Earlier today, a certain UA development company sent out an email to all the members in its registered database with the phrase: DITA 10-29-08.
Of course, you know who it is, and what they are selling, so there’s no need to tell you. Not being a DITA developer (I know, I’m the last to jump on [...]
Archive for the 'Visual/Technical Communication' Category
BREAKING NEWS!!! (i think)
Published September 23rd, 2008 in Food/Wine/Spirits and Visual/Technical Communication. 3 CommentsTouchscreen interfaces
Published July 28th, 2008 in Usability and Visual/Technical Communication. 2 CommentsTom at IRBW has posted some guidelines on creating online help for touchscreen applications.
It’s interesting timing, as that’s a task that I’ve been currently tackling. If human factors standards are being used, it’s an exceptionally difficult challenge to meet.
I’ll be sharing some lessons learned soon, but I’d thought I’d open it up for discussion first. [...]
monkeyPi’s Law
Published July 13th, 2008 in Visual/Technical Communication and Writing that is meant to be used AND enjoyed. 6 CommentsRecently, I’ve come across several blog posts that have brought up the issue of Technical Writing versus Writing.
At its core, writing is just recorded communication that’s transferred without the use of verbal speech. If you communicate to someone else (or yourself) using a pencil and paper, or a laptop running Office 12, or even a [...]
How well do you know your fonts?
Published July 4th, 2008 in Visual/Technical Communication. 0 CommentsHave you a typographer’s eye? Head on over to ILT to test your skills.
I wish I could impress you with a high score, but my first attempt was an embarrassing 22 (average is 23).
A Digg for Technical Communicators
Published June 10th, 2008 in Blogging and Visual/Technical Communication. 1 CommentTom Johnson of IWBW has created a social news service for Technical Communicators.
I’ve been a long-time reader of Digg.com, but just last week it dawned on me that it would be really great if there were a Digg-like site for technical communication. So I decided to create one. It’s called WriterRiver.com and it’s pretty much [...]
Tech writer launches class action lawsuit against Sun Microsystems
Published May 15th, 2008 in Visual/Technical Communication. 13 CommentsA former technical writer for Sun Microsystems has filed a class action lawsuit against Sun, claiming that writers are unfairly assigned exempt status.
Dani Hoenemier says she worked long days as a technical writer for Sun Microsystems, sometimes spending over 60 hours a week at her computer when the company was preparing a new product release.
Sun’s [...]
If Monty Python designed logos
Published April 24th, 2008 in Observations and Visual/Technical Communication. 1 Comment“Yessir, the new logo for Her Majesty’s Office of Government Commerce is nearly complete, eh? Certainly fetching, if I do say so meself. Mmm-hm.”
“A quite fine job, Baskins. Your mum should be quite proud, you’ve – ‘allo ‘allo ‘allo… what’s this?!? What’s this all about? Baskins, did you take at look at this, you know, [...]

