While this was surely a throwaway attempt at levity, the clich may be discouraging to older students, while cultivating the bias of younger ones. Meanwhile, page 24 presents a list of correspondence types with no bullets at all; the different types are simply bolded. This text covers almost every topic that I would cover in a Technical Writing Class for generalized studies. The text covers a good amount of information related to technical writing; some of the sections are more in depth than others. There is a very thoughtful section on cultural sensitivity. The authors observe standard conventions of grammar. But I also see the value of using the entirety of the text as a stand-alone text; I believe the texts structure enables both uses with little revision or customization necessary. First, can instructors assume that students will recognize this intricate interaction? The students would have difficulty locating the correct version of the textbook unless a PDF were provided to them by the instructor, and the PDF is problematic in terms of design and omission of content. The second paragraph concludes that If you would . The sections are distinct and could be read independently. This text provides flexibility in the fact that it focuses on Technical Communication for a more generalized audience and therefore this would work well as a Technical Communications text for a First-Year Writing course at a 2 or 4-year college. No one in industry writes topic proposals, so I would not teach that genre in my technical writing course. Concepts of genre and genre analysis are presented as fundamental to understanding the writing process yet they come at the end of the text. The authors use simple, clear, and easy-to-understand prose. 171 Followers. I look forward to seeing subsequent editions. This text is well organized with topics appropriate to technical writing, and I will consider using it in technical writing and workplace writing courses for first- and second-year students. I did, however, see a few leftover notes from the editor. Job position: Freelance Technical Writer. ), but they weren't really up-played in a way that students will definitely get. As I mentioned in an earlier comment, most of the content in this textbook is written in such a way that it can be applied practically and broadly to a variety of situations in which students may find the need to engage in technical writing and/or communication. The voice of the text is one that I feel students would appreciate - let's get to the point! Reviewed by Elizabeth Aydelott, Part-Time Instructor, Lane Community College on 6/26/20, This text covers almost every topic that I would cover in a Technical Writing Class for generalized studies. The authors do an excellent job of adhering to plain language principles. The content is accurate and straight forward. The text does not include an index or glossary. University of Minnesota, 330 Wulling Hall, 86 Pleasant Street S.E., Minneapolis, MN 55455, Except where otherwise noted, content on this site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. Gray forward and backward arrows, on the right and left, respectively, make it easy to flip pages. I would consider using this text in an introductory technical writing class, with the addition of several notable sections identified elsewhere in this review. Traditional search conventions, such as double-quotes to find phrases, work as expected. This open textbook offers students of technical writing an introduction to the processes and products involved in professional, workplace, and technical writing. No grammar errors have been detected. A technical writer might create content to provide instructions or explain technical concepts regarding environmental regulations, computer applications or medical procedures. The text does not include an index or glossary, but does provide a comprehensive table of contents. Is it percent of all total crops grown? The Table of Contents includes easily recognized sections and page numbers and each new section is noted at the top of the page. Generally, the text is inoffensive. Cultural Relevance - The text appears to be culturally sensitive of all races, nationalities and ethnicities. Chapters are skipped, brought back, and revisited. The book's format changes occasionally, probably owing to the various authors involved, but it is not especially noticable and does not affect the book in a negative way. The terms "professional" and "technical" as well as "writing" and "communication" are used fairly interchangeably in the field. Reviewed by Bjorn Smars, Career Instructor, University of Oregon on 7/2/20, As far as I can tell, this textbook does not include an index or glossary. The content is up-to-date since there are not apt to be quick changes to the principles of technical writing nor to the precepts of e-mail, texting etc. If the authors proclaim the three-paragraph limit as their personal preference, they should say that, too. The chapters appear randomly, with an early chapter often referring to material that has not been introduced yet. Any changes could be quickly made. Perhaps There are some areas with a "Try This" section, but not very many of them, and the assignments lack an assessment component. If so, that indicates a need to discuss the conventions of genre. David McMurrey's work was far more technical and usable in its time; I'm sad to conclude that this textbook does not build productively on his legacy. The authors offer no discussion of theory, despite a claim on page 1 that theory underlies technical writing. Chapter 8, Creating and Integrating Graphics, recommends including identifying detail in the graphics (128), yet does ignores its own advice. Dubey, Naveen Kumar, The Importance and Scope of Technical Writing Skills (June 7, 2018). At least one other reviewer has noted that there are inconsistency issues across various formats in which the book is offered. I would have liked to see more examples throughout the text. read more. The book contains relevant content that could be updated with relative ease. The topics covered are appropriate for a low-level, introductory course in technical writing. An introductory text should seek to better follow consistency while explaining the issues that exist in the field. With the inclusion of sections on MLA and APA citation style as well as the job application chapters, it would need to be