Tech writing is changing, has changed, and the old ways won’t work any longer. Many of my posts over the past year address those considerations. Here they are.
Writing Styles
Smaller screens. Smaller devices. Smaller word counts, don’t you think?
Cut, Cut, Cut Your Content and Procedures
Video and Touchscreens
Well, keyboards and Flash are perhaps on the way out. Flash tutorials may not work on touchscreens, for one thing. Here are some thoughts about how that will affect docs.
Think Outside the Computer: Touchscreens, HTML5, and Flash
Wikipedia to Add Editable Video Functionality
Devices
Of course, there’s mobile. However, there are other types of devices in development that could affect tech writing. They’re fun, I might add. Who thought that screens could be put on clothes? That opens all sorts of possibilities. Take a look at these posts:
Use of Flexible Screens in Documentation
Might We Become Walking Computers?
e-Learning
Consider e-Learning specialists to be partners. Sometimes we can make our own tutorials. Other times, we need the expertise of an e_Learning specialist. That field is also going through major changes. Take a look at this article by Jill Freeman that addresses rapid development, a hot topic in the e-Learning field.
E-Learning Rapid Development = Sticky Learning
Programming
It’s always good to know what’s happening in the code, I think. These posts address that. Database design basics, I firmly believe, are critical for content management. Knowing those basics could save you much time down the road.
Why Tech Writers Should Know Database Design
Writing Experiment Using Minimal Content
Here’s a writing experiment, an example if you may. The first is a procedure written with ideas I discussed in other posts. The related item describes the reasoning behind the decisions made in writing the procedure.