Regular Guest Posts | Mar 19, 2009

  267. Why I Don't Take Freelance Writing Jobs Anymore | Mar 19, 2009

  268. WordPress Tip: Introduction to WordPress -- Webinar, April 14 | Mar 18, 2009

  269. Jane's Presentation, Twitter for Business (podcast) | Mar 15, 2009

  270. Examples of Perfect Screencasts | Mar 10, 2009

  271. "Like My Own Personal Brand of Heroin" | Mar 10, 2009

  272. HD Screencast Example | Mar 8, 2009

  273. Managing Your Social Media Profiles and Badges | Mar 8, 2009

  274. The Importance of Validation (video) | Mar 7, 2009

  275. Notes Watching Senior Users at the Computer | Mar 6, 2009

  276. Podcamp Salt Lake City, March 27 -- "Interviewing Remote and Local Guests for Podcasts" | Mar 4, 2009

  277. Podcast -- Blogging for Technical Communicators Webinar (Part 2) | Mar 4, 2009

  278. Podcast -- Blogging for Technical Communicators Webinar (Part 1) | Mar 3, 2009

  279. STC Speaker's Registry | Find experts fast | Mar 2, 2009

  280. Emotional States of Computer Users in Times of Frustration | Mar 2, 2009

  281. Lessons Learned with Quick Reference Guides: Timing and Truth | Feb 26, 2009

  282. STC Presentation this Thursday: "Quick Reference Guides: Short and Sweet Technical Documentation" | Feb 25, 2009

  283. Translating with the New Madcap Lingo V2 | Feb 24, 2009

  284. CSS-Tricks #1: Converting a Photoshop Mockup (part 1 of 3) | Feb 23, 2009

  285. InDesignSecrets | Feb 20, 2009

  287. WordPress Tip: Rotating Flash Tag Clouds | Feb 19, 2009

  288. Blogging Webinar Thursday Evening | Feb 18, 2009

  289. WordPress Tip: Podcasts on WordPress: WordPress Weekly from the WordPress Tavern | Feb 16, 2009

  290. Communication Preferences and Jane's Voicemail Message | Feb 15, 2009

  291. "You know what .chms need? More bling-bling. More flash..." | Feb 14, 2009

  292. robfelty.com :: Blog :: Collapsing Pages | Feb 13, 2009

  293. Tip: Automatically Push Your Latest Blog Posts Across Twitter | Feb 13, 2009

  294. Can SharePoint 2007 Be Used as a Help Authoring Tool? | Feb 11, 2009

  295. Embedding HD Quality Screencasts in Your Blog | Feb 9, 2009

  296. WordPress Tip: Merging Worlds: DITA and WordPress | Feb 8, 2009

  297. Free Screen Sharing Software: Adobe Connect | Feb 6, 2009

  298. Documentation Review Techniques (videocast) | Feb 5, 2009

  299. TiltViewer - About | Feb 4, 2009

  300. Structured Authoring Survey from Scriptorium | Feb 2, 2009

  301. 10 Things I Learned from My Last Podcast | Feb 2, 2009

  302. Podcast: Make Your Help Indispensable, Safeguard Your Job | Jan 31, 2009

  303. A Five-Click Solution to Publishing and Uploading Screen Videos to SharePoint | Jan 31, 2009

  304. Customizing a SharePoint Site | Jan 28, 2009

  305. Added a Blog Wall to my site | Jan 26, 2009

  306. DITA Topics Tutorial | Jan 26, 2009

  307. Embracing Opportunity | Jan 25, 2009

  308. Premium WordPress Themes, WordPress 2.5 Premium Themes, Premium Wordpress Blog Templates | Blog Oh Blog | Jan 25, 2009

  309. Web Design WordPress function list | Jan 24, 2009

  310. Where I Stand on DITA | Jan 23, 2009

  311. Styling Category Levels in WordPress (video) | Jan 23, 2009

  312. Below the Line: Podcasters report their top 3 podcasting tips - part 1 | Jan 22, 2009

  313. Coding Horror: The Two Types of Browser Zoom | Jan 22, 2009

  314. Great Books by Writers Who Aren't Dead Yet | Jan 21, 2009

  315. Upcoming Presentations, or, Blogging and Increased Visibility | Jan 21, 2009

  316. Thoughts on Troubleshooting and Problem Solving | Jan 19, 2009

  317. WordPress TV Launches -- The Appeal of Video Continues to Expand | Jan 18, 2009

  318. Screencasting -- Workflow and Presentation, by Collin Turner (Podcast) | Jan 17, 2009

  319. Twittering Tips for Beginners - Pogue's Posts Blog - NYTimes.com | Jan 15, 2009

  320. A Technical Writer with Extra Privileges? Responding to a Question about Roles (Videocast) | Jan 15, 2009

  321. Poll: What blogging software is available for use at your work? | Jan 12, 2009

  322. Top Technical Communication News for January 2009 | Jan 11, 2009

  323. WritersUA Salary Survey, Tools Survey, and Upcoming Conference | Jan 10, 2009

  324. My STC Intercom Article about Writer River and Community-Driven Websites | Jan 10, 2009

  325. Tech Comm Toolbox: a Directory of Tools, Consultants, and Conferences | Jan 10, 2009

  326. Dilbert animated shorts from your favorite comic strips | Jan 9, 2009

  327. Flare Context Sensitive Help – Focusing the Minimized Help Window Back on Top | Jan 8, 2009

  328. WordPress Tip: Questions I'm Often Asked About WordPress and Blogging | Jan 8, 2009

  329. Wrapping up 2008 – Successes, Failures, and Goals for the Next Year | Jan 6, 2009

  330. Tech Comm Toolbox | Jan 6, 2009

  331. Podcast: Help Authoring with Doc-To-Help 2009, Interview with Nicky Bleiel | Jan 5, 2009

  332. Good Designs Have Strong Contrast | Jan 3, 2009

  333. The Pleasure of Language -- Essential Listening for Hyper-corrective Grammarians | Jan 2, 2009

  334. How to Create Columns with CSS Float | eHow.com | Jan 1, 2009

2008 archives

  1. Quick Reference Guide Formats -- Tips for Finding Attractive Layouts | Dec 31, 2008

  2. Generational tech guilt? | Dec 30, 2008

  3. WordPress Tip: Integrate WordPress into an Existing Website | Dec 28, 2008

  4. A Tech Writer's World: A Killer Manual | Dec 26, 2008

  5. Podcast: Technical Writing in Agile Environments -- Interview with Alyssa Fox | Dec 23, 2008

  6. Documentation Honesty and Poor User Interfaces -- An Ethical Dilemma? | Dec 21, 2008

  7. What I See -- James Hall's Essays and Florida | Dec 21, 2008

  8. The Podfading Roller Coaster | Dec 15, 2008

  9. Podcast: What Is the Technical Writer's Role in Interface Design? Interview with Bogo Vatovec | Dec 14, 2008

  10. WordPress 2.7 Released - XML-RPC and AtomPub Changes || Joseph Scott | Dec 12, 2008

  11. When Trust Becomes a Characteristic Flaw in a Project | Dec 11, 2008

  12. Twitter Hashtags and Virtual Gatherings | Dec 10, 2008

  13. Generations Change, But Help Formats Remain the Same? | Dec 9, 2008

  14. Helpful Little Tips for Life | Dec 7, 2008

  15. Writers See Stories Where Others Don't | Dec 7, 2008

  16. Twitter Part II –- One Step Deeper | Dec 5, 2008

  17. The Name of Your Department Does Matter | Dec 4, 2008

  19. Does Twitter Fit into Your Branding Strategy? | Dec 1, 2008

  20. Top 10 Gag Christmas Gifts for Technical Writers | Nov 30, 2008

  21. Guy Kawasaki's Alltop Site Now Includes Technical Writing | Nov 29, 2008

  22. Snippets Toward a Philosophy of Life | Nov 28, 2008

  23. The Problem with Speaking Conversationally in Video Tutorials | Nov 27, 2008

  24. What Constitutes "Intelligent Content"? Interview with Ann Rockley | Nov 24, 2008

  25. Transitioning from Literary Studies to Technical Communication | Nov 20, 2008

  26. User Assistance: Will Write for Metamucil | Nov 19, 2008

  27. My Tip for Productivity: Tear Up the To-Do List | Nov 18, 2008

  28. Usability Newsletter Interview – I'd Rather Be Writing – The Man Behind the Words | Nov 17, 2008

  29. Does Design Matter in Comparison to Content? | Nov 16, 2008

  30. Finding a Conversational Voice in Video Tutorials | Nov 14, 2008

  31. Details About the STC Summit Recording -- Interview with Lloyd Tucker | Nov 13, 2008

  32. Dawn or Dusk -- Considering the Advantages of Early Morning | Nov 12, 2008

  33. You Can Now Advertise on My Blog | Nov 10, 2008

  34. Author-it Launches a Blog -- An Interview About the Who, Why, and How | Nov 9, 2008

  35. 'Lost the Fire – How to Rekindle It' – A Second Response | Nov 7, 2008

  37. Guest Post: Tech Writing Careers -- The Raw, Unvarnished Truth | Nov 4, 2008

  38. Podcast: Debunking the Boredom Myth of Technical Writing | Nov 3, 2008

  39. Guest Post: Real Writers in Virtual Worlds | Oct 30, 2008

  40. Podcast: Personalities of Technical Communicators -- Interview with Deborah (Shapiro) Hemstreet | Oct 29, 2008

  41. Two-Minute Video to Convince Others of the Value of Technical Documentation | Oct 29, 2008

  42. Interview with Scott Abel, Conference Organizer Extraordinaire | Oct 27, 2008

  43. 10/23 Intermountain STC Meeting: An Informal Discussion of Any Tech Comm Challenges You're Facing | Oct 23, 2008

