TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Shelley Hoose wrote:
>
>
> HI all,
>
> I've recently started a new job in which I am documenting software for
> programmers. It's Java with SQL Server at the back end. I don't really know
> anything about this stuff <snip>
Shelley,
You certainly have a difficult task ahead of you. I hope you have a
programming background of some kind. If not, you are in for a very hard slog.
You should look to systems development textbooks and reference books for
things like functional specs, ER diagrams, flowcharting, etc. Those are
system development tools, so you won't find much about them in Tech Comms
books, which focus more on the end-user materials. The standard system
development texts will cover the general topics. You might want to ask the
development manager, or a sympathetic developer, to recommend some books that
reflect the preferred methodology. Perhaps they can lend you their old
textbooks. Perhaps there are some development documents lying around from
previous projects that you can use as templates.