updated in about 5 years to reflect changes to those areas. Technical writing courses introduce you to the skills, genres, and other important aspects of writing in the worlds of science, technology, and businessin other words, the kind of writing that scientists, nurses, doctors, construction managers, computer specialists, government officials, engineers, and other professionals do as a part of . The authors should also focus on plain language in this book, and exemplify it in their prose. It's a useful and accessible introduction to technical writing for most undergraduate students, but it is not a comprehensive document and therefore may require the instructor to provide additional information or resources. They were there (audience, genre, etc. There are a couple of places, however, notably in the chapter on design, where graphics dont appear above the caption. Chapters on lab/case reports, medical/interview notes, abstracts, introductions, mini-biographies, position papers and letters to the editor would enhance this text and broaden its appeal to new audiences, especially social science/health care students. Also, while the book has examples, I would appreciate even more examples. The writing attempts to be engaging but is not rich enough in evidence, references, or good, contemporary examples for university students. The authors resist the temptation to use jargon, and they stick to simple sentence structures for the most part. However, there are several mentions of the technical report being the main document produced at the end of the term (which is true) and mentions of several prefatory documents needed for benchmarking along the way. Or, by omitting the writing process, does the textbook defy modern writing pedagogy and emphasize the products of technical writing over the process? I wish, though, that a general chapter on grammar was included for the students. Readers may be distracted by the number of blank pages at the end of chapters. The book is quite well written and useful, but not comprehensive. Importance of Audience. ' This chapter could make more specific references to technical communication and globalization. The text introduces itself as an introductory text to technical writing (or communication), and provides a definition of technical communication that is limited to the types, content, and coverage of texts created. read more. There were no culturally insensitive examples or remarks. Later chapters describe proposals and progress reports. Freshman students will benefit from this introductory-level text and will appreciate the authors' emphasis on conventional technical documents including emails, letters, memos, reports, and proposals. I would love to see sections on effective sentences, collaborative writing, inclusive language, and grammatical conventions. Its bar towers over that of carrots, the closest competitor, by about two-thirds. Thats confusing and limits the books applicability. Abstract. I suggest deleting or re-writing this section of the book. Ethics consists of the individual standards of behavior you exhibit in your personal and professional lives. The content is accurate. read more. One of the first steps you need to take when creating any kind of technical document is to define your project. Read the work of other technical writers and programmers in your field, and adopt some of the phrasing, formatting, and patterns they use that seem to be the most effective. There was also no mention of the rhetorical situation: the amalgamation of purpose, stance and tone, genre, media, and, of course, audience. When I reviewed this text, the links tested were still working and relevant. The book is accurate. The tone is very casual and not professional. read more. The book contains no inaccuracies as far as I could tell, nor any political or social bias. In your role as a technical writer, it is important that you are both knowledgeable and skilled in your profession. Because the text can function in ways that benefit the class, this is not an issue. For instance, the link to examples (titled "Online Technical Writing: Contents") uses yellow background and blue lettering, and does not include any explanatory text. At the beginning of the first chapter, "Professional Communications," for instance, the authors write, "From text messages to reports, how you represent yourself with the written word counts." Some of the images / videos are pixelated. Content itself seemed accurate. Perhaps a reference to Cultural Literacy within the chapter on Audience. The book needs a careful and close editing by one person. The content is based off of multiple authors rather than one single-viewpoint, which provides additional insights into topics versus only one limited view. The style is accessible but not professional. Special terms are explained and defined. However, in general the issues which are not treated in great detail are those for which often there are other, key resources focusing on general principles involved that are attached. There are grammatical errors in section 9 as well as confusing switches in point of view. lose your job. outlining) and genres to follow. Reviewed by Shannon Kelley, English Faculty, Chemeketa Community College on 6/20/17, The text covers a good amount of information related to technical writing; some of the sections are more in depth than others. It is easy to use and access. Another issue, when it comes to comprehensiveness, is the lacking of exercises and assignments. would be more rhetorically sensible. The book is accurate and unbiased. Technical writing is a specialized form of exposition: that is, written communication done on the job, especially in fields with specialized vocabularies, such as science, engineering, technology, and the health sciences. In fact, this textbook constantly focuses on the specific introductory assignments and methods at Central Oregon Community College, so a more ambitious, advanced curriculum would directly contradict the information in the textbook. Consistent use of headers and special highlights (e.g., boldface, etc.) This and other sections could offer updates, particularly regarding electronic and online documents. These are in addition to the grammatical issues. I would include an appendix about conventions: when to use a colon, how to convey numbers, the rules of capitalization, and the like. Reviewed by Susan Engel, Instructor, St. that