Technical Certification

[rjl -at- BOSTECH -dot- COM]

First, Dan Martillotti stated, "You should not be concerned with whether
the individual is
an expert in Frame, Word, or RoboHelp... If there appears to be a problem with
the new writer learning or using the tools, YOU should send that writer to a
training class to learn the tool."


Then David Dubin said:

>Perhaps I am way off the mark here, (and I am sure that y'all will tell me so
>if you think it) but I believe that a **good** technical writer is a good
>writer with certain software skills. As an industry, we do not write with
>pencil and paper anymore, we use complicated and sophisticated software.

Well, throwing in my two cents...

Although most of the people on this list are involved in software
documentation, fact is there are a lot of people out there who still write
about hardware.  Or, like me, do a mix. And it's that mix that causes me
to fall on the side of Dan, not David. Moving from platform to platform
hasn't been a problem for me. Any delays that I might encounter in my
work don't normally stem from a lack of knowledge of Interleaf or Frame,
but of wondering how a change from T1 to E1/R2 signalling affects a system,
or what the exact pumping sequence is on a vacuum system, or knowing the
affect of changing a high-pressure turbine blade design.

Does this mean that software documentation is easier than hardware
documentation?

Rick Lippincott
Boston Technology
Wakefield, MA
rjl -at- bostech -dot- com

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