Technical Writer

[Forbidden_Amber]

Ano ba ang nature ng work ng isang technical writer? Ano ang mga qualifications? Does one need to be technically inclined to be considered for the position or he just need to be creatively superb?

[Adroth]

Being technically savy is a major plus. But as my boss told me when I was still starting out: anything can be learned. What every tech writer aspirant must bring to the table is a good command of English (assuming you are writing for an English audience); the ability to work independently, as well as in a collaborative environment; interview skills; and the determination and instincts of a bloodhound.

Tech writing is as much about research as it is about writing. Mediocre writers produce material simply based on the material that's given to them. Good writers go after the info.

Regarding the nature of the work. Tech writing is very wide field, so the software industry isn't the only place you can end up. Think about it, even an F-16 Fighting Falcon needs manuals for its various systems.

If your interested in software development documentation, here's a little something I got from a Microsoft tech writer who spoke at a conference I attended. MS uses four kinds of writers:

Basic tech writers - these guys are in charge of producing how-to, procedural, documentation. This job requires the ability to epathize with users, and to follow style guides religiously.

Programmer writers - these are essentially programmers-turned-writers or vice versa. These are people who can look at code, and generate documentation based on that. API documentation fall under their responsibility. This is where the money is.

Technical editors - these are experienced programmer writers who make sure that source code is properly commented; and add them when required. MS, like most properly organized software development outfits, use parsers to generate basic documentation. Parser-generated documentation is only as good as the comments in the code -- hence the TEs. Basic tech writers use these parsed documents as references for their own docs.

Indexers - strange as it sounds, this is actually a real job. These guys are responsible for creating indices found at the back of documentation. This requires understanding of the psychology behind how people look for information -- and is by no means easy. A good index typically contains 5 pages for every 100 pages of text.

[mushy24]

Uy galing nmn ni Adroth. salamat sa info ha kc need ko rin yan eh. gusto ko rin kasing maging software development writer/technical writer kaso kailangan madalas eh *** may mga experiences na *** hinahanap nila. *** ba kayong alam na naghahanap ng mga entry level technical writer positions?

[Forbidden_Amber]

Thank you so much for the information. Your reply was really informative..

I think I go for the basic tech writer position...


Wish me luck!

[carshow]

Ako trips ko to e..sana nga mapadpad ako sa ganitong field..I write, yes, pero siempre, mahirap ipenetrate to lalo na if they want yung me experience na.

Hows the pay naman as Technical Writer?

[Adroth]

Regarding the need for experience, there are generally ways around it.

When I applied for my job, I was working in a bank -- needless to say my being in a separate industry was a distinct disadvantage. My educational background didn't help either. I'm an Electrical Engineering graduate; not Com Sci. The recruiter who evaluated my application admitted that my resume would have ended up in the trash bin . . . had he not noticed the personal projects I worked on.

While in the bank, I volunteered to automate some of my department's functions. I was in the credit department, so we really weren't very high in the IT department's automation priority (read: not even considered). So I took up the slack. The effort got me transferred from our Davao Branch, where I worked, to our Head Office in Makati. That little maneuver got his attention; convinced him that I was tech savy and had initiative; and got me shortlisted.

During the interview, I dredged up every truthful piece of writing experience that I could remember (good interviewers can catch you if you B.S., so be careful). I talked about how I documented the software I developed in my company. I even brought up my old doc projects when I was an Adjutant in my ROTC unit. ROTC being the joke that it is, nothing was written down, so I described how I attempted to 'write the book' for staff operations.

I also leveraged the fact that I had been working as a credit investigator for 3 years, and presented that as proof of my ability to dig for information.

You don't really have to work as a tech writer to be a writer. Look at what you are doing, and see if there is anything there that you can present as writing experience. I don't mean blow that part of your current job out of proportion, just point it out.

As proof of tech savyness, if you can't find a juicy programming job/hobby/favor to do; passing certification programs (e.g. MCSE, Cisco, etc.) would probably do you good.

Regarding pay. I've heard of salaries as low as 8,000 to as high as 20K.

If your still starting out, don't be picky -- any start is a good start.

[soulthird]

I intially wanted to be a tech writer, but no so many opportunities abound e... but i'm interested.

[mushy24]

honga onti lang ang opportunities para sa tech writer position. kakainis kung meron man ang hirap nmn ng mga initial qualifications madalas eh years of experience at saka bihira na ang nagpo-provide ng training o kaya *** entry level for this position.

[Adroth]

Originally posted by mushy24
honga onti lang ang opportunities para sa tech writer position. kakainis kung meron man ang hirap nmn ng mga initial qualifications madalas eh years of experience at saka bihira na ang nagpo-provide ng training o kaya *** entry level for this position.

Since a lot of technical documentation requires intimate knowledge of the subject matter, there are times these jobs are filled by internal hiring. Like the MS tech writer I was talking about in my earlier post used to be in development. They saw that he could put sentences together, so they made him a programmer writer.

Anyway regarding opportunities. I know one person who took a chance at a contractual writing job. After her contract expired, she was able to use that experience to land a much more stable writing job in another company.

[Forbidden_Amber]

hehehe... i applied for a tech writer position.. Luckily, out of 12 applicants, five of us made it to qualify for the technical skills exam. I never thought that the tech skill exam for a tech writer will be like that.

I am not sure if I will get the job, but it was really a good experience. At least now I know how to go about it.

But still I wish I get the job...

[Adroth]

Originally posted by Forbidden_Amber
hehehe... i applied for a tech writer position.. Luckily, out of 12 applicants, five of us made it to qualify for the technical skills exam. I never thought that the tech skill exam for a tech writer will be like that.

I am not sure if I will get the job, but it was really a good experience. At least now I know how to go about it.

But still I wish I get the job...

Good luck man :cool:

What skills were these guys looking for?

[mushy24]

Originally posted by Adroth
Since a lot of technical documentation requires intimate knowledge of the subject matter, there are times these jobs are filled by internal hiring. Like the MS tech writer I was talking about in my earlier post used to be in development. They saw that he could put sentences together, so they made him a programmer writer.

Anyway regarding opportunities. I know one person who took a chance at a contractual writing job. After her contract expired, she was able to use that experience to land a much more stable writing job in another company.

honga mas priority pa rin ng mga company ang pagkuha sa mga employees sa loob ng company to fill up the new position para mas tipid sa oras at sa pera dahil wala na ngang training na dapat i-provide at kilala mo na *** tao d b. pero bibihira na ang mga company na nagoofer ng training at entry level for this position or any IT positions madalas eh kailangan at least 1 or 2 years of experience at dapat technically adept ka na dun sa mga softwares o programming languages that they are using.

[Forbidden_Amber]

I got a call from the company where I applied for as a technical writer. I am scheduled for an interview. hehehe... It was really a surprise since like what I mentioned above, the technical exam was such a new thing to me...

I hope I am in my right self to pass the interview... After more than five years, this is my chance to undergo a job interview again...

[jiggybabymiggz]

Technical Writing, per se, is a diverse profession. Software Development firms are usually the ones hiring Technical Writers, but now, even call centers have demands for Technical Writers. Mind you that Technical Writing sometimes is incorporated with document control, as in revisions of document control, and is not only confined with writing. It's a good start if you plan to go to software development afterwards, as in programming. The need for technical inclination? work experience counts and somebody with a degree that has a background in computers or networking will really do.

[Forbidden_Amber]

*praying*

[Adroth]

Don't forget to provide details.

[Adroth]

Originally posted by jiggybabymiggz
Technical Writing, per se, is a diverse profession. Software Development firms are usually the ones hiring Technical Writers, but now, even call centers have demands for Technical Writers. Mind you that Technical Writing sometimes is incorporated with document control, as in revisions of document control, and is not only confined with writing. It's a good start if you plan to go to software development afterwards, as in programming. The need for technical inclination? work experience counts and somebody with a degree that has a background in computers or networking will really do.

Are you working in the Philippines or outside bro?

[jiggybabymiggz]

Originally posted by Adroth
Are you working in the Philippines or outside bro?

Currently unemployed. I have to stop working due to unavoidable reasons. The last job i held was technical writer at a software dev't firm in Ortigas. I've been in this nature of work for quite some time now. :)

[Skirt01]

Hi! I was also applying for a technical writer position. I passed the initial stage of hiring. Then luckily I was called for an interview. The interviewer, fortunately, was not from the organization's HRD. I think he's in charge of the product services. Aside from the usual questions during a job niterview, he asked me some questions that really surprised me, (What's your favorite color?; What is your favorite shape?) Those were good questions though.

The company is so prestigious and I hope I get the job

[mushy24]

Originally posted by Skirt01
Hi! I was also applying for a technical writer position. I passed the initial stage of hiring. Then luckily I was called for an interview. The interviewer, fortunately, was not from the organization's HRD. I think he's in charge of the product services. Aside from the usual questions during a job niterview, he asked me some questions that really surprised me, (What's your favorite color?; What is your favorite shape?) Those were good questions though.

The company is so prestigious and I hope I get the job

swerte mo nmn sana nga makuha mo yang wrk na yan. I also want 2 apply 4 dis position eh kaso lang no luck pa rin until this time. baka nmn may marerekomend kaung company dyan oh.:)

tnx at gudlak ulit!!

[jiggybabymiggz]

Originally posted by Skirt01
Aside from the usual questions during a job niterview, he asked me some questions that really surprised me, (What's your favorite color?; What is your favorite shape?) Those were good questions though.

The company is so prestigious and I hope I get the job

Technical Writing is not really about Creativity. It's about how you translate a technical subject/matter into an end-user friendly documentation - meaning how to make technical matters more simple to users who are not that technically-inclined. So, i think technical knowledge or background really counts. But sometimes, these so-called background are gained through work experiences.

But of course, those questions were asked to you to test your creative background. Technical documents should also have a look and feel consistent all-throughout, it's not being "artsy" but trying to make it presentable, neat and most of all "sensible in content (substantial)". And Technical docs are also diverse: it may be a contract, procedures, software docs like manuals and functional specifications, etc. The rule is the more documents you have handled, the more you may be considered for employability.

----

your semi technical writing guru

[DarthScully]

which companies are hiring for Tech Writers?

i'm a science grad, and have done my fair share of writing reports throughout college. but i'm also very tech savvy so i was thinking i could probably write "For Dummies" kind of manuals. is that at least a good enough experience to even be considered for the job?

i thought you had to be "arty" to get this post so at first i didn't even bother to try applying. thanks for clearing that up Jiggy.

do you need proof to show to your interviewer of the reports you've made? kinda hard to find them since most of those were submitted to college professors (and they proabably never keep them after the semester is over).

[Skirt01]

jiggybabymiggz,

That is excatly what the interviewer explained to me. It was sort of an enlightenment for me since i had a misconceptions before about the position. He added they were not looking for experts to fill in ...

Stil I am crossing my fingers...

[jiggybabymiggz]

Originally posted by Skirt01
jiggybabymiggz,

That is excatly what the interviewer explained to me. It was sort of an enlightenment for me since i had a misconceptions before about the position. He added they were not looking for experts to fill in ...

Stil I am crossing my fingers...

Well, Skirt01, Good Luck! I hope you are considered. I've been into this profession for some years now and i can tell you that different companies have different styles with Technical Writing. I was lucky with the last employer because i helped establish their documentation standards, where in fact, when i arrived they don't have any. So it's a good exposure if the company who will hire you has a clean slate (or no) documents. One good thing i've learned about technical writing is Organization, to archive obsolete from new documents.

Skully, go to jobsdb and use the search function to search for Technical Writer. I think they have quite some there. If your qualifications does not meet the requirements, PM me as i think I have an ex-employer who are looking for documentation experts.

Well, I think we are all competitors in the same line of work. Good Luck to us all. :D

[jiggybabymiggz]

As a final word, technical writing will expose you to different technologies. It's an avenue for you to learn things that you won't learn at school. After college, all i can contribute to my first job was my know-how of MS Office. I learned many things from this profession, it was like a free opportunity to learn. Pay is also good and becomes pretty good as it goes along with experience. Sometimes, you even earn more than what a developer earns. But the pitfall is that at times, it tends to get boring, especially if you get to do the same routinary documents everytime. A hint: when accepting a Technical Writing job, just be sure that it's not yet established...it's just starting-up so as you can contribute more and help in establishing the documents. Remember also that in Technical Writing, details and keeping documents up-to-date are really what matters as well as archiving previous docs for future references.

[Skirt01]

The company has established its name in that field. The interviewer mentioned that the job will focus more on updating what they already have. Guess, it is pretty much organizing and keeping up with times.

I hope I would be considered for the position. If I wouldn't be that lucky, still it was nice to have a peep of the techical writer tasks. I can try somewhere else.

[Adroth]

Originally posted by jiggybabymiggz
A hint: when accepting a Technical Writing job, just be sure that it's not yet established...it's just starting-up so as you can contribute more and help in establishing the documents.