would offer a different presentation method for readers. The chapters can easily be rearranged according to an instructors preference since the table of contents is linked to each section. This text offers a good amount of instruction (though at times limited) underlying effective workplace and technical writing/communication. Some of the content could be further updated, however. The authors cover related and integral As far as I can tell, the information presented in this text is accurate, error-free, and unbiased. Having personally examined a number of technical writing materials, this is by far one of the very few texts that incorporate a section about texting. Otherwise the flow and structure are generally logical. Embedded videos appear to function as expected; the interface could benefit from a column-width inline viewer that would keep the video window from being narrower than the text columns. The way this book is designed and written does not seem to engage the exigencies of technical writing as I'm familiar with them. What is not consistent is the amount of time spent on various elements of technical writing, which, as mentioned in the section on comprehensiveness, varies quite a bit. Suggested Citation: The authors speculate about possible motives of the engineers with no source information to support their conjectures. This book really does cover a great deal of ground. Traditionally, it was limited to user manuals of some sort. The text clearly focuses on research and report writing in a business context. Its root. For example, the section on texting would not have appeared in earlier editions of this text, while the section on memoranda feels somewhat dated in paper-less or paper-reduced workplaces. The videos I viewed would not work in my courses, ever. The sample bar chart on page 123, depicting types of produce grown in Sisters, Oregon, has axis titles, but the y-axis, entitled Percentage produced in 2015, has no scale. Clarity of language and expression of concepts is well done. There is nothing to identify a particular culture, race or ethnicity. Contrary to what is stated, technicians do not always lack sophisticated theoretical knowledge. For example, many of the linked reports are nearly twenty years old, and while they may demonstrate many of the writing principles that stay constant over time, they do not demonstrate contemporary expectations for design, and the topics are so dated as to make them seem irrelevant to most students. Overall, the content in the book appears accurate, even if a little prescriptive at times. These do more to complicate the subject than clarify it. This text also read more. Clarity and intelligibility are essentials, and the text appears to work within those frameworks. A more comprehensive text would address some of the responsibilities of technical writing as it relates to the technical writer herself: team building and collaboration, intermediary across multiple departments and divisions; and negotiator of meaning in workplace cultures. The current section on design is specific only to reports and is really about organization, not design. The chart shows that potatoes are the most plentiful crop. The text is inoffensive. Skills such as writing instructions and inferring data from graphs and charts require the above. That the language used in the text may not match the conventions of technical writing - in terms of style and tone - could also be emphasized. Chapters could be read out of order, and instructors can certain assign some sections and not others. But, without a scale, the value for potatoes could be 30 percent, or 3 percent, compared to carrots at 10 percent or 1 percent. Other structures that would enhance clarity are not consistently present, however. The information is accurate, the citation guide up-to-date, and most material is relevant to any aspect of the field. The text could do more to explore cultural contexts in which technical documents are planned, prepared, and consumed, especially given increasing internationalization of workforces. My only complaint about this text, at least in regards to its comprehensiveness, is that many of the sections or pages are underdeveloped or do not contain sufficient explanation and/or examples to illustrate important concepts. This is not to say that the content is automatically inaccurate but one of the points the authors themselves make about the need to cite sources is the importance of using those sources to build confidence in the audience. The book is divided into logical sections that would make it easy to customize for a course if not for the problem previously cited of its being designed around a specific courses project. I was not able to find any significant errors in grammar. I'm confused about why the Open Textbook Library lists the book with only one author instead of the seven listed in the book itself. The textbook, however, may not satisfy the needs of students in advanced technical writing courses looking for guidance on complex documents beyond the conventional ones identified here. Other sections, like the ones on audience and ethics, will not need updating. Professional, scientific, and technical services: $80,150 Administrative and support services . More examples that are relevant to students attending one of Oregon's many colleges or universities would help to illustrate these cultural differences and provide students with a practical, real-world strategies for engaging with their peers, professors, and other folks from other cultures and/or regions. The table of contents is detailed and accessible on each page with a link to each section. As a technical communication text, I would hope it would be and I was happy to see the authors not utilize jargon, instead stick to very explicitly presented ideas, sentence structure, and offering simple language that will appeal to readers, make them feel smart, all while retaining the level of academic rigor a text like this needs. Its structure and content is unsuitable for majors in professional fields including engineering and science, and therefore is not a good choice for instructors teaching at most institutions where the course is offered. Can the authors assume that students understand what context is, and how it impacts a writing product? On the whole, the book is relevant and should remain so for several years without the need for