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.
Tony Markos wondered: <<For a ballerina, the dance is her product.
Tech comm is about documenting a product - it is not the ultimate
product in itself.>>
That's arguable. In terms of what we do, our product is a combination
of tools, theory, and the skills to combine the three to produce
documentation. I don't think you can separate them.
<<By the way Bonnie, what is the best way to document a ballet dance?
To quote Ed Yourdon: "Procedure is like dance: It defies written
description".>>
I know that you asked the question facetiously, but there is indeed a
way to document dancing. In fact, there are many. See Edward Tufte's
"Envisioning Information" for a summary, and Ann Hutchinson Guest's
1985 "A brief survey of 53 systems of dance notation" for details.
There are similar things for the martial arts, but they're not (in my
limited experience) as sophisticated or nuanced.
Yes, I _am_ a veritable font of nearly useless information. Why do you
ask? <g>
Now Shipping -- WebWorks ePublisher Pro for Word! Easily create online
Help. And online anything else. Redesigned interface with a new
project-based workflow. Try it today! http://www.webworks.com/techwr-l
Doc-To-Help 2005 now has RoboHelp Converter and HTML Source: Author
content and configure Help in MS Word or any HTML editor. No
proprietary editor! *August release. http://www.componentone.com/TECHWRL/DocToHelp2005