Good point on this one Jiggy.

Setting up new systems will always be more enjoyable than trying to follow someone elses. Style guides can be sticky, so better if your the one who makes the rules (e.g., title caps vs sentence caps for headings, etc.)

However, it does make for a more well rounded experience if a writer goes through an established writing team; that already has existing procedures. When working as a freelancer (which can potentially be very lucrative), one must know how to write according to strict specs -- someone else's specs. If your docs have to be re-worked a lot, the chances of getting another contract, needless to say, would be diminished.

[Adroth]

Originally posted by mushy24
swerte mo nmn sana nga makuha mo yang wrk na yan. I also want 2 apply 4 dis position eh kaso lang no luck pa rin until this time. baka nmn may marerekomend kaung company dyan oh.:)

tnx at gudlak ulit!!

I got my job through JobStreet.com. The automated job matching function still sends me job openings, so you might want to give this a try.

[jiggybabymiggz]

Originally posted by Adroth
Good point on this one Jiggy.

Setting up new systems will always be more enjoyable than trying to follow someone elses. Style guides can be sticky, so better if your the one who makes the rules (e.g., title caps vs sentence caps for headings, etc.)

However, it does make for a more well rounded experience if a writer goes through an established writing team; that already has existing procedures. When working as a freelancer (which can potentially be very lucrative), one must know how to write according to strict specs -- someone else's specs. If your docs have to be re-worked a lot, the chances of getting another contract, needless to say, would be diminished.

Adroth, are you accepting freelancing jobs? I haven't done this one yet and don't know where to get freelancing offers from. I have been company-hopping eversince and got offered full-time jobs. This freelancing job just happens to not struck me before. What is the freelancing job in Technical Writing like?:)

[Adroth]

Originally posted by jiggybabymiggz
Adroth, are you accepting freelancing jobs? I haven't done this one yet and don't know where to get freelancing offers from. I have been company-hopping eversince and got offered full-time jobs. This freelancing job just happens to not struck me before. What is the freelancing job in Technical Writing like?:)

Thus far, I've been more like a sub-contractor, than a primary contractor. I tried it out when an acquaintance got a project, and looked for people to give pieces of it to. He was a middleman, but since I hadn't done it before, I didn't mind.

But I'm in Taiwan at the moment, so things may be a bit different back home.

[Adroth]

Originally posted by Adroth
Thus far, I've been more like a sub-contractor, than a primary contractor. I tried it out when an acquaintance got a project, and looked for people to give pieces of it to. He was a middleman, but since I hadn't done it before, I didn't mind.

I'm in Taiwan at the moment, so things may be a bit different back home.

[mushy24]

tnx to u guys for all the infos. I guess i have to look again for opennings of this position that has minimum requirements. kc ang experience ko lang na pedeng maconsider as of now is my previous six month job as a programmer trainee and im currently wrking as a call center agent. just wanted to use my college course(com sci) and have a more stable job status kaya **** kong magapply as technical writer. hirap **** maghanap ng wrk na inlined sa college course mo at *** enjoy ka doing.sigh

[Skirt01]

yipee!!! i got an update!!! i am set for the final interview this week. i hope and i pray...

[Adroth]

Originally posted by Skirt01
yipee!!! i got an update!!! i am set for the final interview this week. i hope and i pray...

Good luck :cool:

[Skirt01]

Adroth

You work as a tech writer in Taiwan?

[Adroth]

Originally posted by Skirt01
Adroth

You work as a tech writer in Taiwan?

Yup. I've been here a little over three years.

[jiggybabymiggz]

I've taken an exam and was interviewed by the manager by a company based in makati the past 2 days. I am hoping i get this job before xmas.

[Skirt01]

good luck! the company i applied for has a unique way of recruitment process and i was really surprised...

[jiggybabymiggz]

Originally posted by jiggybabymiggz
I've taken an exam and was interviewed by the manager by a company based in makati the past 2 days. I am hoping i get this job before xmas.

I think i already got the job. Yahoo! back to earning bucks for Christmas again.

[Adroth]

Originally posted by jiggybabymiggz
I think i already got the job. Yahoo! back to earning bucks for Christmas again.

Congratulations man :)

[Skirt01]

wow! blow out! hehehe

[Adroth]

Originally posted by Skirt01
wow! blow out! hehehe

what happened?

[mushy24]

Originally posted by jiggybabymiggz
I think i already got the job. Yahoo! back to earning bucks for Christmas again.

congrats ***!!!!

[jiggybabymiggz]

Adroth, maraming salamat. medyo swerte nga at mukhang set-up pa ng documentation yung company.

Minsan e parang gusto ko mag-setup ng eb dito. para naman magkakilala lahat ng mga gustong pasukin o pumapasok sa propesyon na ito. Buhayin natin ang thread na ito mga peeps.

[Adroth]

Originally posted by jiggybabymiggz
Adroth, maraming salamat. medyo swerte nga at mukhang set-up pa ng documentation yung company.

Minsan e parang gusto ko mag-setup ng eb dito. para naman magkakilala lahat ng mga gustong pasukin o pumapasok sa propesyon na ito. Buhayin natin ang thread na ito mga peeps.

Roger that on keeping the thread alive. The EB will be hard on my end though, because I'm not there.

Good for you on the job man. Nothing like setting up shop.

[Skirt01]

kasi po natanggap na siya sa work.. so dapat mag-blow out na siya...

[jiggybabymiggz]

Originally posted by Skirt01
kasi po natanggap na siya sa work.. so dapat mag-blow out na siya...

I wish i could Skirt01, but my finances are already draining what's left of my minimal resources. Anyways, am not yet (officially) hired but i have a sense that i'll get the job based on the outcome of the interviews and the battery of exams that i took. The last i heard, they're already conducting background investigations on me. Maybe the EB is good if everyone here has already been employed so that we'll meet and at the same time we enjoy the fruits of our labor as Tech. Writers

Adroth, yup man forgot that you are not here. Anyways, you'll be a good source for opportunities abroad since you are already there reaping the green money for hardwork. Maybe, if they have a need for more Tech Writers there you could be kind to share opportunities there with us.

Anyways, I also had a call last monday afternoon of an IT employer who is offering me a contractual job for 1 month. I turned it down since i have an ACTIVE pending job application. Maybe those who'll be interested, go to jobsdb and search for IPI. They pay good based on our conversation. :D Had i not have a pending job application, i would have accepted it since at least i'll have dough this xmas.

[Skirt01]

hehehe... we wish you all the luck brother!
i have the feeling that I will not get the position since i know i didn't do well during the last stage of the recruitment process. Before that stage, my spirit was high that i can get the job, but that stage was really a surprise. but still it was a great experience to go through their unique recruitment process.

[jiggybabymiggz]

yup guys, it's final. I'll be starting working next week. Hope that i'll meet the company's expectations and otherwise. Anybody here got a hint on where i can get info about IEEE or SEI? Tks

[Skirt01]

buti ka pa... i didn't get the job... but it is okay.. i guess it was not really meant for me...

jiggy... good luck ah...

[therealkiller]

bagito po... pero matagal-tagal na ring nagsusulat kahit paano. gusto ko ang sinabi ni Adroth: all one needs to bring to the table is good, basic knowledge ng linggwaheng Ingles; dahil nga matututunan naman na ang ibang bagay...

hirap lang sa mga employers eh *** "experience clause"... i've been turned down a lot of times kahit na pakiwari ko ay may supisyente akong nalalaman (sa pagsasawika o documentation); kasi nga ay "geared" ako sa isang uri ng panunulat... sa pananaw ko eh a writer's simply a pen- ever see a pen that's exclusively for business, technical documentation or any other specialization?

kumusta po sa kanilang lahat. :)

[Adroth]

Jiggy,

IEEE has a Web site, however, a lot of the documents there are subscription only. Moving into process documentation?

ISO documentation is very lucrative

Therealkiller,

The experience requirement is not really so much to see if you can write per se; but rather -- do you have the aptitude for this kind of writing.

No Pulitzer prizes in tech writing. Just grunt work. Sometimes the only acknowledgement you get for good work is the absence of complaints.

Jiggy pointed out the organization and version control aspects of the job. That can be too bureaucractic for some people.

The research aspect requires an eye for detail that can be tedious. So if investigation is not your cup of tea, then the job will get old really fast.

If you leave right away because your bored -- then the time and training expended on you would be all for nothing.

If you really want to give this a try, and companies are bugging you about your experience, go for short term contracting jobs. That way, you can build up your resume.

[jiggybabymiggz]

Adroth, I agree with you on ISO documentation. There's also CMM or the Capability Maturity Model. CMM is good only for companies in the Software Development Business but as compared to ISO, this one's really stringent and sometimes a pain in the neck to set-up and be accredited.

I asked IEEE for Software Documentation (User Guides, Installation Guide) for uniformity's sake only. I use different styles before but i think i'll be using this one in the new job that i got.

therealkiller, i think that what you took-up in college also counts. During an interview that i had with a previous employer, i was told that most of their applicants for the Technical Writer position are Journalism people. According to them, they have a hard time finding either a Com Sci or Engineering people because they seldom find such people to take the job. In my opinion, in the technical writing field a journalist may find it hard to fit in the absence of certifications or exposure to technical matters. Take for example this case, especially right now when Telecommunications is bouncing back, if you had experience in documentation of telecommunication processes then, your employability will be very high since you already have a background in telecommunications. I must tell you also that my English composition skills are not that good, so for me it's moot to say that in technical writing...proficiency in english is all you need to go to this job, though of course it is a plus factor but not really much of a requirement. Here's a phrase that I learned from my boss during one of my ISO documentation assignments, "document what you do, and do what you document" I've learned technical processes because of this one and is one of the gauges used when i apply for a certain company. I believe that in journalism, that phrase can never be applicable :cool:

[jiggybabymiggz]

wake-up call to posters here...hehehe! how's christmas been going for you?

[Adroth]

I'm COMING HOME!!!

Will be spending 90% of my time in Davao though.

Two whole, fantastic weeks. Nice thing about having a boss that understands the word: Telecommuting.

[jiggybabymiggz]

Originally posted by Adroth
I'm COMING HOME!!!

Will be spending 90% of my time in Davao though.

Two whole, fantastic weeks. Nice thing about having a boss that understands the word: Telecommuting.

It is so very nice of you to come back home for the holidays. There's nothing like celebrating the season with the entire family. Let's just hope that you booked your flight early to avoid being wait-listed, booked-flights are common this season, ya know!
have a safe and happy trip and bring us pasalubongs...hehehe! :D

[therealkiller]

jigz, droth...

landed a job finally!... thing is- it's really heavy tech sh*t- perhaps you can help me find resources/tutorials on style, the basics, etc.

i have around 3 weeks to prepare- the company'll train me but i want to get a head start.

as the saying goes, lead me to water...

heeeellllpppp!!!!


salamat.

[Adroth]

Originally posted by therealkiller
jigz, droth...

landed a job finally!... thing is- it's really heavy tech sh*t- perhaps you can help me find resources/tutorials on style, the basics, etc.

i have around 3 weeks to prepare- the company'll train me but i want to get a head start.

as the saying goes, lead me to water...

heeeellllpppp!!!!


salamat.

Cool man. Which industry? (e.g., IT, etc.)

[HoRnY4NiE]

ako rin gusto ko magtechnical writer for a career change...i think mas meron cyang career growth kesa sa existing work ko hehehhe

[Adroth]

Realkiller,

How's the writing job?

[woulfe27]

Hello,

I used to be the Technical Editor/Writer at Microsoft Business Solutions. Now I am the Documentation Manager/Senior Technical Writer at Alvion Technologies. We're currently looking for an experienced technical writer.

Requirements:

- 3 to 5 years experience in writing manuals/online help for software applications

- Proficient in Framemaker, RoboHelp X4, or Word

- Fast learner and independent

- Willing to wokr in a multicultural work environment

- Has a passion for new technologies


Benefits:

- P24K starting salary (depending on experience)

- Performance in increase twice a year

- Flexible working schedule

- HMO benefits

- Fun work environment


Please send your resume to r.fajardo@alvion.com. You can also visit our website at www.alvion.com.

Thank you.

BTW, I disagree with the observation that all a technical writer needs is sufficient skills in the use of the English language. I've been a technical writer for more than 10 years now, and I've seen good creative writers fail when making the transition to technical writing. Most of them use the verbose or poetic approach when writing user manuals for software, something which software users rarely appreciate.

There is substantial difference between creative and technical writing.

[exGS]

Adroth! Tagal ko na hindi bumista sa PX and am pleasantly surprised to find you knee (or should I say "neck") deep in this very nice thread about technical writing.

Hi All! If anyone has any doubt about Adroth's experience and wisdom as a technical writer, well I can most certainly vouch for him as a most righteous fellow. Too bad I never got the chance to formally work with him (even though we're in the same company).