  44. Seamlessly Integrating a Blog into Your Non-Blog Website | Oct 23, 2008

  45. Caught in the Current of Writer River: Building and Participating in Community-Driven Websites | Oct 21, 2008

  46. 10 Ways to Gather Feedback from Users | Oct 17, 2008

  47. What We Learn from Help Authoring Tool Surveys | Oct 15, 2008

  48. Like Father, Like Daughter | Oct 13, 2008

  49. Becoming a Writer -- Reflections on a Trip to Idaho | Oct 13, 2008

  50. Results for My 10 Technical Writing Stereotypes Survey | Oct 8, 2008

  51. Answering Reader's Questions: 'My Desire to Write Burns in My Heart Daily' | Oct 7, 2008

  52. HelpScribe: Why software is the best technical writing field | Oct 6, 2008

  53. Ingenious Technique for Helping Your Child Learn to Ride a Bike | Oct 3, 2008

  54. Free Ticket to DITA Tech/Comm Conference in North Carolina Nov 3-6 | Oct 2, 2008

  55. Ten Technical Writing Stereotypes | Sep 28, 2008

  56. WordPress Tip: Using WordPress as a CMS -- Wordcamp Utah | Sep 27, 2008

  57. SEO Tips for Your Blog -- Wordcamp Utah | Sep 27, 2008

  58. WordPress Tip: WordPress and Podcasting — Wordcamp Utah | Sep 27, 2008

  59. WordPress Tip: WordPress 2.7 and Beyond – Keynote by Matt Mullenweg at Wordcamp Utah 2008 | Sep 27, 2008

  60. Free Doc Train East Ticket | Sep 25, 2008

  61. Leaning Towards Longer Topics and Shorter TOCs | Sep 22, 2008

  63. Podcast: Repurposing Content for Multichannel Publishing (Single Sourcing) | Sep 19, 2008

  64. Users Read Help Manuals Like an Encyclopedia, Not a Novel | Sep 19, 2008

  65. Tip: Search Engine Optimize Your Blog Posts to Increase Your Readership | Sep 18, 2008

  66. WordPress Tip: Limau-Orange Theme with Navigation Bar from Contempt | Sep 18, 2008

  67. STC-Intermountain Meeting Tonight | Sep 17, 2008

  68. Watch What Happens When You Copy from Word into a Blog Post | Sep 17, 2008

  69. Thinking About an STC Proposal to Submit | Sep 17, 2008

  70. What's Convenient Gets Used -- a General Principle That Applies to Nearly Everything | Sep 17, 2008

  71. Wordcamp Utah -- Sept 27 in Provo, Utah | Sep 17, 2008

  72. How I Create Video Tutorials | Sep 11, 2008

  73. Prove My Help Authoring Tools Survey Wrong | Sep 10, 2008

  74. Help Authoring Tool Survey: Who, What, and How | Sep 10, 2008

  75. How Much Should You Document? Everything? Strategies for an Agile Environment | Sep 9, 2008

  76. Podcast: Flare 4 -- Ten New Features, Interview with Sharon Burton | Sep 8, 2008

  77. FLOSSmanuals.net: A New Wiki Help Authoring/Publishing Tool Hybrid | Sep 5, 2008

  78. Podcast: What's New in the Field of Technical Communication? | Sep 5, 2008

  79. Why I Hate Camping -- And Then an Epiphany | Sep 4, 2008

  80. Flare 4 Giveway — Enter to Win a Free Copy by Commenting on This Post | I'd Rather Be Writing - Tom Johnson | Sep 3, 2008

  81. Explain what you feel is an important feature for a help authoring tool and why (Flare Giveaway) | Sep 3, 2008

  82. Everything That Happened Today, or, The Busy Lives We Lead | Sep 3, 2008

  83. Utah Technical Writers Group -- Finding the Technical Writing Community in Utah | Sep 1, 2008

  84. Resources for Single Sourcing Projects | Sep 1, 2008

  85. Comprehensive Podcast Index -- A List of All My Podcasts | Sep 1, 2008

  86. On Podcasts -- Reasons for the Break and Plans for the Future | Sep 1, 2008

  87. WordPress Tip: WordPress as a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Application | Aug 30, 2008

  88. Corporate Migration to the Blogosphere | Aug 27, 2008

  89. Another Collaborative Site: Read Scriptures Together | Aug 27, 2008

  90. How to Listen to Podcasts | Aug 21, 2008

  91. Too Connected – Utopias and Dystopias of Communication | Aug 18, 2008

  92. With All This Fuss About Tools, Three Best Practice Attitudes | Aug 13, 2008

  93. User Assistance: Why I Hate PDFs | Aug 13, 2008

  94. WordCamp Utah Registration Is Now Open - Joseph Scott's Blog | Aug 10, 2008

  95. Word Macro for Resizing Images that Have a Specific Style | Aug 9, 2008

  96. Tapping your creative juices Interesting ... | Aug 8, 2008

  97. An Article That Changed My Approach to Help | Aug 7, 2008

  98. Instructional Text in the User Interface: Some Counterintuitive Implications of User Behaviors :: UXmatters | Aug 7, 2008

  100. Free PDF Alternatives -- Save Yourself $700 and a Headache | Aug 5, 2008

  101. A History of Tech Comm Tools. This is a ... | Aug 5, 2008

  102. Echoes from the past: DITA, Help, Single-Sourcing tools -- Looking from the 60s to today | Aug 4, 2008

  103. Get Training in Technical Writing | Aug 3, 2008

  104. A Career in Technical Writing: End of Part One : PoeWar.com Writer's Resource Center | Aug 3, 2008

  105. Thank You Silahsiz Kuvvetler for Showing Me the Light | Aug 3, 2008

  106. Personal Essays on a Technical Writing Career -- by John Hewitt | Aug 1, 2008

  107. The Myth of Simplicity and Complexity in Help Authoring | Aug 1, 2008

  108. WordPress Tip: Show the Latest Post in Full, Then Summaries of the Other Posts | Jul 31, 2008

  109. WordPress Tip: WordPress' Biggest Mistake | Jul 29, 2008

  110. Reader Question: Creating Online Help for Touch-Screen Applications? | Jul 27, 2008

  111. New Site Policy About How I Respond to Questions | Jul 27, 2008

  112. Organizing Large Photo Collections Online -- Use the NextGen Gallery WordPress Plugin | Jul 27, 2008

  113. When you don't feel like blogging, is it time to blog? | Jul 27, 2008

  114. Tips for Distributing the Workload Among Your Team -- Answering a Reader's Question | Jul 23, 2008

  115. Venn Diagram of What a Blog Should Be About | Jul 22, 2008

  116. When can I say "janky" in my on-screen text? | Jul 18, 2008

  117. WordPress Training This Saturday 9 am to Noon | Jul 14, 2008

  118. WordPress Tip: WordPress Image Galleries — Give Your Photo Galleries a Lightbox/Slideshowesque Display | Jul 10, 2008

  119. WordPress Tip: Woopra — Enough Live Site Stats to Write a Dissertation | Jul 8, 2008

  120. Quick Reference Guides: The Poetry of Technical Writing | Jul 6, 2008

  121. The Intersection of the Personal and Professional, or, Why My Attempts at Nonfiction Essays in Grad School Bombed | Jul 5, 2008

