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.
Subject:Re: Tech Writers who don't like technology From:"Tony G. Rocco" <trocco -at- NAVIS -dot- COM> Date:Mon, 11 May 1998 10:55:21 -0800
This assumes that tech writing has a very narrow focus, on things
scientific. I write about GUI computer software, so I don't see the
connection with Science News or Scientific American. I actually don't have
an interest in science, Rene. So what? I document Macintosh software apps,
I don't describe chemical processes or report on medical research.
As tech writers, we don't have to fit one mold. It's a big, somewhat
amorphous profession and people can find their own niche within it, IMHO.
- tgr
PS: I am not sure anyone on this list said that they did not like
technology. I know that some people, including myself, said that we are not
primarily technical people, i.e., engineers and programmers. There's a
difference between not being a technical person and not liking technology.
At 8:51 AM -0500 5/11/98, Rene Gedaly wrote:
> What surprises me most about the non-technical tech writers I've met is that
> they don't seem interested in the scientific world, they don't want to be
> bothered learning new technology aside from their own communication tools,
> and they're even ignorant of the scientific method. I've yet to meet another
> writer who reads or subscribes to Science News, Scientific American, or
> any(!) technical journal as either a way to keep up in the industry or for
> sheer pleasure. I really hope this is because I don't get out much.
>
> Some of the finest technical communicators have been scientists. And while
> we can't all be Carl Sagan, Richard Feynman, or John Gribbin (a PhD
> astrophysicist turned writer--see his "In Search of Schrodinger's Cat (and
> Kittens)" if you want to understand quantum mechanics)...I think a genuine
> interest in our subject matter will take us, as writers, a long way.
>
> Rene Gedaly rgedaly -at- msn -dot- com
> Single Source Documents
> P.O. Box 130639
> The Woodlands, TX 77393
> office: 281 363-4563
>