And yes, lets keep this thread alive since I do believe technical writing will eventually become a viable local career given that it remains a "services"-type of function / responsibility (similar to call centers, etc.), which can be outsourced from elsewhere to here.

[woulfe27]

yup, tech writing is very much alive in the philippines and will continue to grow as most US companies base their programming tasks here. this career path also pays very well; I am a licensed electrical engineer but I opted to become a tech writer due to higher salary scales.

BTW, how would you like to set up a local chapter of the STC (Society for Technical Communications).

:)

[exGS]

Originally posted by jiggybabymiggz
Adroth, I agree with you on ISO documentation. There's also CMM or the Capability Maturity Model

The problem I see with cashing in on process documentation (from development to document control) is that it depends if the company is really interested. Most companies won't shell out for an ISO documentation consultant and will usually throw money at the bigger, more established consulting companies that handle the audit and certification for you as a 3rd-party.

Nonetheless, process doc experience is a SOLID technical writer credential to have, and can actually be substituted for actual manual / documentation writing.

During an interview that i had with a previous employer, i was told that most of their applicants for the Technical Writer position are Journalism people. According to them, they have a hard time finding either a Com Sci or Engineering people because they seldom find such people to take the job. In my opinion, in the technical writing field a journalist may find it hard to fit in the absence of certifications or exposure to technical matters.

From experience, the best technical writers off the bat are communication majors (i.e., Mass Comm, Dev Comm, etc.). If they have no experience, they can usually be put in editing and proofreading roles first to give them a handle of the content and its technical style or flair.

However, I'm not saying that I'm limiting myself to these resumes. I've hired people who were project managers / coordinators in previous work but had good writing skills and they excelled once on board. This is because they knew how to organize thoughts / facts and how to ask people the right questions.

I wish more Com Sci or Com Eng students would realize the value of technical documentation. A lot of my peers who are now abroad found that this gave them the edge in getting promoted to IT management. Why? If you're the best programmer, then they won't take you away from it, right? But you always need to refresh / invest in your skills since programming languages come and go. How about English and good people skills to get an IT project done? Priceless! :cool:

Thats why I always laugh when the engineers here shove their MCSEs into my face. I told them their MCSE is only good for a couple of years, while my English skills are good until I'm 65 or its replaced as the global language of technical communication ;)

[exGS]

Originally posted by woulfe27
BTW, how would you like to set up a local chapter of the STC (Society for Technical Communications).

I would support such an effort but would be reluctant to lead it ;)

Plus, I have a feeling it will eventually be bogged down in politics and crab mentality but am hopeful that we can keep this from happening.

[Adroth]

Originally posted by woulfe27

BTW, how would you like to set up a local chapter of the STC (Society for Technical Communications).

:) [/B]

I'm listening.

How would this benefit the local tech writing industry?

[woulfe27]

STC members have access to international job databases that focus only on the technical writing position. It already has a chapter in Singapore.

[Adroth]

They're in Taiwan too. (http://www.stc.org)

The special interest groups look interesting.

[Adroth]

Cool technical writer reference

http://www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/index.php3

[Adroth]

How are things?

[Adroth]

Finally found the thread.

Bump :borg:

[therealkiller]

Yo, Adroth!

Tagal ko na din 'di nakapasyal dito. Ok naman ang trabaho-- been here a year now! Bilis nga nang panahon eh. Salamat po sa pangungumusta.

By the way, nakita ko na yung link na recommended mo. Ok nga diyan sa raycomm.

Talk to you (and everyone) again soon.

[Jeffreyw]

NCR, a US company located in Asia IT Park in Cebu i think is looking for a Technical Writer.

--
www.1gigmail.com - Search 1 gigabyte mails here!

[Adroth]

Yo, Adroth!

Tagal ko na din 'di nakapasyal dito. Ok naman ang trabaho-- been here a year now! Bilis nga nang panahon eh. Salamat po sa pangungumusta.

By the way, nakita ko na yung link na recommended mo. Ok nga diyan sa raycomm.

Talk to you (and everyone) again soon.

Wow. One year. Yup, time does fly. What kind of writing do you guys do? Ilan kayo?

Re Raycomm, no probs bro. Just passing a piece of advise that got passed on to me as well.

[Adroth]

What's the starting salary of a tech writer in the Phils these days?

[malfoy2k]

FYI

me openings for Sr. Technical Writer (min of 3 yrs exp)

email ur resume to careers@cevera.com

[Adroth]

FYI

me openings for Sr. Technical Writer (min of 3 yrs exp)

email ur resume to careers@cevera.com

What company?

What kind of tech writer are you looking for? Different writing jobs require different kinds of writers.

. . . we recently had to learn that the hard way.

[malfoy2k]

guyz, me openings sa cevera for Sr. Technical Writer (min. of 3 years ata)

careers@cevera.com

[Adroth]

Check this out, less than 20 applications as of April 21

http://ph.jobstreet.com/jobs/2005/4/default/20/385117.htm

Global Resource for Outsourced Workers, Inc. (GROW, Inc.)

GROW, Inc. is the premier overseas recruitment and staffing agency in the Philippines. Our corporate offices are located at the heart of the country’s central business district in Makati City, Philippines.

We recruit, select, and deploy highly skilled Filipino professionals to meet the temporary and permanent staffing needs of companies across the globe.

We utilize the latest technologies and processes to ensure the timely deployment of human resource talent to our clients.

Our staffing services involve a meticulous process of recruitment, pre-qualification, and selection in order to meet the workforce needs of companies for world-class, reliable, and highly skilled workers and professionals from the Philippines in the fields of healthcare, education, customer care and IT.


Technical Writer
(National Capital Reg - Makati City)


Requirements:


Proven track record specializing in technical writing with a minimum of two (2) years related experience;

Able to write, edit and produce system documentation including system manuals, user manuals and other related materials for IT services projects;

Must have strong, effective written and verbal English communication skills.

Listens well, prepares minutes, documents requirements and designs and prepares complete project documentation.

Computing skills together with experience in software development projects and infrastructure installation projects are valuable assets

[Adroth]

From my beloved Jobstreet.com account:

ANTICO MANILA, INC., an affiliate of a US-based start-up company engaged in software development and consulting services focused in the Embedded Systems, Point of Service (POS), Enterprise Application Integration (EAI) and Business-To-Business (B2B) markets, is looking for qualified individuals to be part of their software development team in Manila. The qualified candidate, part of the initial team in Manila, must be versatile and work cohesively with the team in order to get high quality project deliverables completed in a timely manner. The ideal candidate will possess strong communication and interpersonal skills while excelling in delivering challenging technical solutions in a team environment.


TECHNICAL WRITER
(National Capital Reg - NCR)

Requirements:

Experience:

Minimum of 4 years of technical documentation

Specific Requirements:

Proficient in English grammar, spelling and composition

Understanding of Information Technology, hardware, software and network concepts and terms

Research and work with content providers to collect information

Develop, validate and present outline and key contents to stakeholders

Develop and maintain documentation

Obtain feedback and approval of documentation

Manage and control versions of work products

Comply with documentation standards and timelines

Technologies:

Experience in Adobe Framemaker required

Experience in Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Illustrator and RoboHelp is highly desired

Experience in Visual SourceSafe is a plus

Experience in graphics editing is a plus

General Requirements:

College or university degree

Excellent communication skills in English (both written and oral)

Willing and able to work off hours in support of a US parent company and set of customers

Willing and able to travel when there is a need

Must be self-motivated and able to work in a start-up environment

Proficient in task definition, time management and status reporting

Qualified applicants may send their application letter, comprehensive resume and recent photo to:

39/F Summit One Office Tower
530 Shaw Blvd., Mandaluyong City

Or e-mail to: recruiter@anticogroup.com

[Adroth]

Software Laboratories, Incorporated
Software Laboratories, Inc. (SLI) was established in the Philippines in 1987 to answer the demand for IT Professionals with experience in customized application development.

http://ph.jobstreet.com/jobs/2005/5/default/20/400976.htm

We are in need of IT Professionals to be a part of our team as :

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Technical Writer
(National Capital Reg - Makati City)

Requirements:

Candidate must possess at least a Bachelor's/College Degree in Computer Science/Information Technology or equivalent.

At least 2 year(s) of working experience in the related field is required for this position.

Applicants must be willing to work in Makati City.

Applicants should be Filipino citizens or hold relevant residence status.

Preferably 1-4 yrs experienced employees specializing in IT/Computer - Software or equivalent.

Contract positions available.

[cybernaut]

anyone has info about technical writers in Trend Micro?!

[Adroth]

anyone has info about technical writers in Trend Micro?!

What do you need to know?

[Adroth]

Viventis Search

From: http://ph.jobstreet.com/jobs/2005/5/default/20/407241.htm

Viventis Search is a provider of multi-functional executive search and consulting services. We are composed of experienced professionals who have been servicing clients in the FMCG, Pharmaceuticals, Telecommunications, Information Technology, and Financial Services industries. Our consultants have previously worked with top multinational firms and conglomerates recruiting senior and middle human capital to easily address the best possible strategic fit for clients while providing a high level of service and customer satisfaction. Should it be senior-level or middle-level management, or specialized searches, our collective expertise and credentials in the search business will provide you with a credible list of top-level and strategic successful placements spread across various companies and industries.

To date, Viventis Search has already strategically partnered with various top multi-national, regional and top local clients found in the top 500 corporations in the Philippines.

TECHNICAL WRITER
(National Capital Reg)

Requirements:

- Candidate must possess at least a Bachelor's/College Degree in omputer Science/Information Technology Journalism, Technical Writing, English or equivalent.

- Required skill(s): RoboHelp, FrameMaker, PaintShop Pro, MS Office
Technical Writing (Manuals: Users, Technical, Operations), Marketing and Design.

- Required language(s): English, Filipino

- Applicants should be Filipino citizens or hold relevant residence status.
Preferably 1-4 yrs experienced employees specializing in IT/Computer - Software or equivalent.

- Full-Time positions available.

[rychu]

I love technical writing. And, I'm a CS major. I guess we're the rare kind! haha! My coursemates hate technical writing so usually it falls down on my lap. And, if given the choice, I don't wanna program.

[Adroth]

I love technical writing. And, I'm a CS major. I guess we're the rare kind! haha! My coursemates hate technical writing so usually it falls down on my lap. And, if given the choice, I don't wanna program.

What sort of tech writing do you do?

[rychu]

just the usual writing the documentation for programs..... diagrams, requirements analysis...

[Adroth]

Well, that's a small part of the tech writing profession. There's a whole lot more to it than that though.

[xxtoyxx]

I turned down an offer na maging technical writer sa isang company na nasa IBM Bldg. because na-TO ako sa di nila pagbigay ng asking ko, eh meron na akong experience in (pseudo) technical writing. I opted to stay sa job ko na mas mababa sweldo pero me promise na out of the country within the year (and increase sa asking ko, kapal ko talaga, hehe, nilakasan ko loob na sabihin sa boss na me offer ako :P ). Should I slam my head on the wall now? :P

Curious ako sa nature ng technical writing sa company na ito (ilang beses nabanggit sa thread) kasi yung sa exam nila feeling ko dapat marunong ka din ng assembly language, OSes etc. Yun nga lang di ko pinursue. Oh well, deep well.

[Adroth]

meron na akong experience in (pseudo) technical writing.

Curious ako sa nature ng technical writing sa company na ito (ilang beses nabanggit sa thread) kasi yung sa exam nila feeling ko dapat marunong ka din ng assembly language, OSes etc. Yun nga lang di ko pinursue. Oh well, deep well.

What sort of "pseudo" writing experience do you have?

What is your view of technical writing? Is it only an entry point to another career, or do you consider it a career itself?

If the IBM bldg company in your statement above is Trend, then yes, writing there is pretty interesting. Writers in trend encounter different "flavors" of the writing profession. From marketing writing; to end-user documentation; to API documentation; to deep-down nut n bolts writing. Even the latter has different shades.

[xxtoyxx]

^ I write and edit for an electronics mag now, most sa mga nasulat ko ay for online though. Pero part siguro nang pag atras ko is that kung lilipat man ako, ayaw ko na sana muna magsulat. Mukhang reverse gagawin ko if ever lumipat ako since nasa marketing side siya, yun ay kabaligtaran ng ginagawa namin now.

[Adroth]

Thesauros Info Tech Consultants Inc.
(Search / Recruitment Firm)
Advertised: 5-8-05 | Closing Date: 4-10-05.

http://ph.jobstreet.com/jobs/2005/8/default/20/474172.htm

THESAUROS INFO TECH CONSULTANTS INC. is a solid group of Information Technology (IT) consulting and recruitment firm that is a premier provider of certified technical experts to support our clients' technical staff supplementation needs.

Our professionals possess the expertise and experience necessary to provide solutions ranging from Java application development, web technologies, full service database management, computer networking services covering all aspects of your business applications and information systems, and skills in different technologies and practices.

