RE: Knowledge is manufactured?

["Melissa Nelson" <melmis36 -at- hotmail -dot- com>]

Wow, this thread is very interesting, not to mention deep for a Friday 
afternoon. :) I would have to say that I am lucky enough to do all three at 
various times. I think there is a place and a need for all three, at least 
in my current position.  I am the only tech writer in the joint, and I tend 
to bounce all over the place. Just today the accountant said reporting my 
hours to the GAO was a real chore sometimes; as I tend to be somewhere in 
every project, and most of the engineers have only one or two projects they 
are working on.

Thanks Geoff for this post.  I not only found it interesting, but it helped 
me to put my finger on one of the things I enjoy most about my work.

Melissa




>From: Geoff Hart <ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca>
>To: TECHWR-L <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com>,Dan Goldstein 
><DGoldstein -at- riverainmedical -dot- com>
>Subject: Knowledge is manufactured?
>Date: Fri, 03 Aug 2007 14:54:59 -0400
>
>Dan Goldstein opines: <<tech writers don't manufacture knowledge. We
>acquire it and (if we're lucky) transmit it to other people.>>
>
>Interesting point you raise. There's been considerable debate over
>this issue for a great many years. The history of technical
>communication education has progressed from thinking exactly what you
>say (that we are nothing more than mouthpieces), to a slightly pre-
>modern attitude that we instead "translate" between audiences (i.e.,
>from "engineer" to "English"), to the modern attitude that we do
>indeed create something entirely new in much the same way a
>silversmith takes raw silver mined by a miner and turns it into
>something valuable.
>
>In reality, some of us do only one of those things, and suffer
>accordingly in the workplace. Others of us do all three, at different
>times. Some of us even focus almost exclusively on the "creating
>something wholly new and precious" part.
>
>This point is crucial to our success in the workplace: If we're seen
>exclusively as dumb parrots who do nothing more than parrot back
>information created by someone else, we get no respect. Our work is
>treated as the commodity product that it is, and we're paid
>accordingly -- or replaced by cheaper outsourced work of sometimes
>dubious quality because the difference between smart and dumb parrots
>is negligible. If we're seen as people who provide some direct bridge
>between information creators (e.g., engineers) and customers who use
>that information by serving as translators and user advocates, we get
>a bit more respect and a bit more pay in recognition of the value we
>add. We're now treated as distant cousins (chimpanzees) instead of
>dumb birds.
>
>Only when we're seen as people who do significant knowledge creation
>are we given full respect and compensated and cherished accordingly.
>That's not just empty theory. At a previous job, I was given the same
>amount of respect and input in decisions as most of the engineers I
>worked with, and had my salary classification upgraded into the same
>category as these engineers (rather than being pegged in the lower
>support classification). I'm freelancing now because I wanted to
>pursue different work and different projects (such as writing books;
>see below), not because I was in any way dissatisfied with the
>recognition I received.
>
>Lessons there for those willing to learn from them. If we hope to
>succeed in the workplace, we really do need to create something new
>("manufacture knowledge", if you prefer), not merely digest knowledge
>and pass it along.
>
>
>----------------------------------------------------
>-- Geoff Hart
>ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca / geoffhart -at- mac -dot- com
>www.geoff-hart.com
>--------------------------------------------------
>***Now available***  _Effective onscreen editing_
>(http://www.geoff-hart.com/home/onscreen-book.htm)
>
>
>^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>
>Create HTML or Microsoft Word content and convert to Help file formats or
>printed documentation. Features include support for Windows Vista & 2007
>Microsoft Office, team authoring, plus more.
>http://www.DocToHelp.com/TechwrlList
>
>True single source, conditional content, PDF export, modular help.
>Help & Manual is the most powerful authoring tool for technical
>documentation. Boost your productivity! http://www.helpandmanual.com
>
>---
>You are currently subscribed to TECHWR-L as melmis36 -at- hotmail -dot- com -dot- 
>
>To unsubscribe send a blank email to
>techwr-l-unsubscribe -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
>or visit 
>http://lists.techwr-l.com/mailman/options/techwr-l/melmis36%40hotmail.com
>
>
>To subscribe, send a blank email to techwr-l-join -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
>
>Send administrative questions to admin -at- techwr-l -dot- com -dot-  Visit
>http://www.techwr-l.com/ for more resources and info.
>


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Create HTML or Microsoft Word content and convert to Help file formats or 
printed documentation. Features include support for Windows Vista & 2007 
Microsoft Office, team authoring, plus more.
http://www.DocToHelp.com/TechwrlList

True single source, conditional content, PDF export, modular help.
Help & Manual is the most powerful authoring tool for technical
documentation. Boost your productivity! http://www.helpandmanual.com

---
You are currently subscribed to TECHWR-L as archive -at- web -dot- techwr-l -dot- com -dot- 

To unsubscribe send a blank email to 
techwr-l-unsubscribe -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
or visit http://lists.techwr-l.com/mailman/options/techwr-l/archive%40web.techwr-l.com


To subscribe, send a blank email to techwr-l-join -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com

Send administrative questions to admin -at- techwr-l -dot- com -dot-  Visit
http://www.techwr-l.com/ for more resources and info.