If you’re not sure the value of content and writing, take a look at this video from Coca Cola. Jonathan Mildenhall, Vice-President, Global Advertising Strategy and Creative Excellence at The Coca-Cola Company describes the challenge of content creation to Coca Cola and why it is so important to them.
The terminology Jonathan uses in the video is different to the words of the Technical Author, but the concepts are remarkably similar:
He talks about “liquid content” where a Technical Author might say “single sourcing” or ” content-re-use”.
“Collaborative, adaptive, content” is similar to “multi-channel publishing”.
“Co-creation” is what we might call “user generated content” or “collaborative authoring”.
Coca Cola sees content as conversational – something we’ve talked about being a trend emerging in some forms of online Help.
In a competitive market such as fizzy drinks, where price and products are almost identical, content – in its many forms – becomes critically important.
Matthew Syed is a British sports journalist and former three times Commonwealth Games gold medallist, who has been investigating what is needed to make people excellent at doing any task involving complexity.
He argues that natural talent, your genes, are far less important than many people think. What’s important is practising what you can’t quite do. He argues we grow if we test our limitations, because our body adapts.
So what on earth does that have to do with developing software and Technical Authors? Syed argues there are two opposing views regarding success:
One “school” believes talent is what makes success. This means that if you fail, you believe it’s because you don’t have enough talent. Therefore, you’re likely to give up.
The other “school” believes success is all about practice – the quantity of practice, the quality of teaching and the willingness to test our limitations. This means that if you fail, you believe you can succeed with more perseverance and effort. It’s an opportunity to adapt and grow.
I would argue the whole philosophy of User Assistance is based around the belief that talent is all about practice. It’s easy to forget that others may think it’s all about talent – your developers may believe some users fail because they are stupid, and some of your users may believe they’re just not good enough to succeed. It’s worth checking what they believe.
Another implication is that we should provide assistance and guidance to users as they are doing the task. We should try to avoid interrupting their flow. This suggests providing Help and advice within the application screens themselves.
Thirdly, we should praise people for their effort rather than for their talent.
What is the future for Technical Communicators when many organisations believe products are getting easier and they don’t need to spend so much on user documentation? We’ll look at whether the traditional model for technical communication is broken, research into how “cool” apps such as Facebook do (or don’t) provide Help, and how to deal with developers who believe the need for a user guide is a sign of poor software usability.
With more and more people using the iPad and other tablets for reading technical documentation, this workshop looks at how tablets can be used by organisations to design and deliver technical documents and other forms of User Assistance.
One of the most popular developments in computing in recent years has been the emergence of cloud-based computing and Software as a Service (SaaS). So is technical writing likely to move to the Cloud? In this presentation, we look at how we implemented a cloud-based authoring solution as a way of getting developers to participate in the authoring process.
In this 40 minute (approx) webinar, we’ll provide an overview of some of the emerging information design trends for presenting technical documentation on tablets.
With more and more people using the iPad and other tablets for reading technical documentation, this workshop looks at how tablets can be used by organisations to design and deliver technical documents and other forms of User Assistance.
The course will be held in Central London on Thursday 31 May 2012, 9.30am-12.30pm.
You do not need to have a tablet to attend this course, or have previous knowledge of using a tablet.
This course is aimed at Technical Authors and others developing technical documentation and other forms of Help for users.
Earlier this week, I was asked my opinion on whether a Documentation Manager was needed when the individual Technical Authors are embedded into Agile project teams.
My response was that a Documentation Manager mainly provides people management, project management, process management and content management. If a Technical Author is a member of a software project team, then that team’s Project Manager is probably providing the people management and the project management to the writer.
That leaves the need for someone to manage the processes and manage the content. I suggested managing the content could be done by someone with the role of Editor (or “Content Wrangler”). They might also look after the processes, or they could have another writer take on that responsibility.
It’s then a decision as to whether the organisation sees these roles as senior to the technical writing positions, or as a specialism and consequently on the same job grade.
It does leave the management of the writers’ career progression falling through the cracks, unfortunately.
Here’s an update on the training workshop we’re currently developing on how to use the iPad and other tablets as a device for delivering documentation. The trainer’s slide deck has been completed and is out for review. Once that’s been signed off, we’ll check the timings and determine if this is a half or full day session.
We’ve selected the venue in central London, so, after that we’ll be able to announce the date and prices for the course.
The primary focus will be on the iPad, but we can also cover what’s possible on other tablets.
We’ll cover items such as:
How organisations are creating, in just 30 seconds, online magazines for “getting started” guides, tips and tricks, training guides and FAQs, using existing content from your Web site and blogs.
Apps for reading content
Tools for creating content
What works/ what doesn’t work
Implications for the future, how to use the iPad to gain and edge over your competition etc
Cherryleaf is curating and hosting a programme of talks on trends in technical documentation. At these sessions, there’ll be presentations from respected members of the Technical Communication profession, plus the opportunity to network with your peers.
The next talk is:
User Assistance in a Social World
We’ll be looking questions, such as: Where does technical documentation fit in a world of Twitter and social media? Is User Assistance different in Social Media applications?
The speakers will be Briana Wherry, Director, Programme Management of Alfresco Software and Dr. Adrian Bredenkamp, CEO of Acrolinx GmbH.
Date and time: 9th May 2012 10.01pm-12.31pm
Location: Birdcage Walk, London SW1H
The event will be free, but with priority for places given to our customers.
Microsoft Clippy (aka “Office Assistant” or “Clipit”) is a feature remembered by many users of Microsoft Word. It assisted users by way of an interactive animated character, which interfaced with Office’s online Help. Although the concept of “embedded” or “persistent” Help was good, its application in the real-life working environment was not well received.
With more and more people reading information via tablets and mobile phones, and with the new technologies they contain, perhaps it’s time to revisit the concept of Clippy. Perhaps it can be done right this time?
There are two technologies that tablets and mobile phones contain which are worth considering. One is haptic feedback, the other is ambient technology.
Haptic feedback is technology that interfaces with the user through the sense of touch – typically through your device vibrating.
Ambient technology refers to electronic environments that are sensitive and responsive to the presence of people.
An example from the e-learning environment is Evernote Peek, which makes use of the iPad’s Smart Cover to present information.
Perhaps instead of an animated character clamouring for our attention, a more subtle notification by a vibration or a glowing button might be a better way to tell users help is available that can guide them through their task.
We’re not aware of any User Assistance that is using haptic or ambient technologies today, so do let us know if you’ve seen any examples out there.
I first worked with Cherryleaf when I was with Zetex Semiconductors. We had a requirement for authoring/editorial support on some of our technical publications. Ellis initially made sure he fully understood our specific requirements and profile of the person we were looking for, then supplied us a selection of carefully vetted resumes.
This saved us valuable time in selecting a shortlist of candidates. Ellis has also been an excellent source of help and advice on subsequent occasions. I wouldn't hesitate in recommending the valuable services Ellis and Cherryleaf provide.
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