  122. Approaching Help as Solutions to Problems — An Interesting Format from the CSS Cookbook | Jul 1, 2008

  123. Interview with Me in TechCraft | Jul 1, 2008

  124. "What's Next?" -- A Nice Way to End Help Topics | Jun 28, 2008

  125. 14 Widespread Myths about Technical Writing | Jun 26, 2008

  126. My Compromise with SharePoint -- What Works and What Doesn't | Jun 23, 2008

  127. My WordPress Site Was Hacked | Jun 22, 2008

  128. Customizing Your SharePoint Site? Read These 10 Concepts/Gotchas First | Jun 21, 2008

  129. Podcast: Five Books to Add to Your Technical Communication Library | Jun 16, 2008

  130. The Kind of Documentation Users Really Want | Jun 15, 2008

  131. "How can I become a successful TECHNICAL WRITER?" | Jun 15, 2008

  132. Systems that Get Better the More People Use Them | Jun 12, 2008

  133. Announcing WriterRiver.com, a Digg-like Social News Site for Technical Communicators | Jun 10, 2008

  134. Technical Writer as Conversation Stopper, and Other Notes from the STC Summit in Philadelphia | Jun 7, 2008

  135. My First Guest Post -- And Best Writing Tip | Jun 5, 2008

  136. Playing with Sound -- Adding Downbeat Tempo to a Discourse on Shakespeare | Jun 2, 2008

  137. Follow the STC Conference Twitterers at http://twemes.com/stc2008 | Jun 2, 2008

  138. Marketing Yourself and Your Experience to Others in a Web 2.0 World | Jun 2, 2008

  139. Podcast: Using Video in Training and Documentation, Interview with Todd O'Neill | May 31, 2008

  140. Podcast: Analyzing Your Users and Needs Before Creating the Help Deliverables; Interview with Nicky Bleiel | May 31, 2008

  141. My STC Summit Presentation and Panel -- "The Art of the Podcast" and Marketing Yourself in a Web 2.0 World | May 30, 2008

  142. Podcast: How to Create User-Centered Documentation, Interview with Joe Sokohl | May 30, 2008

  143. Exploring Web 2.0 Possibilities in a SharePoint-Endorsed Environment | May 28, 2008

  144. Integrating All Library Content into One | May 27, 2008

  145. Thinking About a More Personal Style of Podcasting | May 27, 2008

  146. Podcast: Workspaces, Collaboration, and Information Sharing -- Interview with Emma Hamer | May 25, 2008

  147. Podcast: Why Content Management Projects Fail, Interview with Rahel Bailie | May 25, 2008

  148. Podcast: How XML Enables Information Sharing and Reuse -- Interview with Joe Gollner | May 25, 2008

  149. Feedback on the Podcast From a German Listener | May 20, 2008

  150. Poewar Giving Away $250 to the Guest Blogger Who Brings in the Most Traffic | May 20, 2008

  151. Scott Nesbitt Interview with Stewart Mader on Wikis | May 20, 2008

  152. Musings of a Tech Writer Podcast -- Mark in Canada Reflects on The Content Wrangler Versus the STC | May 19, 2008

  153. Podcast: XSL, Flash, and Live Blogging -- Interview with Sarah O'Keefe | May 17, 2008

  154. Podcast: Document Engineering, Interview with Robert Glushko | May 17, 2008

  155. SharePoint Wikis: Both Liberating and Frustrating | May 17, 2008

  156. Giving a Virtual Presentation to STC-Phoenix on Tuesday, May 13 | May 12, 2008

  157. Post Doc-Train Thoughts While Sitting in the Vancouver Airport | May 12, 2008

  158. Podcast: Living Multiple Lives -- The New Technical Communicator, Interview with Noz Urbina | May 11, 2008

  159. Podcast: Embracing Wikis -- Interview with Stewart Mader | May 10, 2008

  160. Changing the Rules of the Game for the Benefit of the User | May 8, 2008

  161. Social Media 101: Now Everyone's a Technical Writer | May 8, 2008

  162. Podcast: Moving 50,000 Pages of Unstructured Content to DITA | May 6, 2008

  163. The 10/20/30 Rule of PowerPoint That I Wish Everyone Followed | May 6, 2008

  164. Podcast: Leading Your Company into the Wikis, Blogs, and Social Networks of Web 2.0 | May 6, 2008

  165. WordPress Tip: Using WordPress to Build Websites Instead of Blogs | May 5, 2008

  166. WordPress Tip: My WordPress Quick Start Guide — Now Available on the WordPress Codex | Apr 29, 2008

  167. WordPress for Beginners Course | Apr 27, 2008

  168. The Broken STC Model -- and What's Replacing It | Apr 24, 2008

  169. Updated Date and Time for WordPress Course -- Wednesday Evening, April 30 | Apr 24, 2008

  170. Madcap Blaze's Topic Review Feature: A First-of-a Kind Feature with an Interesting Workflow | Apr 24, 2008

  171. Podcast -- DITA: From the Perspective of Someone Actually Using It | Apr 21, 2008

  172. WordPress for Beginners Course -- Wednesday Evening, April 30 | Apr 20, 2008

  173. Why Software Applications Need Product Blogs, and Why They Don't Get Them | Apr 16, 2008

  174. How Much Time Do You Spend in Web 2.0 -- Interesting Article from the Read/Write Web | Apr 16, 2008

  175. Find a Way to Have Fun in Your Writing | Apr 14, 2008

  176. Looking for Corporate Examples of Web 2.0 Engagement | Apr 13, 2008

  177. Podcast -- Social Networking and the Value of User Communities for Technical Communicators | Apr 12, 2008

  178. Guest Post -- From Blogging Veterans: Three Keys to Successful Blogging | Apr 11, 2008

  179. The Right Way and Wrong Way to Teach People WordPress: Notes from a Wordcamp Utah Planning Meeting at Applebees | Apr 11, 2008

  180. Podcaster Meetup at Doc Train West Conference in Vancouver | Apr 10, 2008

  181. Technical Writing -- Worth it? Interesting? Creative? Well-Paid? Hours? Answering a Few Questions from Saudi Arabia | Apr 9, 2008

  182. Keep an Open Mind: Detention Without Amanda Jones Isn't Necessarily Bad | Apr 8, 2008

  183. NY Times Article Suggests Effects of Blogging = Weight Loss/Gain, Sleep Disorder, Exhaustion, Heart Disease, and Nervous Breakdown | Apr 6, 2008

  184. How to Get Your Blog Mentioned in the Society for Technical Communication's Intercom: Include the Word "Technical Communicator" | Apr 4, 2008

  185. A Recipe for More Engaging Software Demos | Apr 3, 2008

  186. Podcast -- Transitioning from Technical Writing into Usability | Apr 2, 2008

  187. My Podcast in iTunes -- The iTunes Gods Have Granted Me Mercy | Apr 2, 2008

  188. The Question No One Asked Me at the Career Advice Panel, Thank Goodness | Apr 1, 2008

  189. The Best and Worst of Times with a Hard Headed Woman | Mar 31, 2008

  190. Twitter Tools and Uses: The Most Comprehensive Listing of Twitter Resources I've Seen | Mar 30, 2008

  191. A Creepy Widget I Absolutely Had to Add to My Blog | Mar 30, 2008

  192. I Enjoy a Good Alien Podcast Now and Then | Mar 29, 2008

  193. How to Get Everyone and Their Dog/Family/Friends Reading and Subscribing to Your Blog -- 10 Tips | Mar 28, 2008

  194. What's the Best Thing You've Done to Grow Your Career? | Mar 27, 2008

  195. I'm Planning to Offer WordPress Training -- Are You Interested? | Mar 26, 2008

  196. Four Simple Ways to Avoid Totally Botching an Interview | Mar 26, 2008

  197. Podcast -- Tackling Godzilla: A Writer/Usability Consultant Reflects on the Largest Project of her Career | Mar 26, 2008

  198. Virtual Meetings: A Lofty Yet Impractical and Unwanted Ideal? or Exactly What We Need? | Mar 26, 2008

  199. Seven Reasons Why I'm Twittering -- Especially During Conference Time | Mar 17, 2008

  200. Are You One of the 824 Technical Communicators on Ning Yet? | Mar 15, 2008

  201. Uncooperative Subjects: A Comparison of Two Failed Interviews and How to Turn Them Around | Mar 14, 2008

  202. Body Hacks and Optimization | Mar 14, 2008

  203. 10 Alternate Tests for Evaluating Technical Writing Job Candidates -- A List for Hiring Managers | Mar 13, 2008

