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Maybe I'm just confused. Or maybe I over-analyze things, but I've obviously
interpreted this question much differently than other techwhirlers.
I felt Deborah was asking how we view technical writing as a product within
our company or as an industry -- not our personal careers AS technical
writers.
I view it as "a stepping stone to help achieve other goals." In other words,
I don't think my company exists to create documentation. That is not the
"goal or destination in itself" for my company or the industry. No one reads
technical documentation as a form of entertainment. (OK, I do ... but that's
only because I'm a nerd.) Instead, the real goal is to sell a product that
requires little technical support. Good documentation is one way to
accomplish that goal. In fact, the best documentation doesn't stand out in a
reader's mind at all. It provides the answer they want quickly and
efficiently and then goes away.
Many of you answered this about whether technical writing was a goal for you
or not. If you look at it that way, I don't know anyone who would say they
live only to write tech docs. After all, aren't all jobs just a means to an
end -- money?
Dannette Thompson
Technical Writer
Foundation Software, Inc.
The #1 Accounting Software for Labor-Intensive Contractors
The opinions expressed in this message do not necessarily reflect the
opinions or policies of my employer or coworkers.
-----Original Message-----
Deborah Ray wrote:
> We've updated the TECHWR-L Poll with a new question:
>
> For you, which of the following best describes your
> view of technical writing?
>
> * It is a stepping stone to help achieve other goals
> * It is a goal or destination in itself
> * I do not yet know what I consider it to be
> * Other/none of the above
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