In a downturn, priorities in a business often change, and these changes can affect technical authors as much as others. At the London Connections event earlier this week, where I was promoting Cherryleaf’s technical writing services, I was chatting to Mike Southon about business strategies in a downturn. Mike is Visiting Fellow in Innovation and… Read more »
Author: ellis
The user manual in advertising
A photo of a mid-1980s ledger application for the IBM PC. The ad copy stated: “For the introduction of the IBM PC, we designed the packages and software manual, creating, instead of the industry’s usual cheap plastic binders, hard-bound linen covers and slipcovers in pastel colors to stress cultural elegance and personal values.” Spotted in… Read more »
The user manual in TV advertising
I came across these classic TV adverts today, which feature the humble user manual. Would an advert like this work today?
Should technical authors embrace user generated content?
It may seem counter-intuitive, but we believe technical authors shouldn’t fear the trend towards user generated content. Let me explain why: 1. It could get you the attention of your CEO. October’s Harvard Business Review highlights an article called “The Contribution Revolution: Letting Volunteers Build Your Business” by Intuit CEO Scott Cook. User contribution is… Read more »
Technical Documentation: How it really gets written
This reputedly originates from Damien Katz of The CouchDB Project: “Welcome to the world of technical documentation! The situation you are in is no different from any other technical author. The technical writing process: 1. Ask engineer how the damn thing works. 2. Deafing silence. 3. Crickets. 4. Tumbleweed. 5. Just start writing something. Anything…. Read more »