  204. Six Ways I'm Using the H4 Zoom Recorder to Do Technical-Writing Related Things | Mar 12, 2008

  205. Lots of 2008 SXSW Podcasts Now Available | Mar 10, 2008

  206. My 5 Pet Peeves with Reading Blogs (mostly surrounding comments and feeds) | Mar 9, 2008

  207. Deciding When to Speak Up and When to Shut Up | Mar 8, 2008

  208. Two Types of Posts in the Blogosphere: Knowledge Posts and Creative Posts | Mar 7, 2008

  209. Recording SME Demos -- It's Easier Than You Think | Mar 4, 2008

  210. How to Record Live Presentations with the Zoom H4 Digital Recorder | Mar 2, 2008

  211. My Blogging and Podcasting Presentation -- the MP3 and Video Recording | Mar 2, 2008

  212. Stoking the Creative Muse: How Finding Ideas to Write About Is Similar to Remembering Your Dreams | Feb 29, 2008

  213. How My BlackBerry May Benefit You | Feb 27, 2008

  214. A blogging family | Feb 25, 2008

  215. Eight stitches for Susan | Feb 25, 2008

  216. CNN Producer Fired for His Blog -- A Growing Discontent for Mainstream Media | Feb 24, 2008

  217. 10 Ways to Bomb Your Presentation | Feb 23, 2008

  218. My Love Affair with Drop-Down Hotspots Ends | Feb 21, 2008

  219. Have a Blog? a Podcast? Want one? Come learn everything you need to know | Feb 20, 2008

  220. Why You Should Send Me (and Other Bloggers) Your Products for Free | Feb 20, 2008

  221. A Glimpse into the World of Agile Technical Writing, a.k.a. Extreme Technical Writing (XTW) | Feb 19, 2008

  222. Welcoming Camtasia Studio as a New Blog Sponsor | Feb 18, 2008

  223. Two New Blogs to Add to Your Reader: Craig Haiss' Helpscribe and Sharon Burton's Madcap Blog | Feb 17, 2008

  224. "Selection Beats Damping": A Compelling Argument About Why Blogs Trump Print Media | Feb 17, 2008

  225. Technical Writing Careers -- Answering 13 Questions about Technical Writing Jobs | Feb 16, 2008

  226. Top 10 Workspace Configurations for Technical Writers | Feb 15, 2008

  227. Free Doc Train Ticket ($899) for Your Response to a Question About Innovation | Feb 14, 2008

  228. Survey Results: How I'm Changing My Blog Based on Your Responses | Feb 13, 2008

  229. Jing Screencast: Getting Up and Running with Jing | Feb 12, 2008

  230. Are Gerunds in Topic Titles Problematic in Search Results? | Feb 11, 2008

  231. How Jing Can Benefit Technical Writers | Feb 11, 2008

  232. Will you take my short survey? | Feb 7, 2008

  233. Answering Questions on the "Practicalities of Blogging" | Feb 6, 2008

  234. A Web 2.0 Documentation Idea Gone Wrong | Feb 6, 2008

  235. I wish all companies provided tech support like this | Feb 6, 2008

  236. Blogger Compiles Extensive Examples of Unnecessary Quotation Marks | Feb 6, 2008

  237. Interview with STC President Linda Oestreich: Directions the STC Is Heading | Feb 5, 2008

  238. Notes from My First WordPress Meetup | Feb 4, 2008

  239. Camtasia Versus Captivate: Thinking About Screen Real Estate Problems in Video Captures | Feb 2, 2008

  240. Madcap Flare Review: 45 Things I Love About Flare, 31 Things I Hate About It | Jan 31, 2008

  241. 2008 WritersUA Salary Survey Published: $76K Is Average | Jan 30, 2008

  242. Going Beyond Technical Writing: Practical Advice for Diversifying Your Skillset -- Podcast Interview with Mark Hanigan | Jan 29, 2008

  243. Blogging Jobs for Technical How-to Articles | Jan 28, 2008

  244. PodcastFAQs.com: A New Information Resource for Podcasters | Jan 28, 2008

  245. President Hinckley Passes | Jan 28, 2008

  246. Clearplay: An Ingenious DVD Player That Filters Movies Without Altering Them | Jan 28, 2008

  247. WordPress Meetup in Salt Lake City with Matt Mullenweg | Jan 28, 2008

  248. Upcoming PodCamp in Salt Lake City on March 15 | Jan 28, 2008

  249. The Art of Interviewing — 10 Tips for Perfecting the Most Important Element of Podcasting | Jan 25, 2008

  250. Innovation in Technology -- During Research, Unexpected Findings Lead You Down New Paths | Jan 21, 2008

  251. All About Madcap Flare: Podcast Interview with Paul Pehrson, MVP in Madcap Software Forums | Jan 19, 2008

  252. How to Share Everything with Everyone (well, a few things anyway) | Jan 18, 2008

  253. How to Get Out of a Slump, and Handle Pressure Situations Calmly | Jan 15, 2008

  254. The Impact of Social Media on Technical Communication -- Podcast Interview with Bill Albing | Jan 14, 2008

  255. "Regular Sloggers Trying to Make a Living" | Jan 10, 2008

  256. Three Notable Characteristics of Top 10 Posts: Lists, Headings, Images | Jan 9, 2008

  258. Why Some Leaders Don't Blog: The Untold Story | Jan 4, 2008

  259. The #1 Reason Why People Fail at Their Goals | Jan 2, 2008

2007 archives

  1. "The great new tool for writing a book today is a blog ..." | Dec 31, 2007

  2. My Blog and Podcast Site Are Now Merged into One -- Steps on How I Did It | Dec 29, 2007

  3. Jeter Interviews Mike Hamilton at Former Blue Sky Software Office in La Jolla, Calif. | Dec 29, 2007

  4. "Could you please tell me what the job of a technical writer is like?" | Dec 21, 2007

  5. Adventures with the New Technical Communication Suite from Adobe (mostly RoboHelp 7 and Captivate) | Dec 19, 2007

  6. The Hardest Part About Blogging: Coming Up With Something Interesting to Say | Dec 19, 2007

  7. Why People Think Help Is Useless, and How To Change This Thought | Dec 19, 2007

  8. Myths of Innovation: Brilliant Ideas Come From Constant Reflection, Not Random Chance | Dec 15, 2007

  9. Interesting Technique for Discovering Software Changes and Building Rapport with developers | Dec 15, 2007

  10. Reading this post made me want to be a workaholic | Dec 12, 2007

  11. A Good Response to "No One Reads the Help Anyway" | Dec 11, 2007

  12. Goodbye Podpress, it's time for a new mp3 player | Dec 10, 2007

  13. Technical Communication Suite from Adobe -- Interview with RJ Jacquez | Dec 10, 2007

  15. 99% of people who buy iPods don't realize several simple things ... | Dec 6, 2007

  16. Show Me Demos and Captivate -- Interview with Kevin Siegel | Dec 5, 2007

  17. Sample Integration of Captivate Screen Demos in RoboHelp Hotspots | Nov 28, 2007

  18. Free Copies of SnagIt 7 and Camtasia 3 | Nov 28, 2007

  19. Musicophillia -- The Brain's Unexplainable Affinity for Music | Nov 27, 2007

  20. Thoughts on Adobe's New Technical Communication Suite | Nov 24, 2007

  21. Embracing the New Vernacular Instead of Pursuing the Holy Grail of Single Sourcing | Nov 22, 2007

  22. Special DMN Communications Podcast with Tech Writer Voices (me): Are you Hurting Your Career By Not Blogging or Podcasting? | Nov 19, 2007

  23. Top 10 Worst Things SMEs Say or Do -- Interview with Brenda Huettner | Nov 12, 2007

  24. IT Author Podcast -- Two Podcasts on Flare, One on the Making of a Technical Writer, and a Dogcast on User Psychology | Nov 12, 2007