THESAUROS offers value-added services to our respectable customers. We strongly believe to have built a compelling value proposition to assist our clients in solving their IT challenges.

ACQUIRING BUSINESS' SUCCESS, BY CONQUERING I.T. SKILLS!


Technical Writer Process Support
(National Capital Reg - Metro Manila)

Responsibilities:

The Technical communications specialist will be responsible for helping the National Process Execution (NPE) team develop and update documentation, web portals, reports and processes for implementation and management of Service Support processes (Problem, Change, Release and Configuration Management) that are closely aligned with the ITIL IT service provision framework.

Develops and updates our team self service information portals and ensures that appropriate linkages to other documentation, sites and repositories is in place.

Develops and automates standard and ad hoc reporting for customer and ITI communication and data analysis

Ensures database completeness and accuracy

Updates process documentation and works with support teams to ensure that documentation reflects process changes

Ensures established standards and processes are maintained

Liaises and works closely with the NPE team and support staff

Prepares and analyses short term and long term reports for quality measurements

Maintains internal support staff accountability to the process

Participates in quality improvement initiatives

Requirements:

Candidate must possess at least a Bachelor's/College Degree or Post Graduate Diploma / Master's Degree in Computer Science/Information Technology or equivalent.

Knowledgeable of and experience with ITIL (nice to have)

Detailed knowledge of service management and delivery and the required

interactions between subgroups and functions (nice-to-have)

Knowledgeable of, and experience with, Remedy and MS Office

Broad technical knowledge covering all technology platforms, mainframe, midrange, distributed and networks

With strong technical writing skills

Web page development (XML, Crystal Reports or Cognos, Remedy)

Demonstrated experience in ITIL process (nice to have)

Current I.T. knowledge and experience covering all technology platforms, mainframe, midrange, distributed and networks. This would include good familiarity with a wide variety of vendor hardware from IBM 9672’s, AS400’s, Hitachi and Storagetek peripherals to desktop devices. Operating systems from MVS to UNIX to Windows and a variety of network architectures and telecomm facilities (nice to have)

Applicants must be willing to work in Metro Manila.

[Adroth]

Thesauros Info Tech Consultants Inc.
(Search / Recruitment Firm)
Advertised: 5-8-05 | Closing Date: 4-10-05.

http://ph.jobstreet.com/jobs/2005/8/default/20/474172.htm

THESAUROS INFO TECH CONSULTANTS INC. is a solid group of Information Technology (IT) consulting and recruitment firm that is a premier provider of certified technical experts to support our clients' technical staff supplementation needs.

Our professionals possess the expertise and experience necessary to provide solutions ranging from Java application development, web technologies, full service database management, computer networking services covering all aspects of your business applications and information systems, and skills in different technologies and practices.

THESAUROS offers value-added services to our respectable customers. We strongly believe to have built a compelling value proposition to assist our clients in solving their IT challenges.

ACQUIRING BUSINESS' SUCCESS, BY CONQUERING I.T. SKILLS!


Technical Writer Process Support
(National Capital Reg - Metro Manila)

Responsibilities:

The Technical communications specialist will be responsible for helping the National Process Execution (NPE) team develop and update documentation, web portals, reports and processes for implementation and management of Service Support processes (Problem, Change, Release and Configuration Management) that are closely aligned with the ITIL IT service provision framework.

Develops and updates our team self service information portals and ensures that appropriate linkages to other documentation, sites and repositories is in place.

Develops and automates standard and ad hoc reporting for customer and ITI communication and data analysis

Ensures database completeness and accuracy

Updates process documentation and works with support teams to ensure that documentation reflects process changes

Ensures established standards and processes are maintained

Liaises and works closely with the NPE team and support staff

Prepares and analyses short term and long term reports for quality measurements

Maintains internal support staff accountability to the process

Participates in quality improvement initiatives

Requirements:

Candidate must possess at least a Bachelor's/College Degree or Post Graduate Diploma / Master's Degree in Computer Science/Information Technology or equivalent.

Knowledgeable of and experience with ITIL (nice to have)

Detailed knowledge of service management and delivery and the required
interactions between subgroups and functions (nice-to-have)

Knowledgeable of, and experience with, Remedy and MS Office

Broad technical knowledge covering all technology platforms, mainframe, midrange, distributed and networks

With strong technical writing skills

Web page development (XML, Crystal Reports or Cognos, Remedy)

Demonstrated experience in ITIL process (nice to have)

Current I.T. knowledge and experience covering all technology platforms, mainframe, midrange, distributed and networks. This would include good familiarity with a wide variety of vendor hardware from IBM 9672’s, AS400’s, Hitachi and Storagetek peripherals to desktop devices. Operating systems from MVS to UNIX to Windows and a variety of network architectures and telecomm facilities (nice to have)

Applicants must be willing to work in Metro Manila.

[woulfe27]

sino dito ang members din ng STC (Society for Technical Communication)?

:)

[woulfe27]

What's the starting salary of a tech writer in the Phils these days?

depende sa company. sa microsoft 2 years ago nasa P36k starting salary for experienced but junior writers. sa company ko today nasa 40 to 50k for junior writers (p[pero me experience dapat sa Framemaker and RoboHelp).

yun nga palang posting sa sa antico, para sa verifone yun. ito current company ko ngayun and it looks like magtatagal ako dito. masaya kase saka sobrang light ng load. mabait pa big boss namin (pwede counterstrike, rise of nations, etc.). parang microsoft great plains din. :rotflmao:

[Adroth]

sino dito ang members din ng STC (Society for Technical Communication)?

:)

I signed up last year.

[jiggybabymiggz]

Hi peeps. It's nice to see this thread resurrected again. Hi woulfe 27, I was also about to apply for that post in antico. I have an ex-officemate who works there now and she was the one who gave me the email address of the HR, but until now, I haven't sent my resume yet.

By the way, I have been seeing requirements for technical writing with experience in RoboHelp or Framemaker. To be honest, I've been into this profession for 5 years now and I haven't got a clue what RoboHelp or Framemaker is. Meron ba crash course offering these applications?

[Adroth]

Long time no hear Jiggy.

By the way, I have been seeing requirements for technical writing with experience in RoboHelp or Framemaker.

RoboHelp is for developing help systems. Framemaker is giving MS Word a run for its money as the de facto writing tool for manuals and such.

Do you have copies of the RoboHelp and Framemaker software? Provided you have them, you can actually hone your RoboHelp and Framemaker skills online. That's what we did in our early days to side step a co-worker who was lording his Framemaker skills over the rest of us. There was nothing that he knew that wasn't published out there.

Indexing and cross-referencing in Frame is fun :). The learning curve, however, is quite steep.

Before we completely transitioned to Web-help, we used to endure the bugginess of WinHelp -- again, Google saved the day on numerous occasions.

Some RoboHelp info

http://www.macromedia.com/software/robohelp/?promoid=BINZ

Some Framemaker info

http://www.adobe.com/products/framemaker/main.html

BTW, these days you can also use Frame to create Web help systems. Check it out: http://www.webworks.com/products/wwep_f/default.aspx

[woulfe27]

I've been using FrameMaker (FM) since 1998, but you can't find a training center here that offers decent FM course. EduPro fooled us into enrolling into their FM course but we backed out in the last minute when we realized na mas martami pa kaming alam dun sa trainer. we had to go to the US pa last year to avail of an advanced FM training course in Sacramento, CA. sa singapore din yata meron. very useful for creating manuals with lots of chapters.

robohelp x5 naman is very easy to use. if you can create chm files using mano-mano approach (winhelp, etc.), then sisiw sa yo robohelp. WYSWIG editor din kase ito and it also supports contect-sensitive help. you can also monitor how the readers use your online help docs (in HTML) using RoboEngine. this way u'll know what needs to be improved in your OLH. it also supports FM.

;)

[woulfe27]

I signed up last year.

dami nilang useful articles sa web. :)

btw, i attended an STC meeting in Sacramento, CA, last year and most members are unemployed. naka-outsource na daw kase sa pinas and india ang documentation efforts ng most IT companies in CA. but they were very nice to us naman. :)

[Adroth]

dami nilang useful articles sa web. :)

btw, i attended an STC meeting in Sacramento, CA, last year and most members are unemployed. naka-outsource na daw kase sa pinas and india ang documentation efforts ng most IT companies in CA. but they were very nice to us naman. :)

Yup. Even the STC magazine always has articles about how to deal with outsourcing. A lot of them advocate going into a team-lead / manager track. Not all writers are cut out for that though.

[woulfe27]

Yup. Even the STC magazine always has articles about how to deal with outsourcing. A lot of them advocate going into a team-lead / manager track. Not all writers are cut out for that though.


I was TL/editor a Microsoft before I became Documentation Mgr. at Alvion. Now, TL ulit ako dito sa VeriFone. Mahirap maging manager, and i hate doing admin stuff. Swerte lang siguro ako I was able to handpick the members of my team (mga ex-officemates ko sa Microsoft at Alvion, siempre hehe).

[woulfe27]

Yup. Even the STC magazine always has articles about how to deal with outsourcing. A lot of them advocate going into a team-lead / manager track. Not all writers are cut out for that though.


I was TL/editor a Microsoft before I became Documentation Mgr. at Alvion. Now, TL ulit ako dito sa VeriFone. Mahirap maging manager, and i hate doing admin stuff. Swerte lang siguro ako I was able to handpick the members of my team (mga ex-officemates ko sa Microsoft at Alvion, siempre hehe).

[Adroth]

Swerte lang siguro ako I was able to handpick the members of my team (mga ex-officemates ko sa Microsoft at Alvion, siempre hehe).

Wolfe,

How do you evaluate the writers that you hire? Typically, what do you look for?

[woulfe27]

requirement namin sa current company ko dapata marunong ng framemaker. since we used that tool sa microsoft (imagine, even microsoft uses FM hehe), madali kong na-hire yung mga ex-officemates ko. eto pa:

- at least 4 years tech writing exp. for junior writers. 6 years for sr. writers.

- experience in dealing with content experts from different timezones (globally scattered kase offices namin)

- comfortable with peer-to-peer editing

- familiar with MS Style Guide/Chicago Manual of Style

- knows how to get timely info from "moody" content experts (assertive but in a nice way)

- robohelp x4 or x5

- knows how to deal with constantly changing deadlines

- knows how to pass away idle hours (playing CS, RON, ragnarok, etc hehe)

NOTE: we recently turned down an applicant who's a self-confessed workaholic. pano kung kakarelease lang ng product at two weeks na walang gagawin? maiinip lang sya, di ba? me precedent na kase dito yung ganyan e. nainip yung isang programmer kaya nag-resign. wala yaw kase syang ginagawa :)

[Adroth]

You've covered the paper qualifications. Stuff that an applicant can put on his resume to make himself look attractive.

But how do you go about actually figuring out if a person is actually a good fit?

Its a bit hard to really determine how well a person handles himself during his free time, or how he gets information from the SMEs, during the interview. So one must rely on the insights gained during the probation. If he plays as soon as he logs on the first day, or if he picks a fight with an engineer -- then that's a dead giveaway. The tricky part will be spotting incompetent writers who have simply mastered the art of obfuscating their inadequacies.

How do you make the most of a prospective writer's 3 month probationary period? Do you have a semi-established drill for what a writer is supposed to do, or be able to demonstrate at the end of the probation?

[woulfe27]

dito kase sa min, first day pa lang binibigyan na namin ng projects. and we focus on the results, not on the hours spent by the writer. ang instruction sa min ng boss namin sa US went like this: "i don't care how you get the job done. just get the job done."

and you have to face it, some writers work fast, others work slow. if i give an assignment to a writer ona monday and the deadline is friday, i don't care if he/she spends monday to thursday playing games. basta pagdating ng friday, dapat tapos na yung project nya at maganda yung quality. in fact, yung 2 bagong writers namin, i advised them to play rise of nations on their first day on the job kase wala pa kaming projects para sa kanila.

to answer your question, during the 3 month probation period, basta natapos nya yung mga projects na binigay sa kanya without being spoon fed, at basta na-demonstrate nya na kaya nya makipag communicate with "moody" content experts without losing his/her cool, then in our books, he/she is OK. that's our drill :)

[woulfe27]

saka the applicant can't fake naman if he/she really doesnt know anything about FM or RoboHelp or SLDC, right? :)

[Adroth]

Mastery of the tools doesn't mean that a person can really be a tech writer (writing skills are already a given). A person can show off how he can make RoboHelp and Framemaker sing and dance, but if he/she doesn't have what it takes to get, or understand, the information that needs to be put in the doc, then its all for nothing.

Its the soft skills (e.g., research ability, multi-tasking capacity, pakisama with the SMEs, etc.) and technical ability that are hard to measure. For example I know of one writer who doesn't understand why holding an engineer in one place for an unbroken four-hour interview is simply NOT done. Apparently one of the reasons he pummelled the hapless engineer for so long was that he didn't have the sense to leverage Google to understand the basics. The man goes to interviews without advance research, completely clueless about his subject matter, and expects to have all the information spoon-fed to him by developers who are prepetually scrambling to keep up with the development schedule.

