In 2006, a technical writer filed a wage and hour lawsuit against Sun Microsystems, alleging that the company violated California labor law by not paying overtime. Well, a judge has given preliminary approval to a $5 million settlement in the case, which grew to a class action with 152 plaintiffs. I have mixed feelings aboutContinue reading “California Tech Writers win overtime settlement, and why it may be bad news”
Category Archives: Tech writing
Like we’ve been saying all along…
SMEs will sometimes tell you that the information is the only thing that matters; spell checking and copyediting are unnecessary frills. Not that we had any doubts about this, but I recently stumbled across a study done at Clemson University that demonstrates that correct information is regarded as less authoritative if poorly written: http://cujo.clemson.edu/manuscript.php?manuscript_ID=142
The risk of out-of-date technical information
Not keeping the docs up to date is potentially a huge risk.
Bad piloting? No, bad manuals!
The amateur video is terrifying: a Lufthansa Airbus 320 carrying 132 passengers attempts to land at Hamburg Airport during a storm. Powerful crosswinds force the plane to fly crabwise. As it straightens out just above the runway, the left wing dips sharply and hits the ground: Fortunately, the pilots gunned the engines, got the planeContinue reading “Bad piloting? No, bad manuals!”
Can we fill in the blank? “All technical communicators _______”
STC has the biggest membership “tent” of any association of technical communicators, both by size and variety. But we’re by no means the only show in town. There are associations of medical writers, FrameMaker users, proposal writers, marketing writers, editors, and more. What, if anything, is the common thread that binds us together, and isContinue reading “Can we fill in the blank? “All technical communicators _______””
The value of our work
I’ve been thinking a lot of late about the value we provide as technical communicators. What do our users value? What do our clients value? What do we value? Ideally, all three interests align, but in the real world, we all know they conflict. For example, we might want to deliver the most delightful userContinue reading “The value of our work”
The Best Technical Document in the World
This past weekend I served as a consensus judge at STC’s International Technical Publications Competition (ITPC). I’ve participated before, as a telephone (remote) judge, on-site judge, and Best-of-Show judge. This year STC conducted an experiment in cost cutting. The Boston and Northern New England chapters, which (if I do say so myself as a member and localContinue reading “The Best Technical Document in the World”
Steven Jong 