  25. Online Anonymous Rating Sites: Empowering Individual Voices | Nov 7, 2007

  26. Building Online Communities: Interview with Svi Ben-Elya about Elephant.org.il | Nov 6, 2007

  27. Is Podcasting Dead? Jason Van Orden Versus Read/Write Web | Nov 6, 2007

  28. MadCap Software Sponsors the Tech Writer Voices Podcast | Nov 5, 2007

  29. Brain Waves and the Stimulation of Motivation/Creativity | Nov 1, 2007

  30. Three Excellent Podcasts on Networking, Outsourcing, and DITA | Oct 29, 2007

  31. Tech Writer: "Someone who writes as opposed to someone who rides something" | Oct 28, 2007

  33. Innovation, Imagination, Creativity -- Google VP of Search Products Tells Story of Gmail | Oct 26, 2007

  34. "A self-forgetful, perfectly useless concentration" | Oct 25, 2007

  35. Reflections on Allison Reynold's Talk on Job Skills for the Workplace | Oct 23, 2007

  36. Getting Excited About the Upcoming STC Summit in Pennsylvania | Oct 19, 2007

  38. Answering Tough Questions About Wikis -- Interview with Anne Gentle | Oct 16, 2007

  39. The Rockley Group Blog Is Here! I have a couple of DITA questions | Oct 15, 2007

  40. My TechCraft Article: Should You Sit Near SMEs? | Oct 15, 2007

  41. Implementing WordPress 2.3's New Tagging Feature | Oct 7, 2007

  42. Counterpoints to "7 Blogging Beginner Mistakes" | Oct 6, 2007

  43. LunarPages Sponsors the Tech Writer Voices Podcast | Oct 5, 2007

  44. Usability Research Behind Microsoft's Ergonomic Keyboard | Oct 5, 2007

  45. New WordPress Plugin Enables One-Click Installation of Plugins and Themes | Oct 5, 2007

  46. News Posts versus Thought Posts | Sep 27, 2007

  47. Five Skills Every Technical Writer Needs | Sep 26, 2007

  48. My STC Intercom article: "Top 5 Podcasts for Technical Communicators" | Sep 21, 2007

  49. Why you shouldn't be afraid of offending others and racking up a few penalties | Sep 21, 2007

  50. Location is everything when it comes to getting information from SMEs — Carcast | Sep 20, 2007

  51. A blog worth adding to your feeds -- and reasons why | Sep 19, 2007

  52. My Shared Items from Google Reader | Sep 18, 2007

  53. Virtual Ways of Communicating — Char James-Tanny | Sep 17, 2007

  55. A Quick Way to Unsubscribe from Feeds in Google Reader | Sep 16, 2007

  56. Cool Example of AJAX in a Blog -- Increases Usability | Sep 15, 2007

  58. Extracting information from SMEs | Sep 9, 2007

  59. Three new resources to check out | Sep 8, 2007

  60. My online absence isn't a permanent vacation | Sep 8, 2007

  61. Thoughts on the Accumulation of Stuff [Junk] | Aug 20, 2007

  62. Closing One Chapter, Opening a New One | Aug 14, 2007

  63. Rethinking the Importance of Screenshots, Diagrams, and Other Visuals | Aug 10, 2007

  64. Tom is moving to Utah | Aug 7, 2007

  65. Gigzig: Shows Where You Were 5 Years Ago and Where You're Headed 5 Years From Now | Aug 4, 2007

  66. A Perfect Model for Online Tutorials -- MS Visio Shapes Course | Aug 4, 2007

  67. Survey for New USF Tech. Comm. Program -- Would These Courses Create Highly Qualified Tech Writers? | Aug 2, 2007

  68. Best Tech Writing Tip Ever: Watch a User Try to Follow Your Instructions | Aug 1, 2007

  69. Grasshoppers that Look Like Aliens | Jul 31, 2007

  70. Small and Simple Things -- The Best Kind of Goals | Jul 30, 2007

  71. Rethinking the Term "Users" | Jul 27, 2007

  72. Three Simple Mistakes Non-Technical Writers Make | Jul 27, 2007

  73. Thoughts on the Rapidly Changing Pace of Technology | Jul 24, 2007

  74. Tips for Avoiding a Sedentary Lifestyle in the Workplace | Jul 21, 2007

  75. Four-Wheeling in the Wasatch Front | Jul 21, 2007

  76. Resolving Browser Display Discrepancies Between IE and Firefox | Jul 17, 2007

  77. If I Had Ten Days to Live ... | Jul 10, 2007

  78. The Paradox of White Space: Some Research and Examples of White Space in Web Design | Jul 9, 2007

  79. Making Special, Hidden Categories Separate From Your Home Page and Feed | Jul 7, 2007

  80. Evening Fishing at the North Pier | Jul 7, 2007

  81. Counterargument to the Importance of Categories in Blogs | Jul 4, 2007

  82. Switching from Desktop to Online Tools | Jul 3, 2007

  83. Accessibility for Blogs? New Audio Feature: Listen to Posts | Jul 2, 2007

  84. Nicely Designed WordPress Blog — Simple, Lots of White Space | Jul 2, 2007

  85. Converting Your WordPress Blog into a CMS (Content Management System) | Jul 1, 2007

  86. David Pogue's Review of the iPhone -- Engaging Videocast Worth Watching | Jun 27, 2007

  87. Economic Prosperity Tied to Openness and Tolerance, says Richard Florida; Also, Thoughts on Inclusive, Distributed Leadership | Jun 27, 2007

  88. Search Engine Optimization for Your Blog: Three Easy Techniques, and also Drawbacks to SEO | Jun 26, 2007

  89. Wikis in Documentation: Ann Gentle Asks, Can Wikis Stand Alone, or Must They Be Supplements? | Jun 26, 2007

  90. Information Architecture: Organizing Chaos, Metadata, Taxonomy vs. Folksonomy, and the Dublin Core | Jun 21, 2007

  91. Lucy Smiles for the Camera -- Funny Photo | Jun 21, 2007

  92. Context-Sensitive Help -- An Easy Method Using Javascript | Jun 20, 2007

  93. POPURLS -- Consolidated News Aggregation From Digg, Del.icio.us, Reddit, Tailrank, Newsvine, and 20 Other Sites | Jun 20, 2007

  94. Special Father's Day Post: Description of My Dad | Jun 18, 2007

  95. Google Reader's Shared Items Feature -- Allows You to Easily Share Selected Posts from Your Feeds | Jun 18, 2007

  96. PostSecret -- a Postcard Confession Site, Fathers Theme | Jun 17, 2007

  97. Survey Results of My Blog's Readership and My Accompanying Analysis | Jun 16, 2007

  98. TechCrunch Founder Interview on iinnovate -- Arrington Talks About How Blogging Is a Treadmill | Jun 16, 2007

  99. Intro to Information Architecture -- Reflections on the Different Roles We Can Play | Jun 16, 2007

  100. My Podcast Picks | Jun 14, 2007

  101. Installing Mediawiki Is Much Easier Than The Instructions Suggest -- My Quick 10 Step Tutorial for Installing Mediawiki | Jun 14, 2007

  102. Madcap Flare Spotlight -- "Six Persistent Flare Problems" Post by Paul Pehrson | Jun 14, 2007

  103. A New Approach: Tech Comm News | Jun 14, 2007

  104. Google Master Plan Video -- Speculations on the Hidden Purposes Behind Google's Information Collection | Jun 13, 2007

  105. Everything Is Miscellaneous -- The Problem with Classifying Information | Jun 11, 2007

  106. Writing Style to Keep in Mind for Blog Posts -- Be Clearer Than Usual, State Main Point Up Front | Jun 11, 2007

  107. Punishing by Rewards -- Motivational Techniques That Don't Work | Jun 11, 2007

  108. Leadership Lesson: After Building Some Trust, Make Direct Invitations | Jun 7, 2007

  109. How Information Travels in the Blogosphere -- a funny anecdote | Jun 7, 2007

  111. How to Record Conference Calls -- Answering Reader's Question | Jun 6, 2007

  112. Lip Dub Video Clip Captures Essence of the Web -- Spontaneity, Authenticity, Participation, Fun | Jun 5, 2007

  113. Vista Help Emphasizes Concepts in Effort to Create Power Users | Jun 4, 2007

  114. Who are you? A one-question survey to identify my readers | Jun 4, 2007

  115. How Scoble Reads 622 RSS Feeds -- Thoughts and Reactions | Jun 4, 2007

  116. Installing Multiple Versions of WordPress on the Same Account, But Masking Them to Appear as Different Domains | May 31, 2007

  117. Vista and Office 2007: Presentation by David McNamee from Microsoft | May 31, 2007

  118. Google Maps Offers Mind-Blowing Street View -- It's Like Walking Around Virtually in a City | May 31, 2007

  119. Alan Houser Starts a Blog -- Check Out the Group Wellesley Wire | May 30, 2007

  120. The Return of the Newsletter — How to Keep the Newsletter Concept Without the Work | May 30, 2007

  121. How to Break into Technical Writing | May 27, 2007

  122. The Death of Associations -- Declining STC Statistics Prompt Innovation, Realigning of Value | May 24, 2007

  123. Usability Tip from Ricecooker Critiques Podcast -- Print the Documentation on the Product | May 23, 2007

  124. Former HP CEO Talks About Corporate America and Why Constant Innovation Drives Success | May 22, 2007

  125. WordPress 2.2 -- Here's Why It's Worth the Upgrade | May 22, 2007

  126. Be Careful When Upgrading to WordPress 2.2 If You Have the WP-Cache Plugin — Adventures in Backing Up and Restoring WordPress Databases | May 22, 2007