Wala talagang diskarte . . . or EQ man lang.

Needless to say he's developed a reputation amongst the engineers -- one that will make things very difficult for him in his upcoming projects. There have already been subtle requests from project managers to not have him assigned to their projects. (The Chinese are always "subtle").

You've been in the writing gig long enough, I was wondering if had techniques for identifying this kind of lack of work ethic.

--- ~~~ ---

ang instruction sa min ng boss namin sa US went like this: "i don't care how you get the job done. just get the job done."

Our mandates are similar: get it done anyway you can. Our director in the EU also added the following wrinkle: "you can't do your kind of writing in the office". So we get to telecommute a lot -- more often than not.

[woulfe27]

wala bang requirements/engineering specs docs senyo na pwede nyang gamitin so he wouldnt rely on spoonfeeding?

during interviews, we always ask applicants kung pano process nya sa pagkuha ng information from content experts or engineers. :)

[WhItEFox]

whats a communication arts graduate, working in a major broadsheet for four years (more on journalistic skills) has to do if she wants to start a career in technical writing? (and no clue on robohelp or frame maker) since software applications in the office is different (but not using pagemaker anymore)

do you know any schools offering IT certifications?

[woulfe27]

whats a communication arts graduate, working in a major broadsheet for four years (more on journalistic skills) has to do if she wants to start a career in technical writing? (and no clue on robohelp or frame maker) since software applications in the office is different (but not using pagemaker anymore)

do you know any schools offering IT certifications?

well, for starter, you should be interested in technology. kung software documentation, it will be your advantage if you can read code. or u can try being a tech writer trainee. :) ibang iba kase tech writing from other writing jobs, although i myself, worked as an editor for an electronic magazine.

[woulfe27]

btw, adroth, what's your company?

[Adroth]

btw, adroth, what's your company?

Its a Taiwanese-owned software company. I could be wrong, but you may have applied for a job in my previous department in 2002.

wala bang requirements/engineering specs docs senyo na pwede nyang gamitin so he wouldnt rely on spoonfeeding?

Engineering docs tend to get out of date, so in our company those docs are used as starting points -- not really as references. One of the key activities in our writing team is studying a product's debug logs. Its really the surest way to get the true story of how the product works.

At any rate, the guy needs to be spoonfed to get to a level of knowledge where he can understand what engineering docs are available. How the man was hired is a very loooong story. One that the current management team intends to avoid.

during interviews, we always ask applicants kung pano process nya sa pagkuha ng information from content experts or engineers. :)

I guess the way the questions are asked would depend on the interviewee. The intervew is the key.

[WhItEFox]

well, for starter, you should be interested in technology. kung software documentation, it will be your advantage if you can read code. or u can try being a tech writer trainee. :) ibang iba kase tech writing from other writing jobs, although i myself, worked as an editor for an electronic magazine.

well, how do one start from there? assuming that the person is interested in technology and willing to be a tech writer trainee? do u suggest enrolling on schools which offers tutorials on said technologies?

[Adroth]

Hi Whitefox,

Check out the following site. It might give you a better feel for what skills you need to work on: http://www.techwr-l.com/techwhirl/index.php3.

[woulfe27]

Its a Taiwanese-owned software company. I could be wrong, but you may have applied for a job in my previous department in 2002.


2002? i doubt that. i was with microsoft from 1999 to 2003 and we loved it there. like iskul bukol, we come in at 4PM and leave for the bars at 7PM hehe.

i did receive an offer from trend micro to relocate to taiwan in 2003 with my family, after microsoft shut down its R&D here. but i turned it down when a Florida-based company offered a better package. is it trend micro? or u-lead? two of my writers now are from u-lead, and one of my colleagues is now a tech writer in trend micro taiwan.

[woulfe27]

I guess the way the questions are asked would depend on the interviewee. The intervew is the key.

here's our standard question to all applicants:

"can you walk us through the procedure that you follow to get accurate and timely information for the documents that you're working on?"

:D

[Adroth]

is it trend micro? or u-lead? two of my writers now are from u-lead, and one of my colleagues is now a tech writer in trend micro taiwan.

With initials GA?

here's our standard question to all applicants:

"can you walk us through the procedure that you follow to get accurate and timely information for the documents that you're working on?"

Nice n' simple.

[woulfe27]

[QUOTE=Adroth]With initials GA?
QUOTE]

that's the one. u work with him?

[woulfe27]

adroth, electrical engineer ka din nga pala no? i remember, when trend micro offered me a relocation package to move to taiwan with my family, that was the height of the SARS crisis. muntik na pala tayo maging officemates. a guy in trend micro CA also interviewed me. is he still there?

[Adroth]

[QUOTE=Adroth]With initials GA?
QUOTE]

that's the one. u work with him?

Nope, he works in my old department. But we've had PM and email conversations before. I hope to finally meet the man in person in Q3 when I go back to Taiwan for a project. I hear he is doing very well.

Can I assume that you know ExGS as well?

adroth, electrical engineer ka din nga pala no? i remember, when trend micro offered me a relocation package to move to taiwan with my family, that was the height of the SARS crisis. muntik na pala tayo maging officemates. a guy in trend micro CA also interviewed me. is he still there?

I thought that was you. *okay*. I got the year wrong earlier.

If the guy who interviewed you was Andy, yup, he's still here. But he's moved on to the software quality assurance department.

[Forbidden_Amber]

when i started this thread, all i wanted was to gather information on how to be a technical writer since i was aspiring to be one. unfortunately, i was not able to realize that goal. however, at the moment, i am teaching technical writing and i really find the syllabus too bookish and theoretical.

For the technical writers already, what are the best ways to equip my future engineers and system analysts students?

As much as possible I want to expose them to technical writing in its real sense and not a hundred percent based on the syllabus.

hayy.. musta na pala ang life? where can i study and learn framemaker?

[woulfe27]

adroth,

i dont know ExGS's real name, considering the small size of the tech writing community in the philippines, i wouldn't be surprised if he/she turns out to be a former colleague. :)

FA,

ask your students to create a user guide on how to use a washing machine for white and colored clothes :) about FM, sad to say, walang competent trainer dito sa philippines nyan :(

[Adroth]

Ey FA, long time no hear.

You are not alone man. Even people who run technical documentation education programs in the US have problems grappling with that problem.

I remember reading an STC article about the ongoing debate about whether to focus training on the technical aspects of the profession such as how to use tools (e.g., Framemaker, RoboHelp, etc.), or to focus on soft skills, (e.g., learning theory, etc.). If you read my recent exchange with Woulfe, that's a sample of a soft skill deficiency problem.

There's even the question of about how much time should be devoted to learning about tools that will be used in the near future. For example, there's reportedly a push for making more use of XML in documentation, to facilitate single sourcing of documentation that may be read by different target audiences.

Lets keep this thread alive by sharing our respective views on the matter.

[Forbidden_Amber]

As a starter, I asked their instructor in Software Engineering if a documentation will be required to supplement their design or software. It is affirmative, hence, I required my students to submit to me their documentation of what they are preparing for SE.

I really find it difficult since these kids are more into computers but less on writing but technical writing is more on writing.

Perhaps, I might try what woulfe advised. I can use it as a drill or motivation or seatwork.

[Adroth]

Do you teach your minions how to make a documentation plan?

How about how to work in writing team?

Are your students taking up CS, and simply taking tech writing as a subject?

[Forbidden_Amber]

Yup, they are CS students and Tech Writing is only one of their subjects. But when I was assigned to edit some papers of the graduating students, I noticed that most of the proponents lack the technical writing skills especially documentation of their systems or designs.

I grouped them based on their groupings in their other subject where they need to prepare a system and one of the requirements is t submit a documentation.

[Adroth]

Yup, they are CS students and Tech Writing is only one of their subjects. But when I was assigned to edit some papers of the graduating students, I noticed that most of the proponents lack the technical writing skills especially documentation of their systems or designs.

I grouped them based on their groupings in their other subject where they need to prepare a system and one of the requirements is t submit a documentation.

Nice one FA.

If they start writing APIs as part of their job, documentation is a standard part of the associated SDK. They better get used to it.

Do you also check if they comment their code? Ideally, source code should be self-documenting, unfortunately a lot of developers are getting sloppy. I guess this is why Microsoft reportedly maintains a group of writers whose job is simply to make sure that their code has comments. Heard that from a Microsoft writer who spoke at a seminar that I attended -- I don't know if they still do that though.

[woulfe27]

Microsoft still employs writers to put comments in the code. But the company is now pushing its programmers to this task themselves, which makes sense because it's their code :)

[woulfe27]

...do this task, rather :)

[Adroth]

Microsoft still employs writers to put comments in the code. But the company is now pushing its programmers to this task themselves, which makes sense because it's their code :)

Mr. W, do you know if MS uses comment parsers to produce basic documentation that can be cleaned up later by a dime-a-dozen grammarian-writer?

As I understand it, it had always been the responsibility of the programmers to add comments. Enforcing the comment policy, however, was a complicated matter (e.g. how do you penalize a millionare programmer who refuses to take the time to make good comments?). Hence the existence of writers who made sure they were there.

[Forbidden_Amber]

^^^^ That I am not sure about, Adroth, since I do not have access to their designs or codes. What I have is only their documents. But I am always telling them that when they go out and mingle in the working arena, technical writing could be one of the lucrative jobs they can grab. Thus, as early as now, they should be familiar with it.

Can anyone give me some seatwork exercises we can work on with?
Some codes I can ask them to apply their tech writing skills into.

[exGS]

i dont know ExGS's real name, considering the small size of the tech writing community in the philippines, i wouldn't be surprised if he/she turns out to be a former colleague. :)

Sorry, woulfe. Can't say I've had the pleasure of knowing you personally although I may know someone from the company where you realized management wasn't for you. I'm just not sure if your tour-of-duty overlapped with JQ's stint over there, but he does know GA ;)

[exGS]

I really find it difficult since these kids are more into computers but less on writing but technical writing is more on writing.

Isn't it the truth that the last thing a software engineer usually wants to be bothered with is documentation? ;)

You need to convince them that good writing and speaking skills or good communication is an essential part of their skillset but it will always be a tough sell (e.g., are software engineers paid more for their programming or communication skills?). Most of them will be too young or not very confident / practiced with their communication skills to realize that it will help them move up the programming hierarchy (e.g., software engineers with good comm skills today stand a better chance of being tomorrow's project leads and IT architects).

Unfortunately, English communication as a whole is declining in the Philippines thanks to our shift to focus on the vernacular in primary up to collegiate level :mecry:

[exGS]

Its nice to see this thread up and running again... my apologies if I'm late rejoining the party. Anyway, it seems adroth and woulfe have things well under control.

Anyway, I noticed a few things regarding the PH technical writing / documentation / knowledge management landscape that I thought I'd share and get people's thought on:

1) They say all the documentation work is being shifted to India and PH, so how come there are a lot more unemployed Mass Comm and similar degree holders who are jobless at this point?

2) Is it just me or are there just too many junior or just-starting techwriter types in PH (e.g., I used to be in journalism but now want to try my hand at IT so I'm applying for techwriter positions)? Where are all the intermediate or expert techwriters?

3) I lost a few techwriter applicants to medical transcription, call centers, and similar companies. They said the job was lighter, pay is higher, although career prospects are poorer. Do you think this accounts for the dearth of PH techwriting talent?

Let the discussion begin! :D

[Karellen]

Since the day I graduated until now, there are two jobs that I am really interested but keeps on avoiding me; Technical Writer and Web Designer.

It is either I submit my resume and never receive a call, or I managed to reach interview (usually it is because it's walk-in). The farthest I managed to go was a second and third interview, just to end up with an email saying that I did not met the requirements for the position.

When I resigned on my previous job, I spend my savings in buying a laptop, installers and books, on Adobe Photoshop, Javascript, HTML, Dreamweaver and Flash. I did this because almost all vacancy for web designer requires knowledge of these software. I spend my bum days, learning all those skills.

I still consider myself a beginner but I can already create organized webpage (which for me is better than some company webpages, but I am not sure if anyone will agree with me. That is why I am posting here, I need other people's opinion.), and yet it seems that there is yet another impediment.... experience. I was asked if I have "professional experience" (i.e. website ng kumpanya o organisasyon, hindi personal website). Still, I was not considered for the job. Almost all ads that I encountered require that the web designer have few months to few years of experience.

I already have a new job and I am enjoying it, however I still crave in becoming a technical writer, web designer or both. I am planning to buy installers and books on Frame maker, Robohelp, Illustrator and Visio. Just like in Web Designing, almost all companies looking for Technical Writers are looking for skills in particular software.


