Inkwell

Tech Writer This Week has stuff to look forward to before that long winter’s nap we seem to be missing out on. Starting in the Technical Communication neighborhood, we’re happy to note that Darren Barefoot (darrenbarefoot.com) is resuscitating his Hall of Technical Documentation Weirdness. Kai Weber (kaiweber.wordpress.com) discusses the ROI of topic-based authoring and single sourcing. Christa Carone (fastcompany.com) reminds us why good writing is essential for business. And Kath McNiff (thepointyedge.wordpress.com) explains what we tech writers can learn from the tabloids.

Peeking over the window sill into Content Strategy & Curation, we find Gigi Griffis talking about content strategy for complex projects. And Jessie Zubatkin (contentcurationmarketing.com) offers some best practices on content curation using Pinterest.

A visit to the neighbors in User Experience begins with Damon Dimmick (smashingmagazine.com) venturing into the world of agile development with some keen observations on design spikes and handling backlog. Then Kyle Baxter (tightwind.net) offers a fresh perspective on how mobile design should complement user activity, in comparison with desktop UI which forced the user into the computer’s context.

We wrap with Career and Life, where Kristin Burnham discusses how to use Facebook’s new job search app. And Rhonda Bracey (cybertext.wordpress.com) shares a humorous look at how punctuation can change meaning. 

Technical Communication

Reviving the Hall of Technical Documentation Weirdness1029 Internet years ago, in 2003, I started something called the Hall of Technical Documentation Weirdness. It compiled "wacky, bizarre, …

ROI of topic-based authoring and single sourcingBreaking down content silos brings benefits and ROI to topic-based authoring, even if you have little or no translation. I’ve cut down ti…

Why Good Writing Is Essential For BusinessMark Twain once noted that "to get the right word in the right place is a rare achievement."I find it hard to believe the author of The A…

What can the tabloids teach a tech writer?Do you know how Kate Moss feels about her million dollar tattoo? Are you familiar with the secrets of Tom Cruise’s scientology marriage? …

Content Strategy & Curation

Content Strategy for Complex Projects " GatherContent Blog " Continous Improvement over Delayed Perfection GatherContent BlogGood morning, content pros. Our process series is back-and today we’re going to talk with Matthew Grocki, a content strategy consultant n…

Content Curation using Pinterest – Content Curation MarketingContent Curation using Pinterest

User Experience

Fitting Big-Picture UX Into Agile Development | Smashing UX DesignThe rapid pace of UX design in the agile world can lead to shortsighted design decisions. Focusing on addressing the immediate needs of p…

The New Interface Is There Is No interface | TightWindIn desktop applications, the user interface dominated the screen. The buttons to click, the bars to drag, the windows. The actual stuff w…

Career and Life

How to Use Facebook’s New Job Search AppCIO – Would you ever use Facebook to job hunt? The social network, on which many users have struggled to define their work-life division,…

A light-hearted look at how punctuation can change meaningBased on a recent ‘Writing Tip’ I wrote for my work colleagues. **************** Bottom Line: Lack-or overuse-of punctuation (especially …