  127. My Podcasting Method for Face-to-Face Interviews | May 20, 2007

  128. Podcasting at the STC Conference: Reasons, Methods, and Reflections | May 19, 2007

  130. STC Conference: Geoff Sauer on tc.eserver.org, the Largest Tech Comm Index Online | May 19, 2007

  131. STC Conference: Rob Houser on Creating Nontraditional E-Learning | May 19, 2007

  132. STC Conference: Scott Abel on Web 2.0 | May 19, 2007

  133. STC Conference: Ann Rockley on the Rockley Group Blog and a New CMS Report | May 19, 2007

  134. STC Conference: Chris Thompson on Searching for a Content Management System | May 19, 2007

  135. STC Conference: Caroline Jarrett on User Interface Design | May 19, 2007

  136. STC Conference: Whitney Quesenbery on the Five E's of Usability | May 19, 2007

  137. STC Conference: Harry Miller on Multimedia Documentation | May 19, 2007

  138. STC Conference: Stephanie Bryant on Videoblogging | May 19, 2007

  139. STC Conference: Mike Brazill on Writing for Developers | May 19, 2007

  140. STC Conference: John Daigle on RoboHelp 7 | May 19, 2007

  141. STC Conference: Debbie Kennedy on Modular Writing and Reusability | May 19, 2007

  142. STC Conference: Joan Lasselle on Adopting Content Management | May 19, 2007

  143. STC Conference: Cindy Skawinski on Activity Diagrams (Uniform Modeling Language Artifacts) | May 19, 2007

  144. STC Conference: Adrienne Escoe on Recruiting | May 19, 2007

  145. STC Conference: Teresa Lipus, Snake River chapter, Southern Idaho and Eastern Oregon | May 19, 2007

  146. STC Conference: Deanne Levander, Twin Cities, Minnesota Chapter, and John Garison, Vermont | May 19, 2007

  147. STC Conference: Laurel Bowen, Oakridge Tennessee Chapter | May 19, 2007

  148. STC Conference: Brad Simmons, Ames, Iowa | May 19, 2007

  149. STC Conference: Michael Gernes, Central Iowa STC Community | May 19, 2007

  150. Leadership Day: Jackie Damrau, Dallas, Texas, and Rachel Houghton, Willamette Valley, Oregon | May 19, 2007

  151. Leadership Day: Jeanette Rogers, Seattle, Instructional Design & Learning SIG | May 19, 2007

  152. Leadership Day: Lorrie Corbett, Philadelphia Metro Chapter | May 19, 2007

  153. Leadership Day: Hillary Hart, Austin Chapter | May 19, 2007

  154. Leadership Day: Todd Race, Toronto chapter, Canadian Issues Group | May 19, 2007

  155. Leadership Day: Dan Dornbrook, Chicago Chapter | May 19, 2007

  156. Leadership Day: Melanie G. Flanders, China; Beau Cain, Director 8 | May 19, 2007

  157. Leadership Day: Paul Sinasohn, Berkeley Chapter, California | May 19, 2007

  158. Leadership Day: Holly Harkness, Al Hood, and Howard Speck — Atlanta Chapter | May 19, 2007

  159. Leadership Day: Rhevati Sampath and Wendy Tung, Berkeley Chapter, California | May 19, 2007

  160. Leadership Day: Kelly Schrank & Lou Martindale — Mid-South Chapter in Memphis and Suncoast Chapter in Tampa | May 19, 2007

  161. Leadership Day: Sue Kloster, Willamette Valley Chapter, Oregon | May 19, 2007

  162. Three Things to Avoid When Doing Face-to-Face Podcast Interviews | May 15, 2007

  163. Blog Carnivals and my 'Makes-Me-Smile Monday' Post | May 14, 2007

  164. On My Way to the STC conference in Minneapolis | May 12, 2007

  165. Graduating Kindergartener Asks Difficult Interview Questions | May 12, 2007

  166. Creating Help in the Web 2.0 Age — Presentation by Neil Perlin | May 10, 2007

  167. STC Atlanta Launches Podcast — Michelle Schoen Is Atlanta's Resident Podcaster | May 8, 2007

  168. Wikis in Action — The Top 57 Wikis by Rank | May 8, 2007

  169. Special Announcements: Add your blog to techwriterblogs.com wiki, and also support Tech Writer Voices | May 8, 2007

  170. Presentation on Writing and Web 2.0 by Keith Hoffman — Given at the University of Wisconsin | May 8, 2007

  171. Wikis Are Coming: An In-Depth Exploration of Using Wikis in Documentation — Interview with Katriel Reichman (Israel) | May 6, 2007

  172. Setting Up a Wiki in a Few Minutes — Installing Dokuwiki | May 6, 2007

  173. Help Support Tech Writer Voices — Consider this Our Spring Membership Campaign | May 5, 2007

  174. Calling All Tech Writing Bloggers: List Your Blog in the New Tech Writing Blog Directory Wiki | May 5, 2007

  175. Neil Perlin Enters Blogosphere and Gives Away Free Flare Stylesheets | May 4, 2007

  177. Google 411 -- Free Information Listings via Phone | May 2, 2007

  178. Perfect Explanation of RSS -- Engaging Video Tutorial | May 2, 2007

  179. A Few Conversations at Doc Train — User Personas, Data Conversion, and Simplified Technical English | May 1, 2007

  180. My First Carcast: Driving Home from Vancouver After the Doc Train Conference | Apr 30, 2007

  181. Free Conference Call Recording/Podcasting Service at FreeConferencing.LiveOffice.com | Apr 29, 2007

  182. Managing Virtual Teams: Getting the Most from Wikis, Blogs, and Other Collaborative Tools — Interview with the authors | Apr 29, 2007

  183. How Blogs Dominate Google — One Highly-Linked-To Blog Can Rule the World | Apr 28, 2007

  184. Jott—a Free Voicemail to Transcribed Text Memo Service | Apr 28, 2007

  185. Podcast Downloads Report -- About 8,500 downloads so far | Apr 25, 2007

  186. Interview with George Hayhoe, editor of Technical Communication Journal, on Technical Writing in China and Korea | Apr 25, 2007

  187. Podcast Site Redesign -- I'm Now Using the Leia Theme | Apr 25, 2007

  188. If you missed my presentation, here it is online (delivered through WordPress) | Apr 20, 2007

  189. Where I'm Going, My Aspirations -- Everything Seems to Align with Web 2.0 | Apr 20, 2007

  190. More Topics | Apr 19, 2007

  191. Basic Tutorial | Apr 19, 2007

  192. WordPress as a CMS | Apr 18, 2007

  193. Different Uses of WordPress | Apr 18, 2007

  194. Why Blog? | Apr 18, 2007

  195. Twenty Ways to Make Your Blog More Usable: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at WordPress | Apr 18, 2007

  196. Blog Usability Checklist | Apr 17, 2007

  197. Glamorous Careers Turn Out to Be Boring--This American Life Podcast | Apr 17, 2007

  198. WordPress Plugins: Take Your Blog's Functionality To a New Level | Apr 17, 2007

  199. Going to Vancouver on Tuesday for Doc Train Conference! | Apr 16, 2007

  200. New Theme Viewer: 39 WordPress Themes I Like | Apr 15, 2007

  201. WordPress Themes Crash Course: Everything You Need to Know to Get Started with Themes | Apr 15, 2007

  202. Unraveling the Geologic Stratum of the Blogosphere: Why We Blog | Apr 14, 2007

  203. RockYou—Create Dynamic Slideshows with Music for Your Site | Apr 13, 2007

  204. On Writing Better: Tips from a South by Southwest Panel | Apr 11, 2007

  205. Twenty Usability Tips for Your Blog — Condensed from Dozens of Bloggers' Experiences | Apr 9, 2007

  206. Defining Experiences: Five STC Candidates Share Influential Stories from the Tech Comm Field | Apr 8, 2007

  207. Making Help More Human, and other discussions | Apr 7, 2007

  208. Former MySpace Exec. Explains How Experience Can Be an Impediment to Success | Apr 5, 2007

  209. A Case for Corporate Transparency: How Channel 9 Changed Microsoft from the Darth Vader of Tech to Downright Visionary | Apr 5, 2007

  210. STC Candidates: Submit a Story about a Defining Moment in Your Career | Apr 4, 2007

  211. Answering Reader's Question: Can you give me a little information about the blogging section of your Web site? | Apr 3, 2007

  212. Susan Burton Provides an Inside, In-Depth Look at STC's Most Pressing Issues | Apr 2, 2007

  213. Google CEO's Advice for People Entering a Technology Career: Stay Engaged, Keep Learning and Trying Things | Mar 31, 2007