You guys think I am on the right track? Is my decision to buy books and installers, and focusing on studying the necessary software the right track to the career that I want? Isn't the usual career trend is to grow while working?
Just like in Web Designer, experience is also one major impediment. Almost all companies wants their technical writers to have experience. Where can I get experience if I have nowhere to begin with?
Is it just me, or it seems that companies here in the Philippines have preference on English/Masscom/Journalism graduates as oppose to Technical/Engineering/Science/Computer graduates? Approximately half of the ads I encountered requires that the Technical Writer be a graduate of English/Masscom/Journalism.

[Adroth]

1) They say all the documentation work is being shifted to India and PH, so how come there are a lot more unemployed Mass Comm and similar degree holders who are jobless at this point?

Could it be because the average Mass Comm student lacks the necessary technical background?

2) Is it just me or are there just too many junior or just-starting techwriter types in PH (e.g., I used to be in journalism but now want to try my hand at IT so I'm applying for techwriter positions)? Where are all the intermediate or expert techwriters?

It would be reasonable to assume that advanced writers either go into a management track (e.g., editor, etc.) or wind up in allied fields (e.g., training, etc.). Essentially, they are still technical writers . . . they just don't do as much pure writing as they did when they started.

Do you think this accounts for the dearth of PH techwriting talent?


Good question. I suspect awareness has a lot to do with it.

[Adroth]

Where can I get experience if I have nowhere to begin with?


Hi Karellen,

The following thread contains a lot of information about how to start in Tech Writing:

http://www.pinoyexchange.com/forums/showthread.php?t=193664

[exGS]

Sorry for the repost / spam... browser crashed when I submitted the last few times and didn't noticed my posts made it... move along :(

My apologies if I'm late for the party... seems the techwriter threads are experiencing a renaissance of sorts! *okay*

i dont know ExGS's real name, considering the small size of the tech writing community in the philippines, i wouldn't be surprised if he/she turns out to be a former colleague. :)

Sorry to say but I don't know you personally, woulfe. However, JQ, who knows you from your days as a Doc Mgr, sends his regards. He's not exactly sure if you still remember him, but we're on the same team now :)

[exGS]

Since the day I graduated until now, there are two jobs that I am really interested but keeps on avoiding me: Technical Writer and Web Designer.

Someday soon, IMHO, you should decide which one you really want so you can focus all your energy on it (instead of splitting it between the two).

I don't necessarily mean abandon one for the other. I've known techwriters with good design background and this helps them present their output better (within the defined corporate or client style guide, of course) and also web designers / webmasters who write well enough that they don't need help to fill up a web site with meaningful content or edit an article so it fits better into their design.

I believe you stand a better chance of being hired as one of the two rather than as a combination of both. Remember that companies hire specialists because they don't have the skill in-house. If you market yourself as a combo techwriter-web designer, you'll probably do better as a freelancer or get hired by smaller companies.

Maybe you should find out what is it about technical writing or web design that you really like. Go beyond the job title, so to speak. For me, I realized I just LOVE online information delivery and the empowerment that comes with it (e.g., allowing users to help themselves and share knowledge by just visiting a web page) :D

You guys think I am on the right track? Is my decision to buy books and installers, and focusing on studying the necessary software the right track to the career that I want? Isn't the usual career trend is to grow while working?

Its a good start but doesn't guarantee success. It takes more than tools to be a good techwriter.

Read this article (http://www.prospring.net/Resource/Tools_or_Talent/tools_or_talent.html) by Jack Molisani (originally shared to me by adroth) to see what I mean.

Just like in Web Designer, experience is also one major impediment. Almost all companies wants their technical writers to have experience. Where can I get experience if I have nowhere to begin with?

I think I mentioned it somewhere (maybe not this thread) that good writing experience (not necessarily techwriting experience) is enough for starting techwriter positions, for as long as its not creative writing or journalism. It has to be instructional (e.g., process or training oriented) and for an audience with parallels to the IT customer base.

For example, all other skills and variables the same, I'll take someone who developed 1 training course on how to use a router (maybe 6 months experience) compared to someone with 7 years experience as a field reporter or author for children's books.

Is it just me, or it seems that companies here in the Philippines have preference on English/Masscom/Journalism graduates as oppose to Technical/Engineering/Science/Computer graduates? Approximately half of the ads I encountered requires that the Technical Writer be a graduate of English/Masscom/Journalism.

2 reasons:

1) Hiring companies are probably in the IT business so they hire the skill set that they don't have: English communication skills.

They can always train you on their IT technology or product line once you're on board, but most will require pre-requisite IT knowledge as well.

2) Its all about money. Hiring companies pay more for IT skills so non-core business functions (like techwriters) can be filled with non-IT employees.

However, if someone with IT skills apply, you can bet you'll be immediately shortlisted or pass initial screening ;)

In this information or digital age, lots of companies still consider documentation and training (activities that foster knowledge sharing) as COSTS. Its just something that helps SELL the product or service to the customer. I'm just glad KNOWLEDGE is now being considered a strategic corporate advantage, so there is some change in the air (and basically, more hope for a robust techwriter community and opportunity here in PH).

[Adroth]

They can always train you on their IT technology or product line once you're on board, but most will require pre-requisite IT knowledge as well.

Nice one about pre-requisite knowledge.

Some complicated products require an understanding of the surrounding technology (e.g., SMTP for mail servers, Linux OS basics for Linux-based products), if the writing candidate does not have that knowledge, then he/she will invariably be restricted to end-user documentation.

End-user documentation is a great place to start. Its where I learned the basics. However one should also give some thought to looking beyond this segment of the profession -- it promotes longevity when the Asian tech writing market gets really crowded.

[gabfph]

Is there a part-time technical writer job that I can apply for? :D

[Adroth]

Is there a part-time technical writer job that I can apply for? :D

Hi gabpfph,

This may be a long shot, but you might want to check the companies on page 3 of this thread:

http://www.pinoyexchange.com/forums/showthread.php?t=148854&page=3&pp=40

[woulfe27]

We're looking for a tech writer with at least 2 years experience in using Adobe FrameMaker in a software or hardware (with firmware) development environment. Please send your resumes to rommel_f1@verifone.com.

exGS, I interviewed Jerome, but I've left AA when he joined the company. I believe he's now with Trend Micro?

[magno]

woulfe27 hello...im new in this thread...actually im looking for ANTICO thread, evenually pex redirected me here....anyway this is not about tech writing.....(nga pala napakadetayle nyo mag usap ni Adroth)....just wanna hear something bout antico...im a fresh grad, really dont have hands on programming experience but im eager to learn it...i submitted resume to antico and im set for exam,any tips on type of exam?hands on?programming?.....the position is Software Eng trainee (C/C++/Java)...i have basic understanding with these languages but not much on actual programming, the fact that the opening position says TRAINEE, im thinking that antico will give training for successful applicants....am i right?or dont you guys like more knowedgeable applicant?
any insights?...........thanks

[Adroth]

Hi Magno,

How about starting a thread about Antico so that the information doesn't get buried here?

----------- ~~~ ----------------

Now back to regularly scheduled programming. Here's an interesting quote from an application essay I ran into once

An technical writer must have enough technical knowledge to verify the information he/she puts into his/her documentation. Technical writing in a software development context is still a fairly new profession, and many of the technical writers I have worked with have tended to be more “writers” than “technical”, and therefore not always able to verify information independently.

[woulfe27]

magno, antico is our headhunter, and we also outsource some coding projects to them. but i don't have any clue as to what kind of exams they administer to applicants. good luck, anyway. :)

[castelgarde]

hi guys! i just want to ask if there are institutes/schools that offer short courses on technical writing? or companies which you know of that accepts interns/trainees on technical writing/documentation?

i'm a com sci student and i just graduated last aug. searching for jobs online, i noticed that many companies are looking applicants with a minimum of 1 year work experience related to the field. i'm wondering if my experience during my ojt in writing a technical manual would have a significant weight if ever i decided to apply on such companies i mentioned above. and another experience i have is that i (most of time) take the responsibility of being the writer/editor of the documentations for the projects we had in college.

thanks,
alvin

[Adroth]

Hi Castelgarde,

Welcome to the thread.

As explained earlier, there are very very few courses in the Philippines that are worth your time. Most tech writers, even in the US, actually start in this business without formal training.

As for companies that accept trainees, I will leave that to ExGS and Wolfe.

In addition to the writing experience you had during your OJT and class projects, what other writing have you done? Did you ever work for the school paper? To a certain extent, tech writing can be like investigative journalism -- at least when you get to more its more advanced levels.

Check out this other Tech Writing thread. It has lots of information about how to get started: http://www.pinoyexchange.com/forums/showthread.php?t=193664

[exGS]

hi guys! i just want to ask if there are institutes/schools that offer short courses on technical writing? or companies which you know of that accepts interns/trainees on technical writing/documentation?

As Adroth has already mentioned, many are available but very few are worth the time and effort. I've been in the industry almost 5 years and I've never heard anyone getting hired because they attended a local techwriting course or got certified locally. Most of the courses are meant to augment the skills of those already handling documentation on the job, and not to help people get started on a techwriting career (since most companies do ask for at least 1 year experience).

I've heard that techwriting courses (in college or as a professional certification) is quite an advantage when applying for medical or legal transcription work. Personally, I'm insulted that techwriting is considered on par with transcription - its like comparing apples to oranges! :eek:

Techwriting is probably a "plus" simply because its an indicator that you have good English written skills - which is needed for a transcription career ;)

i'm a com sci student and i just graduated last aug. searching for jobs online, i noticed that many companies are looking applicants with a minimum of 1 year work experience related to the field. i'm wondering if my experience during my ojt in writing a technical manual would have a significant weight if ever i decided to apply on such companies i mentioned above. and another experience i have is that i (most of time) take the responsibility of being the writer/editor of the documentations for the projects we had in college.

Make sure to highlight your technical manual experience and aptitude to do writer / editor tasks as part of your IT projects in your resume. This will help differentiate you from the other applicants.

Since you're from a Comp Sci background, any company that would consider you for a technical writer will certainly focus on testing your English skills (e.g., spelling, grammar, composition, communication, etc.) - this is actually what I would do! :D

So be prepared. Google and practice taking some free English exams online. Resurrect your college English books or invest in some refresher materials, such as TOEFL. Expand your vocabulary by reading technical articles, re-writing what you've read, and then re-write it once again (also works with non-tech stuff - try not to repeat using the same words).

No need to wait for a bonafide techwriting opportunity to come along. Keep your eyes open for IT positions or projects that allow you to do documentation or similar work to add to your experience and exposure.

Good luck. And let us know how it goes. *okay*

[Adroth]

No need to wait for a bonafide techwriting opportunity to come along. Keep your eyes open for IT positions or projects that allow you to do documentation or similar work to add to your experience and exposure.


Agreed. Very few people end up in tech writing via a direct path.

What got me in the tech writing door was a database program that I wrote while I was working in a commercial bank. I wrote the code; the documentation; as well as the newsletter that came with it. The recruiter that hired me said that this project was what saved my resume from the garbage can.

[Blue Zoo]

hi guys! i just want to ask if there are institutes/schools that offer short courses on technical writing? or companies which you know of that accepts interns/trainees on technical writing/documentation?

i'm a com sci student and i just graduated last aug. searching for jobs online, i noticed that many companies are looking applicants with a minimum of 1 year work experience related to the field. i'm wondering if my experience during my ojt in writing a technical manual would have a significant weight if ever i decided to apply on such companies i mentioned above. and another experience i have is that i (most of time) take the responsibility of being the writer/editor of the documentations for the projects we had in college.

thanks,
alvin

As far as I know, no has entered the Technical Writing field at Entry Level, which means that no one just got out of college and became one.

Not to say that it's not possible in theory, after all, any strong knowledge in Visio plus the guidance of an able Systems Analyst should allow you to assist documentation in most any project.

Thing is, as I had mentioned in another thread, that would be kind of a waste as you wouldn't really be anything more than a secretary for an Analyst.

The best Tech Writers bring more to the table than "no questions" documentation. Good Tech Writers will not only document programs but they will find logic flaws, dead ends and foresee system problems as a by-product of the work. To do this, you need to start out in the trenches; coding or network support. Anything to train you in the logic behind IT.

With Tech Writing in its infancy as still waiting to be defined, I'd rather that Tech Writing is viewed as Analysis work than secretarial.

[Adroth]

The best Tech Writers bring more to the table than "no questions" documentation. Good Tech Writers will not only document programs but they will find logic flaws, dead ends and foresee system problems as a by-product of the work. To do this, you need to start out in the trenches; coding or network support. Anything to train you in the logic behind IT.

With Tech Writing in its infancy as still waiting to be defined, I'd rather that Tech Writing is viewed as Analysis work than secretarial.

Nice one Blue. Words of wisdom.

How long have you been in the biz?