updates. Reviewed by Lars Soderlund, Associate Professor of English, Western Oregon University on 3/7/19, The book has a strong balance of topics. At times the images presented conflict with the text and spacing on pages, but is otherwise easy to attribute to the content pertaining to the image. I really appreciated the chapter on Communicating Across Cultures, but I wish it had been included earlier in the book. If the authors are recommending the abbreviated length as a best practice for emerging technical communicators, they should say so. In some places, it is conversational; however, I find that quality increases its accessibility and approachability, which is necessary for a technical writing service course. The textbook is written in a voice that is straightforward and no-nonsense for students. This book is concise and covers an array of Technical Communication topics and genres. The text provides an adequate overview of the field for beginners in technical writing. The text is free of interface issues. E.g., "Geert Hofstede views culture as consisting of mental programs, calling it softwares of the mind, meaning each person 'carries within him or herself patterns of thinking, feeling, and potential acting which were learned throughout their lifetime. As I mentioned in an earlier comment, the organization of the textbook is easy to navigate and understand. Further, the textbook refers constantly to watered-down assignments that I would not assign. There are two main reasons why technical writing skills are so important. Technical writers research, prepare and produce various types of technical documents, such as journal articles or user manuals. The authors do a good job of defining terms, but students will need to read the text to discover the important terms; no sidebars or lists are used to call attention to specialized vocabulary. The book appears to be written for a course designed around a specific major project that asks students to write a proposal for a technical report and then to research and write the report itself. The text does an especially good job of explaining how to write proposals and reports in a clear, step-by-step manner. A technical writer is defined as one who writes, "about a particular subject that requires direction, instruction, or explanation." When put that way, is it no wonder that almost every company spanning an array of industries is on the hunt for technical writers? The ones that exist are obvious and instructors can correct them if they use those chapters. The book covers the typical range of topics for a technical writing guide. will likely have its own preferences for professional communications but that some aspects, such as avoiding plagiarism, doing proper research, are consistent. It should be noted that different formats might have issues relating to page presentation, as I have noticed that in other primarily online references I have seen. For instance, visual rhetoric and page layout were lumped together with audience. Readers will also learn about other professional communication, designing documents, and creating and integrating graphics. This may be a result of my background as a teacher of information literacy first, but it might make more sense to start with the sections on information literacy and citations, then progress to audience analysis and outlines. this makes searching this text much more difficult than some others. Other key genres are missing entirely. Some of the basic material related to communication and being concise will be consistently useful. This section may need updating since technology brings changes to workplace communications. The text does not have interfacing issues. Lacking an essential discussion of theory and concept, the textbook covers a limited range of genres, another writerly term that is not mentioned. The purpose of this textbook is to serve as an introduction to technical writing, and as such is designed to provide students with practical strategies for engaging in effective technical communication. But this relationship is impossible to discuss with this text, since overarching concepts and conventions are never introduced. Identifying never-before-published text that has been uniquely generated by an AI writing tool is a different technical challenge. Audience analysis comes much earlier (chapter 2) but not before texts, emails, and netiquette. The sentence describing crop yields in Sisters, Oregon was a staggering four lines long, strung together with and between three independent clauses (121). Using it was confusing and there are many incompatibilities between the various versions available. There are, at times, inconsistencies in how thoroughly topics are treated and covered, but that is to be expected with many textbooks. Out-group communication. The emphasis is on professional communication throughout so chapters are linked through that context. A text I definitely want to consider for my Technical Writing course. . Edward Tufte's now famous case study of the Challenger contradicts this summary. Furthermore, while conciseness is an essential feature of technical and professional writing, establishing an arbitrary sentence length may encourage students to emphasize conciseness at the expense of clarity and accuracy. The content is almost all up-to-date. The core principles arent likely to go out of date any time soon. Technical writing is a form of communication that attempts to take a technical field (like programming or software development) and convey ideas from that field as efficiently as possible, sometimes to other experts, and sometimes to non-experts. It is absolutely appropriate for a comprehensive service course, but the authors should consider another title. For example, Chapters 11 and 13 are structured with interactive activities not found in other chapters. I would like to thank all of the authors as well as David McMurrey for their efforts in writing and editing this open source textbook. Their advice seems to be off-base, including comparing omitting a conclusion to slamming down a phone on a caller. The crossover between chapters could be stronger. Examples could be given in sections on proposals, progress reports, and other sections to offer further clarity. Charts, where used, easily help students find the key differences in concepts, which is something that more detailed, less approachable textbooks tend to overlook.