  214. How to Subscribe to RSS Feeds with Internet Explorer 7 | Mar 30, 2007

  215. Single Sourcing Wiki Tools for the Enterprise — Traction TeamPage5? | Mar 29, 2007

  216. MySQL CEO Says, "It is dangerous to hire someobody who has too much experience." | Mar 28, 2007

  217. WordPress vs. Movable Type: The Advantages of Open Source and What It Means for Technical Writers | Mar 27, 2007

  218. Special STC Elections Podcast: Interview with Nicky Bleiel, Candidate for Director | Mar 25, 2007

  219. Broken Days and Perfect Days | Mar 25, 2007

  220. Yahoo Pipes and the Mashed Up World of Aggregated, Filtered, Blended Information | Mar 24, 2007

  221. Three New Features for this Blog: a Post Index, Inbound Links Display, and Public Web Stats | Mar 22, 2007

  222. Finding Work You Love Vs. Loving the Work You Find | Mar 21, 2007

  223. Florida Competition Winner Explains Principle of Success: Brevity | Mar 20, 2007

  224. Corporate Blogging: Five Rules for Success in the Blogosophere | Mar 19, 2007

  225. Answering Reader's Questions: How To Keep Up with Work/Family Balance, and Which Tools to Use | Mar 18, 2007

  226. WritersUA Publishes 2007 Salary Survey; 73k Is Average | Mar 18, 2007

  227. Sierra Says Help Needs to Be Human, Conversational, and Geared Towards Panicky Users | Mar 18, 2007

  228. Special STC Election podcast: Call for Participants | Mar 16, 2007

  229. Dan Rather Podcast from South by Southwest: "Journalism needs a spine transplant; it has lost its guts" | Mar 16, 2007

  230. Is Technical Writing Boring? Tech Writers as Information Architects | Mar 14, 2007

  231. TECHWR-L and Technical Editing SIG Implement Drupal and WordPress | Mar 14, 2007

  232. The Evolutionary Strategy of Web 2.0 — It's Like Having 100 Personal Researchers Working For You | Mar 13, 2007

  233. Embedding an Audio Player into Your Site Without WordPress | Mar 13, 2007

  234. Nine Lessons for Would-be Bloggers -- Great Advice from Josh Porter on Overcoming Blogging Hangups | Mar 12, 2007

  235. Microformats and the Semantic Web | Mar 11, 2007

  236. Second Life: A 3-D Space for Virtual Meetups and Instruction? | Mar 9, 2007

  237. Wikinomics: Combining Wikis with Economics; the More You Share, the More You Win | Mar 8, 2007

  238. Librivox: Open Source Audio Books; You Contribute Your Own Readings | Mar 7, 2007

  239. Online Communities, Member Maps, Virtual Chats, Sparkpeople, Intercom, and More | Mar 7, 2007

  240. Plagiarism and Cannibalism Both Natural and Necessary, say Writers and Musicians | Mar 7, 2007

  241. Creating Passionate Users Explains How to Make the Best User Manual Ever | Mar 5, 2007

  242. Starting Your Own Blog: Tips for Non-profits | Mar 4, 2007

  243. Free Podcasts at Open Culture: Informational Podcasts on Almost Everything | Mar 3, 2007

  244. Looking at the Past; Exploring Directions for the Future | Mar 3, 2007

  245. Number One Issue for Technical Writers Today: Keeping Pace with Rapidly Evolving Technology | Mar 1, 2007

  246. Chapter Chat Results: It Went Well, But Only 4 Participated | Mar 1, 2007

  247. OPML Files — What Feeds Are You Following? | Mar 1, 2007

  248. Design good websites by following principles of technical writing style | Mar 1, 2007

  249. Examples of companies integrating podcasts into their mix of technical communication deliverables? | Feb 28, 2007

  250. 37 Signals, To Do Lists — Printable To Do Lists To Get Organized | Feb 27, 2007

  251. My First Virtual Administrative Meeting | Feb 27, 2007

  252. "I don't have time to listen to podcasts..." | Feb 27, 2007

  253. Review of Word 2007, Tool vs. Industry Experience, the Slow Movement, E-mail Tips, and More | Feb 27, 2007

  254. Grammar Girl Podcast — Some Thoughts on Grammar as a Topic for a Podcast | Feb 26, 2007

  255. Spinvox: The Next Killer App. for Cell Phones | Feb 24, 2007

  256. Integrating Google Adsense into this Blog | Feb 24, 2007

  257. Never Listen to Voicemail via Cell Phone Again — Callwave.com & Spinvox Deliver Voicemail to Email for Free | Feb 22, 2007

  258. Suncoast Member Map Finished | Feb 22, 2007

  259. Guy Kawasaki's Impossible Burden: After Blog and E-mail, There's No Time to Write the Book | Feb 22, 2007

  260. Matt Mullenweg Explains Genius of Akismet and Appeal of Fast Development Cycles | Feb 22, 2007

  261. Eric Schwartzman Talks About Integrating Podcasts into the Marketing Mix | Feb 21, 2007

  262. Virtual Meetings? Chat Feature | Feb 20, 2007

  263. Blogging for Your Future Employer | Feb 20, 2007

  264. Are Newsletters Dead? | Feb 17, 2007

  265. WordPress Easter Egg Defies Logic by Removing Styles | Feb 16, 2007

  266. Boagworld Shares Advice on Podcasting | Feb 16, 2007

  267. Ze Frank's Show — STC Speaker in Minneapolis Conference | Feb 15, 2007

  268. Doug Davis on the Job Side of Technical Writing — Location, Industry Experience, and Salary | Feb 15, 2007

  269. Two more surveys — Innovations and WritersUSA | Feb 15, 2007

  270. Podcast Revenue Idea: Provide 20 second Job Listing Spots in Place of Ads | Feb 14, 2007

  271. Reflections on the First Cohost Podcast | Feb 14, 2007

  272. First Cohost Podcast — A Natural Conversation about Technical Writing | Feb 14, 2007

  273. Is technical writing boring? | Feb 13, 2007

  274. DMN Comm. Podcast Gives Thumbs Down on RoboHelp; But More Interesting Is Shift in Style | Feb 12, 2007

  275. 10 Ways to Make Your Blog More Appealing | Feb 12, 2007

  276. Take Clyde's Blogging Survey | Feb 12, 2007

  277. Tech Writer Voices Switching to Co-Host Style | Feb 9, 2007

  278. Writing Blog Posts by E-mail | Feb 9, 2007

  280. Making a Chapter Member Map Mashup with Google Maps | Feb 8, 2007

  281. 10 Reasons Not to Upgrade to Robohelp 6 | Feb 7, 2007

  282. Podcasting Reader's Comments — The Pilotless Drone | Feb 7, 2007

  283. Video on SharePoint 2007 Wiki, Blog, and RSS Functionality from Microsoft's Channel 9 | Feb 7, 2007

  284. Getting Started with WordPress — Video Tutorial on Installation | Feb 7, 2007

  285. RoboHelp to Wiki Conversion Tool | Feb 5, 2007

  286. Installing WordPress -- a Quick Video Tutorial | Feb 4, 2007

  287. Discussion about RoboHelp 6 — Interview with Rick Stone | Feb 3, 2007

  288. Using Wikis as Project Documentation Tools | Feb 3, 2007

  290. Blogs that Lose Direction and Go from Blog to Blah? | Feb 2, 2007

  291. Survey Gizmo: The best tool/thing I have used/done | Jan 31, 2007

  292. Are We Moving Toward GooOS, the Google Operating System? | Jan 30, 2007

  293. User Paradox with Not Reading User Manuals | Jan 30, 2007

  294. Using Ajax Shelf to Help Users Find Pages on Suncoast Site | Jan 29, 2007

  295. 10 pet peeves of technical writing | Jan 27, 2007

  296. Tips from the Frederator: Pursue Life's Passion Online, and Blog Often, Short, and with Pics | Jan 26, 2007

  297. Adobe Enters Blogosphere | Jan 26, 2007

  298. Adobe Seminar -- Nice Connection and Demo, But Questions Seemed Filtered | Jan 25, 2007

  299. Dealing with the Documentation Aspects of Bad Software -- My Response to the Latest DMN Communications Podcast | Jan 25, 2007