[woulfe27]

hi guys! i just want to ask if there are institutes/schools that offer short courses on technical writing? or companies which you know of that accepts interns/trainees on technical writing/documentation?

i'm a com sci student and i just graduated last aug. searching for jobs online, i noticed that many companies are looking applicants with a minimum of 1 year work experience related to the field. i'm wondering if my experience during my ojt in writing a technical manual would have a significant weight if ever i decided to apply on such companies i mentioned above. and another experience i have is that i (most of time) take the responsibility of being the writer/editor of the documentations for the projects we had in college.

thanks,
alvin

i have been a tech writer since 1992, but i have a degree in electrical engineering. i was an engineer for only 3 months, though. saw this ad that says "we will pay you to read on the job." so i went to work as an abstractor/indexer at innodata. the tech writers i've worked with at companies like innodata, microsoft, etc. have different backgrounds. one is a high school grad, two have were psychology majors, one was a speech and drama major, one was a english lit major, and four or five are com sci graduates. so it doesn't matter what you majored in, what matters (i think) are the following:

- you should be able to write well (excellent grammar is a must)
- you must be capable of getting the information you need from tech people (not easy, you should be persistent and diplomatic at the same time)
- you must know how to break down that information and present it in a way that will easily be understood by the target audience (good outlining skills)
- you must be interested in the technology that you're writing the manuals for
- it will help a lot if you know how to use tools such as framemaker, visio, illustrator, in-design, pagemaker, etc.
- you must be a voracious reader (helps in enhancing your editing/proofreading skills, plus, as a tech writer you will need to read tons of engineering specs)
- you must know how to cram :) in most SLDC scenarios, documentation is just an afterthought, and engineers will request for manuals at the very last minute (i'm sure glad that's not the case in my current company)

but if you're in the US or Japan, you can enroll in a technical communication course. then you'll be an information designer and not a tech writer haha :)

[Blue Zoo]

Nice one Blue. Words of wisdom.

How long have you been in the biz?

As an exclusive tech writer, only 2 years. But my portfolio of documentation work starts in '99, before I even realized that tech writing was a viable IT path.

I was pretty much a programmer. If I was going to advance careers, I would have thought it would be into systems analysis. But I just had a knack for documenting (mostly because I also loved writing in general) and when I actually heard of technical writing as a field (around '02), I started looking for ways to make the transition.

[Adroth]

As an exclusive tech writer, only 2 years. But my portfolio of documentation work starts in '99, before I even realized that tech writing was a viable IT path.

I was pretty much a programmer. If I was going to advance careers, I would have thought it would be into systems analysis. But I just had a knack for documenting (mostly because I also loved writing in general) and when I actually heard of technical writing as a field (around '02), I started looking for ways to make the transition.

Cool *okay*. Are you in the Philippines or abroad?

[Adroth]

- you must be a voracious reader (helps in enhancing your editing/proofreading skills, plus, as a tech writer you will need to read tons of engineering specs)

Nice list Wolfe. Just adding a caveat to one of your points.

Good tech writers also verify if the specs are correct and/or up-to-date. "Feature creep" is a common occurence in software development (tech writers for hardware don't have to deal with this . . . too much). My personal rule of thumb is to assume that a technical spec only tells 70% of the story; and an interview with the developer who wrote the code will probably increase the level of accuracy by 15%. Nothing beats testing the stuff yourself. But, like Wolfe said, it depends on how much time you have.

A healthy dose of "QA" thinking is a major asset. This is what separates real technical writers from writers who just happen to write about technical subjects.

- you must be interested in the technology that you're writing the manuals for

I once read the work of a writer who wrote about something he obviously didn't understand, and didn't have the heart to really understand. It was horrible.

If a writer doesn't understand his topic . . . all the writing skills in the world won't keep the document from stinking.

[woulfe27]

Nice list Wolfe. Just adding a caveat to one of your points.

Good tech writers also verify if the specs are correct and/or up-to-date. "Feature creep" is a common occurence in software development (tech writers for hardware don't have to deal with this . . . too much). My personal rule of thumb is to assume that a technical spec only tells 70% of the story; and an interview with the developer who wrote the code will probably increase the level of accuracy by 15%. Nothing beats testing the stuff yourself. But, like Wolfe said, it depends on how much time you have.

A healthy dose of "QA" thinking is a major asset. This is what separates real technical writers from writers who just happen to write about technical subjects.



I once read the work of a writer who wrote about something he obviously didn't understand, and didn't have the heart to really understand. It was horrible.

If a writer doesn't understand his topic . . . all the writing skills in the world won't keep the document from stinking.

that's correct, adroth. a tech writer also doubles as a QA/tester. My approach is to always get a copy of the software or hardware that I'm documenting, whether beta or alpha release, and see if its features match the feature list described in the engineering docs, which is what I'm doing right now :(

[Adroth]

Yup. That is by far the best way to go about it. Unfortunately I've seen writers (non-Filipinos) who don't understand that verification is part of the job -- not an "extra mile" thing.

The need to test and verify becomes even more important as the level of complexity increases. For example, my team handles documentation for support engineers, so we go deep into a product's debug logs to get the story (at the end of the day, logs start looking like the waterfall display of the Matrix). We also use tools like process monitors, sniffers, file monitors, etc. (http://www.sysinternals.com is a god-send) to monitor actual behavior.

Its pretty hard work. But when you get days where you have the developer scratching his head and asking "how did you figure that one out" or "hmm . . . I missed that bug" -- ah, that's job satisfaction. Plus, we know that our docs are accurate, we don't have to hope that they are.

[mvlciber]

Thanks for the suggestions guys. Right now, I'm having a hard time in deciding whether to go for an opportunity like this (http://siva-sg.jobstreet.com/_ads/ph/jobs/2005/11/default/20/603347.htm) for experience (as a writer) or apply directly as a technical writer in other companies (such as this, http://ph.jobstreet.com/jobs/2005/11/default/20/577359.htm). Which do you think is better?

[Blue Zoo]

Thanks for the suggestions guys. Right now, I'm having a hard time in deciding whether to go for an opportunity like this (http://siva-sg.jobstreet.com/_ads/ph/jobs/2005/11/default/20/603347.htm) for experience (as a writer) or apply directly as a technical writer in other companies (such as this, http://ph.jobstreet.com/jobs/2005/11/default/20/577359.htm). Which do you think is better?

Apply to both but if you want to be a technical writer, you need the second opportunity.

The first is much more about feature writing. Very useful to have but I find that although I appreciate the word skills that feature writing gave me, it requires a change in mindset when it comes time to write technical documentation. Not to mention the fact that feature writing is an entirely different career path.

You'll have a lot of competition for the second opp though. It does seem like a legitimate Tech Writer position and, more importantly, it doesn't seem to require that you be all that technical. That being the case, you'll have to beat out all the English and Comm majors trying to "side door" into Technical Writing.

[exGS]

Right now, I'm having a hard time in deciding whether to go for an opportunity like this (http://siva-sg.jobstreet.com/_ads/ph/jobs/2005/11/default/20/603347.htm) for experience (as a writer) or apply directly as a technical writer in other companies (such as this, http://ph.jobstreet.com/jobs/2005/11/default/20/577359.htm). Which do you think is better?

Depends on what kind of writing career or experience you're looking for. The first job looks like a media-related multi-tasker position, while the 2nd is more IT project-related and closer to true-blue technical writing (e.g., writing product documentation).

1st company may not know what they really need... seems they are going cheap by hiring two-for-one. Looks like they really need a technical writer... they can't even spell CORPORATION right in their own job ad! :rotflmao:

[woulfe27]

We need a tech writer asap.

Qualifications:

- Hands-on experience using Adobe FrameMaker
- 2 to 3 years experience in computer software or hardware documentation (programmmers guide, user guide, reference manual, etc.); those who have more years of experience are also welcome to apply
- RoboHelp experience (not a must have but an advantage)
- Experienced in working with remote teams outside the Philippines (not a must have but an advantage)

Benefits and compensation:

- Salary starts at P30,000 (of course, depende rin on experience and skillset)
- Medical insurance
- Group life insurance
- Personal accident insurance
- Flexible working hours (no time cards or online timesheet to fill up)
- No dress code
- Yearly performance evaluation (tied to salary increase)

Please send your resume to rommel_f1@verifone.com

For more information about our company, visit www.verifone.com.

Thank you.

[woulfe27]

The above position is still open.

[Adroth]

The above position is still open.

No takers, or you haven't found the right one yet?

[woulfe27]

No takers, or you haven't found the right one yet?

walang mapili e. we received 8 resumes (3 from trend, 2 from lexmark, 2 from accenture, and 1 from pepsi) kaso walang me substantial experience sa Framemaker. Yung mga tinuruan ko naman ng Framemaker sa Alvion, they stopped using it na tsk tsk :bop:

next target: Ulead :)

hired 2 tech writers from them and they're good, at ok sila kasama. di nagrereklamo sa maingay na workplace hehe

[lecg]

anybody here who knows what's the status of Tech Writer post in Lexmark? I saw they were hiring since December, not sure though if its still ongoing or what?

[Adroth]

kaso walang me substantial experience sa Framemaker.

Do you really place that much importance on tools?

A conscientious worker will often be able to Google his way out of most Frame puzzles.

[woulfe27]

Do you really place that much importance on tools?

A conscientious worker will often be able to Google his way out of most Frame puzzles.

That is if he/she has used FrameMaker before. Pero kung hindi pa nya na-try gamitin FM even once, mahihirapan sya. We don't want to train kse. Saka I believe na mataas yung offer namin na P30k (+tax shield) for a junior writer, kaya dapat sulit.

[Blue Zoo]

This position still hasn't been filled? I didn't realize there were so few Technical Writers in this country...

[woulfe27]

This position still hasn't been filled? I didn't realize there were so few Technical Writers in this country...


konti talaga TWs dito. wala kse BS in Technical Communication dito e. we posted an ad sa JobsDB. sana makakuha kami dun :)

[Adroth]

konti talaga TWs dito. wala kse BS in Technical Communication dito e.

A lot of the really good TWs in the US don't have writing degrees. Their backgrounds are often dictated by their areas of specialization. For example, programmer-writers are often programmers themselves.

I once read an STC article that focused on how to make writing degrees more relevant. Apparently, BS Tech Communication degrees have their share of issues. The article brought up the tool-vs-technique debate, but never gave the author's own conclusion.

[woulfe27]

yup. sa tech writing group min ganito ang mix:

psychologist - 2
college undergrad - 1
english lit -1
com sci - 2
fine arts - 1
elec. eng. - 1

in one of my previous companies, we had a tech writer na di nakatapos ng high school. pero ang galing nya. tamad nga lang hehe

[Forbidden_Amber]

Where can I practice or learn more about this?

I didn't land a techwriting job but i am teaching writing.. business correspondence. i really want to learn and practice technical writing... where can i send my resume so at least any expert TWs here can assess if i have future in here.


thanks!

[Blue Zoo]

Where can I practice or learn more about this?

I didn't land a techwriting job but i am teaching writing.. business correspondence. i really want to learn and practice technical writing... where can i send my resume so at least any expert TWs here can assess if i have future in here.


thanks!

What your past jobs have been (unless they are in IT) are immaterial. The question really is, do you have the capacity to understand programming logic?

If you were presented with a program and you set some time with the programmer, could you come up with the flowchart and correctly comment his code?

While there a some Tech Writers who do not have this sort of understanding, they invariably only do "soft" tech writing and make things like User Guides and literature that is only useful to non-technical end users.

Anyone who has writing skills could certainly do "soft" Tech Writing but you will compete with all the Eng and Com majors who also have writing skills. These tech writers also make less than the "true" tech writers, the ones who can communicate and document on all levels of an IT project.

[Adroth]

While there a some Tech Writers who do not have this sort of understanding, they invariably only do "soft" tech writing and make things like User Guides and literature that is only useful to non-technical end users.

While I agree that there are higher levels of tech writing than mere end-user guides, there are other branches besides code-level commenting (which from what I hear pays pretty well in Microsoft, its their highest ranking writer position).

One example is SDK documentation. Yes you definitely need to be a programmer for this, but you don't touch the code, you just read it and package the information so that other programmers understand how to use the SDK.

Another area is courseware (e.g, writing training manuals, labs, etc.). While a lot of the successful tech writers/courseware developers have some understanding of programming logic (you have to be logical to be in the tech writing business anyway), their skills go well beyond coding.

They have an understanding of broad topics like security (e.g., encryption, best practices for authentication, etc.), OS internals (e.g., how the kernel works, etc.), OSI-layer interaction (e.g., protocols, router internals, etc.), and the like.

The really good courseware folks actually reverse engineer their products, so being a programmer definitely does have major advantages -- but it is not a deal-breaking pre-requisite. I've found that more of them come from network administration backgrounds, rather than pure programming backgrounds. (Note, good sys admins need to know how to write code as well, so that they can make their scripts; work with PHP, Java, etc.)

A deal-breaker for a high level tech writer is the absence of soft-skills: the ability to get people to give you the story. Being able to get developers to really work with you, is as important to a writer as water is to fish.

