Confessions of a technical author – What can technical communicators learn from David Ogilvy?

David Ogilvy was an advertising genius who distilled his successful concepts and techniques into a bestselling book I’ve just finished reading, called “Confessions of an Advertising Man”. I wanted to read his book, because I often find it useful to look at other professions and ask whether their ideas could be applied to the world… Read more »

Zen and the art of Help files

I’ve finally received my copy of Garr Reynolds’ excellent book, “Presentation Zen“. This book is about creating better, clearer presentations in a Zen-like frame of mind. If you have seen any of my presentations, then you’ll know I prefer his photo-image style to the bullet point style that is more commonly used. I would argue… Read more »

Poor documentation helps land Microsoft with a $1.35bn fine

Arjuna Krishna Das posted a link to an Information Week article on Microsoft’s fine from the European Union. http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=206900497 “Specifically, the EC ruled that Microsoft was overcharging rivals for the documentation they need to make their server products interoperable with Windows-based PCs and servers. The decision was upheld last year by Europe’s second highest court…. Read more »