  300. Wordpress 2.1 Review | Jan 25, 2007

  301. Allure of New Media Requires Strict Bedtime Control or Else Sleep Deprivation Will Set In | Jan 24, 2007

  302. The Curse of Knowledge -- The More You Know, the Worse You Become At Communicating That Knowledge | Jan 24, 2007

  304. How to Create a Site Where Users Can Actually Find Information — Interview with Thom Haller | Jan 23, 2007

  305. Latest Podcast Is Posted on Tech Writer Voices | Jan 23, 2007

  306. WordPress 2.1 Released -- This is a major release | Jan 23, 2007

  307. Survey on Blogging -- Darren Barefoot | Jan 22, 2007

  308. Applying Web 2.0 to Podcasting | Jan 21, 2007

  309. Trying to Create Tech Writer Voices Logo | Jan 20, 2007

  310. Technorati Blogosphere Report -- 1.3 million new posts per day, so what are people writing about? | Jan 19, 2007

  311. Reading Blogs versus Reading Traditional Print Media | Jan 19, 2007

  312. RoboHelp 6 Not Compatible with Word 2007 | Jan 18, 2007

  314. Create RSS Feeds From Any Site With Ponyfish | Jan 17, 2007

  315. Ten Tips for Problem Solving and Troubleshooting | Jan 17, 2007

  316. WordPress = Bliss: The Joy of Customization | Jan 16, 2007

  317. RoboHelp 6 launched — List of New Features | Jan 16, 2007

  318. Web Developer Firefox Extension Makes CSS Editing Easy | Jan 13, 2007

  319. Ten Lessons Learned as a Technical Communicator — Interview with Rahul Prabhakar | Jan 13, 2007

  320. Patience Thresholds for Technology | Jan 13, 2007

  321. Listening to Podcasts Without Dedicating Any Time for Them | Jan 13, 2007

  322. Why Software Sucks, by David Platt | Jan 13, 2007

  323. Read a Book by E-mail, a Little Each Day with Daily Lit | Jan 11, 2007

  324. Recording your chapter presentations | Jan 10, 2007

  325. Dynamic Help in Visual Studio .NET | Jan 9, 2007

  326. Podcasting article in STC Intercom magazine | Jan 9, 2007

  327. Inexpensive Screencast Software: Blueberry Flashback Express Recorder | Jan 7, 2007

  328. Talkr service converts text-only blogs into podcasts | Jan 7, 2007

  329. Google Talk | Jan 5, 2007

  330. Mike Hamilton Gives Flare Demo to the Suncoast Chapter | Jan 5, 2007

  331. WIFM and Blogging | Jan 5, 2007

  332. The Concept of Trackbacks | Jan 5, 2007

  333. Year in Review -- "You" Chosen as Most Important Person | Jan 3, 2007

  334. The Convergence of Web 2.0 with Help Documentation — Tom Johnson | Jan 3, 2007

  335. Help 2.0: The Convergence of Help with Web 2.0 | Jan 2, 2007

  336. Rating Feature Now Available | Jan 2, 2007

  337. WordPress Shopping Carts | Jan 2, 2007

  338. Understanding Principles of Usability, Part 2 — Karen Bachmann | Jan 1, 2007

  339. New Look and New Approach to Blog/Podcast | Jan 1, 2007

2006 archives

  1. Wikipedia -- indisputable Web 2.0 triumph | Dec 31, 2006

  2. The Challenge of Web 2.0 Documentation: WordPress's Immense Codex | Dec 29, 2006

  3. Payscale: a Web 2.0 salary comparison tool | Dec 28, 2006

  4. How many of these Web 2.0 sites do you know? | Dec 28, 2006

  5. Make your computer run faster by disabling all the auto-startup programs | Dec 27, 2006

  6. Reading Tech News: Digg | Dec 27, 2006

  7. Google Groups Rocks — Find Answers to Almost Everything | Dec 27, 2006

  8. Web 2.0 dieting and nutrition site: Sparkpeople.com | Dec 27, 2006

  9. WordPress as Budgeting Software: Mo.neytrack.in | Dec 26, 2006

  11. Using Gmail to read Threaded Conversations from Listservs | Dec 21, 2006

  12. Designing for "Web 2.0" audiences | Dec 21, 2006

  13. Understanding Principles of Usability, Part 1 — Karen Bachmann | Dec 18, 2006

  14. Skype Firefox Exention Changes Phone Numbers into Buttons | Dec 15, 2006

  15. First Blog Post Using Word 2007 | Dec 13, 2006

  16. Open Source Folder Compression Utility -- 7 Zip | Dec 11, 2006

  17. Word 2007 Features and Demo -- offers style sets to quickly transform documents | Dec 8, 2006

  18. Creating Word templates with customized help delivered by Clippy | Dec 8, 2006

  19. Posting Youtube Videos — A Required Tone for Internet Audiences? | Dec 7, 2006

  20. Creating your own RSS Feed | Dec 5, 2006

  21. Keith Hoffman Interviews Susan Burton, Exec. Director of the STC | Dec 1, 2006

  22. Looking up IP addresses | Nov 30, 2006

  23. Web 2.0, CMS, and DITA — Interview with Ann Rockley | Nov 27, 2006

  24. New Podcast on Web 2.0, DITA, CMS | Nov 27, 2006

  25. Podcasting article and my 15 favorite podcasts | Nov 21, 2006

  26. Wordpress to offer Enterprise Edition | Nov 21, 2006

  27. How to Increase Collaboration and Performance — Interview with Emma Hamer | Nov 13, 2006

  28. Open Source Software and Wikis | Nov 9, 2006

  29. Checking out Youtube: A Few Fun Videos to Watch | Nov 8, 2006

  30. Firefox and Deepest Sender are superior to IE7 | Nov 7, 2006

  31. The coolest thing ever -- Total Tech Writer Blog Aggregation | Nov 7, 2006

  32. First survey results with Survey Gizmo | Nov 6, 2006

  34. Top 100 blogs and top 100 podcasts | Nov 6, 2006

  35. Two useful tools for surveys and webinars | Nov 6, 2006

  36. Getting Ideas for Your Blog: Oneword.com | Nov 5, 2006

  37. Podcast metrics analysis for Tech Writer Voices | Nov 1, 2006

  38. Technical Writing in India — Interview with Sandeep Balakrishna | Oct 30, 2006

  39. Corporate Blogging | Oct 27, 2006

  40. Wordpress releases first official Wordpress Multi-User Edition | Oct 27, 2006

  41. Another Perspective on Single-Sourcing — Interview with Sarah O'Keefe | Oct 23, 2006

  43. Calling all potential podcasters... | Oct 20, 2006

  44. How To Create a Usable Index — Interview with John McGhie | Oct 20, 2006

  45. Being Interviewed Is Fun | Oct 17, 2006

  46. Podcasting 101 — by Tom Johnson | Oct 17, 2006

  47. How to Implement Single Sourcing — Interview with Neil Perlin | Oct 9, 2006

  48. Figuring out Audio | Oct 9, 2006

  49. Podcasting FAQs | Oct 9, 2006

  50. Tech Writer Voices Podcast | Oct 9, 2006

  51. Joomla, an Open-Source Content Management System Solution — Interview with Sean Wheller about Joomla | Oct 9, 2006

  52. Knowledge Management and Technical Writing — Janet Foley | Oct 9, 2006

  53. Flare 2.0 and MadCap Software — Interview with Mike Hamilton | Oct 9, 2006

  54. Content Management Professionals — Interview with Scott Abel | Oct 9, 2006

  55. Writing for the Web — Ian Koss, Founder of Ink19.com | Oct 9, 2006

  56. The popularity of how-to podcasts | Sep 28, 2006

  58. Podcasting site is finished | Sep 26, 2006

  59. Combining Podcasting with Technical Writing | Sep 21, 2006

  60. Podcast site almost ready | Sep 19, 2006

  61. DITA Structured Blogging and Online Help | Sep 14, 2006

  62. Recording Phone Interviews | Sep 13, 2006

  63. Advantages of using Wordpress for blogging | Sep 12, 2006

  64. Websort -- Testing out the Logical Taxonomy of your Site | Sep 11, 2006

  65. Using the Yahoo Maps API | Sep 10, 2006

  66. Recording STC Chapter Presentations | Sep 8, 2006

  67. A restful Labor Day weekend; thoughts on podcasting | Sep 4, 2006

  68. Hard Drive Totally Crashed | Sep 1, 2006

  69. FTCC launches its site and call for entries today | Aug 23, 2006

  70. We need an IT Conversations for Tech Writers | Aug 14, 2006

  71. Barry Schwartz — Less is More — Why Too Many Options Leads to Dissatisfaction | Jun 16, 2006

  72. Malcolm Gladwell — Why People Can't Express What They Really Mean and Feel | Jun 16, 2006

  73. Motivations for Hackers [and Technical Writers?] -- Paul Graham speech | Jun 16, 2006

  74. Teddy Roosevelt's River of Doubt | Jun 16, 2006

  75. Why this blog, separate from the Suncoast Blog? | Jun 1, 2006

About Tom Johnson

Tom Johnson

I'm an API technical writer based in the Seattle area. On this blog, I write about topics related to technical writing and communication — such as software documentation, API documentation, AI, information architecture, content strategy, writing processes, plain language, tech comm careers, and more. Check out my API documentation course if you're looking for more info about documenting APIs. Or see my posts on AI and AI course section for more on the latest in AI and tech comm.

If you're a technical writer and want to keep on top of the latest trends in the tech comm, be sure to subscribe to email updates below. You can also learn more about me or contact me. Finally, note that the opinions I express on my blog are my own points of view, not that of my employer.

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