Tech Writer Today Magazine - TechWhirl
Technical writing and technical communications news, articles and resources for technical writers and technical communicators.
Articles from TechWhirl's coverage of LavaCon Conference. LavaCon's program has expanded over the years to include sessions on project management, content strategies, how to leverage social network and new media technologies, and more. Learn more about LavaCon Conference
Noz Urbina advocates a strong link between innovation and great experience throughout the customer lifecycle via content management. His Lavacon 2012 session focused on providing specific audiences the customer experience they want by mapping deliverables to the customer lifecycle. Continue reading ...
Corey Ganser shows that technical communication nirvana is actually possible, since his Mindtouch customers practice it every day. His lively session covered the ways customer support departments, technical writing teams, and product teams are coming together through a centralized documentation community. Real companies use the Mindtouch product to be superheros ... Continue reading ...
Several current threads on the TechWhirl email discussion list discuss areas aligned with but separate from technical communication—quality assurance and business analysis in particular. I always find those discussions fascinating. They continue to affirm my belief that the best approach to a successful technical communication career is to think in broader, more holistic, and yes, more strategic terms. Continue reading ...
My most technical day of the LavaCon 2012 conference occurred on the final morning when I focused on working with DITA by attending two sessions: "Migrating to DITA: How Automated Conversion Works and Why it Matters" (with Patrick Baker of Stilo International) and "Collaboration and Instantiation: Engineering Content in DITA XML" (with Cheri Mullins, of Mullins Consulting, discussing her work at AMD). Continue reading ...
Obviously the world has changed for those who engage in content creation, and Maxwell Hoffman believes it's time technical communicators began rethinking content creation. He devoted his LavaCon 2012 presentation to showing how to break authoring habits associated with traditional computer screens and paper. Continue reading ...
Halloween is over, and the second storm of the century has passed, leaving destruction, frustration, and remarkable resilience in its wake. As we move into November, it’s almost eerie that TechWhirl chose as our theme “Helping Society and Tech Comm,” with an eye towards exploring some lesser known edges of technical communication, such as disaster preparedness, accessibility, and using our skills in volunteer capacities. Fortuitous or serendipitous just don’t have the right connotation consider the struggles so many along the northeast corridor of the US are going through. But it’s a truly worthwhile subject to explore, and our Special Writers Unit has some fascinating content coming your way. Continue reading ...
Bob Zebian brought a real life example of web analytics value to documentation teams to his LavaCon 2012 session. He offered the following case study on how analytics at Sterling Commerce helped reinforce movement from a book paradigm to an online paradigm. Continue reading ...
Yes it's possible to use social media as an effective way to get feedback on documentation, and it doesn't have to be a horror show. Rhyne Armstrong's LavaCon 2012 on social media monitoring paid tribute to horror film classics while offering an in-depth discussion of various methods and sites you can use to help the documentation team improve products, your department's awareness, and your value to your customers and organization. Continue reading ...
Alan J. Porter's LavaCon Conference 2012 presentation, "Five Ways to Make Executives Love Content Development", provided a set of tools for promoting the value and importance of various forms of content development, including technical communication and technical illustration. Technical communicators must understand what the actual purpose of their company is, which is not the same knowing as what the company produces or does. A company might make drill bits for mining equipment, for example, but its real purpose is to help miners mine minerals effectively. With this understanding, technical communicators can better focus their messages, and also understand the importance of content development to the company's real purpose. Continue reading ...