Realistically, one cannot document a product, within a reasonable amount of time, by going through the code line-by-line. The product I'm handling, for example, added 120,000 lines of code in the current minor release alone -- that's not including the code already written the past three years.

For that, you need shortcuts. You definitely need to dig stuff on your own to earn cred with your dev team (e.g., read logs, Google for the basic stuff, read up on the relevant RFCs, etc.). Once they realize that helping you actually helps relieve them of responsibility for explaining what they're doing and how their code works -- then your in the sweet spot.

Having said that, end-user documentation is a good place to learn the art of tech writing. That's where you learn how to break down the information into more manageable, easier-to-read chunks.

Hi forbidden amber,

Long time no hear man.

I agree with Blue re the value of the resume. The body of tech knowledge that you bring to the table is pretty important.

Have you tried studying for certifications (MCP, CCNA, A+, etc.)?

[Adroth]

Having said that, end-user documentation is a good place to learn the art of tech writing. That's where you learn how to break down the information into more manageable, easier-to-read chunks.

One thing I missed here is that end-user documentation also forces a writer to learn a user-centric approach to documentation, and develops a writer's ability to think about his target audience first, before committing to a particular doc structure. Reader-empathy is a very useful skill at all levels.

--- ~~~ ---

Despite promotion of what we consider to be "higher forms" of tech writing, that doesn't mean that end-user documentation is only for the technologically challenged. Writers who are more writers than tech writers have no choice but to remain in end-user documentation. But tech savvy writers can still find something to be happy about in end-user documentation -- by being on the cutting edge.

Momentum is building for a move away from platform specific documentation (e.g., written for MS Word, for Framemaker, etc.), to a more tool-agnostic format: the Extensible Markup Language (XML).

Documents written in XML permit separation of content with format, which can be assigned to the tags that delimit the text. This opens a lot of interesting possibilities.

For example, this format allows the writer to decide what content goes into the doc, depending on the target audience, before generating the final printed or HTML-like document. All this without copy-paste-delete exercises; you can simply hide the information and prevent it from appearing in the final doc. Framemaker can do this to a certain extent with conditional text, but XML promises to offer even greater flexibility.

This is a very challenging medium to use, and requires traditional writers to re-wire their brains a bit (note, I don't claim to have done this re-wiring myself), so it isn't very common yet -- actually XML usage is more on the rare side. Given the amount of existing platform-specific documents that are out there, I am hard pressed to imagine many major software companies transitioning to this format soon. The story, however, may be different with start-ups.

There are members of the STC who are promoting XML, so the idea will always be there.

[Blue Zoo]

Interesting. I've never thought of using XML in documentation although, now that you mention it, it does sound like an awesome way to generate documentation, particularly say in a web services environment.

I wonder though if all that is necessary. Platform-specific may sound dull in comparison but I cant think of any companies who don't use a standard platform for documentation (after all, everyone needs to document on some level) and I cant see why they'd want their tech writers to deviate to that great an extent.

But for the record, I find it theoretically good. I just wonder how it applies in practice, and if anyone will actually apply it in practice.

[Adroth]

But for the record, I find it theoretically good. I just wonder how it applies in practice, and if anyone will actually apply it in practice.

Yup. AFAIK, this mostly theory at this point. I haven't heard of a major company that has committed to that format yet.

First heard about XML docs from a colleague who was sent to an STC conference three years ago. Apparently, the STC has been talking about XML-based documentation for a while now. In the upcoming annual STC conference (May, in Las Vegas), they're having a session devoted to this topic. Might be worth a visit. (can't go myself though).

[woulfe27]

First heard about XML docs from a colleague who was sent to an STC conference three years ago. (can't go myself though).

You can try downloading the demo version of XMetal Author from www.xmetal.com. It's a WYSIWYG XML authoring tool.

[Adroth]

You can try downloading the demo version of XMetal Author from www.xmetal.com. It's a WYSIWYG XML authoring tool.

Yup, some of the XML advocates I've run into have advocated this tool.

[Adroth]

You can try downloading the demo version of XMetal Author from www.xmetal.com. It's a WYSIWYG XML authoring tool.

Yup, some of the XML advocates I've run into have advocated this tool.

However, XML purists can also just stick with the code. Anyone can use whatever tool they want to use.

[madfedaykin]

sorry I have to delete the text from this one. How do I delete a post?

[madfedaykin]

Interesting. I've never thought of using XML in documentation although, now that you mention it, it does sound like an awesome way to generate documentation, particularly say in a web services environment.

I wonder though if all that is necessary. Platform-specific may sound dull in comparison but I cant think of any companies who don't use a standard platform for documentation (after all, everyone needs to document on some level) and I cant see why they'd want their tech writers to deviate to that great an extent.

But for the record, I find it theoretically good. I just wonder how it applies in practice, and if anyone will actually apply it in practice.

Our company (an R&D Center of an MNC here in the Philippines) has been implementing XML-based documentation for some time now. I've been with this company long enough to see the transition from a FrameMaker-based documentation to a CMS-managed XML-based documentation, and it has made wonders in a number of areas. (1) A Content Management System makes it easier to implement single-sourcing of content. So, less duplication of content means less work of us techwriters; (2) Translations cost was slashed-down significantly. It is easier to control content that goes to translations in CMS such that only new phrases, sentences, terminology from the database are translated; (3) Even certain art like buttons, dialogs, are shared accross various pubs; (4) XML can be outputed to almost any document output (HTML, PDF, CHM, AppleHelp, JavaDoc, etc.) without the need for expensive software licenses (e.g. Adobe distiller, WebWorks, DreamWeaver, RoboHelp, etc.); (5) Most importantly, everybody's work became a lot less difficult (e.g. Editors are happy since shared content only gets edited once despite how many times they appear on various documenation, less content goes to translations so the translations project manager have less work, a publications project that took us about 6 months to develop, now takes us less than 4 months to finish).
Management did not give us the exact figures but they hinted that the CMS saved the department(here and in the US) over a million dollars in publications development cost in the last 2 years or so.
It's a must for all Information Development groups to look into the viability of implementing an XML-based CMS. It's being done in the US for several years now.
I'm not sure if there are other InfoDev groups here in the Philippines that implement XML-based CMS. I only know of 2--my current employer, and another R&D center where I have a pending application. :lol:

[madfedaykin]

...where can i study and learn framemaker?

Try "Adobe FrameMaker Classroom in a Book" by Adobe Press. And of course, Google it. FrameMaker is not really hard to learn. It's easy to use if you have a good template to start with. Although cross-references can sometimes be a pain, it's still a lot easier to manage a book using Frame than say MS Word. I enjoyed using it before I shifted to another authoring tool.

[gwaping17]

I'm a fresh grad. What do I have to be/know to give an employer the impression that I am a potentially good technical writer?

[madfedaykin]

Just to add to my previous post...we also embedded most of our workflows to the CMS.

Writers have something like a "book" or "information product" workflow: Research -> Develop Usability Draft -> Submit for Usability Review -> Develop Tech review draft -> submit for techreview...-> submit final book for translations...
...and something like a topic workflow: write topic -> sme review -> revise based on sme review ->... -> send topic to translations... (yes, you can send topics/sections directly to translations, and not wait for the whole book to finish. This way translations time starts early and the whole pubs development cycle is shorter.)
Each tasks in the workflow has its own schedule and you are flagged if you are near deadline or passed deadline.
Editors, pubs project managers, information architects, translations team (and soon the illustrations team will) have their own workflows embeded in the system.
The automated workflow may sound restrictive to some tech writers and to some technical communications practitioners (that's what I thought before the transition) but surprisingly it has made life easier for everybody. Our tasks are more in sync, and it has been easier to implement standards (writing style guides, output stylesheet, art guidelines, etc) under this environment. Also the workflows are customizable and can be tweaked to suit a scenario. You can even store preset workflows for future use.

I wish I could share more information about our CM system, but I am bound by the confidential nature of some of its details (Everything that I shared so far are typical features of CMS implementations in technical information development teams. There are features in our CMS that we built-in ourselves and are thus proprietary). I hope this type of CMS implementation will be used by more InfoDev teams here in the Philippines. That will give me more choices of companies in which to seek employment (for better compensation, of course). :D

[madfedaykin]

I'm a fresh grad. What do I have to be/know to give an employer the impression that I am a potentially good technical writer?

What's your college degree? Did you have subjects, experience, training, org memberships, and interests that are related to technical communications? Inform the employer about them. Technical aptitude is good to have but is not always a must, depending on the nature of the publications that the employer wants you to develop. Good command of English (written and verbal) is a requirement. Good research, interviewing, and negotiation skills are, I think, very important. So highlight your aptitude on these areas on your resume.

Some important questions to ask yourself: Does the idea of learning and dissecting complex systems, and breaking them down in to well-written and well-structured documentation of various types, each type readable by different audiences (business executives, developers, technicians, scientists, other professionals etc), interest you? Will a job of studying user psychology and usability issues appeal you? How about writing instructional materials for students or people who want to learn about a subject/system, how does that make you feel? Check out forums and online resources about technical communications. See if you get excited about the issues and subjects discussed there. If you don’t find the subjects interesting at all, and if you can’t see yourself doing the tasks above, you better not get into technical writing. After all, you don’t want to get into something that you don’t like, do you? But if you have a "feel" for those subjects, and you have some rather positive answers to the questions above, tell the prospective employers about them in the interview.

I hope that helps.

[Adroth]

Welcome to the thread Madfedaykin :)

Nice to finally meet someone who's actually taken the XML plunge.

I know you mentioned that the details of your documentation methodology is proprietary, but I was wondering if you could share some aspects of the experience from a writer's perspective only.

How would you classify the documentation that you produce (end-user, developmental, marketing, etc.)?

What was the most difficult aspect of the transition from traditional documentation tools to XML?

[Adroth]

I'm a fresh grad. What do I have to be/know to give an employer the impression that I am a potentially good technical writer?

Hi Gwaping,

Madfedaykin's advice is right on the money.

Older parts of this thread contain lots of advice about how to get started in Technical Writing in a Philippine setting.

You can also check the following thread:

How to start a career in technical writing (http://www.pinoyexchange.com/forums/showthread.php?t=193664)

[gwaping17]

Thanks for the replies guys.
Okay, I am an IT graduate. Yes, I did have a few subjects that I'd consider related to this topic, although this is a job I honestly didn't have any idea about. I like writing alot. I always say that if I wasn't in the IT field I'd be in show business. I'm kidding, I want to be a writer. But if I can be in the IT industry, and a writer at the same time that'd be some cool thing. Really.

I also think I have relatively better English skills. I've teeny weeny qualms of going into another field of IT as I may be better off just focusing only on Technical Writing. However, I am not so sure if there are companies who want to train, as I mentioned earlier, potentially good Technical Writers. Okay, so if I'd be in another job, at least what kind of job must I do that might contribute to my future job as a TW. Guys, please tell me I am making sense. I hope you hear me.

Adroth, thanks for the link, I'm reading through all posts. But it's kind of long forgotten by PEX. Bump that thread already.

[Adroth]

Adroth, thanks for the link, I'm reading through all posts. But it's kind of long forgotten by PEX. Bump that thread already.

Yup, we bump that thread every now and then. We also try to link the different Tech Writing threads on Pex so that we can leverage the different tid bits that have already been shared.

The following tech writing jobs thread will give you some idea what companies usually look for in their tech writers:

http://www.pinoyexchange.com/forums/showthread.php?t=230444

[madfedaykin]

Welcome to the thread Madfedaykin :)

Nice to finally meet someone who's actually taken the XML plunge.

I know you mentioned that the details of your documentation methodology is proprietary, but I was wondering if you could share some aspects of the experience from a writer's perspective only.

How would you classify the documentation that you produce (end-user, developmental, marketing, etc.)?

What was the most difficult aspect of the transition from traditional documentation tools to XML?

Thanks Adroth. :)
We initially migrated user documentation and service manuals since their contents are easier to standardize. We're on our way to rolling-out the implementation of the CMS for our systems documentation. We will soon see how that goes.
The change in tools wasn't very difficult. WYSIWYG XML Editors are easy to learn especially when you have a background in tagging text as in HTML. The content management software is not very difficult to learn either. It's really a matter of choosing which software better fits the requirements of the writing team. We're lucky that the team who made the study chose something that matched our previous processes, and they customized those further so it becomes closer to how we did things before.
The hard part, for me at least, was getting together with a group of writers and agreeing how a certain content was to be standardized. We "normalize" content prior to uploading them to the CMS database. The main objective was to come up with a single version of similar content so no duplicates exists. This was very difficult considering that the level of standardization goes down to the phrases, and sometimes even down to a single term. There were guidelines set for the standardization of the content, but that did not avert the heated disputes. The differences in career backgrounds and nationalities made the standardization efforts more difficult.
Another area in the transition which I did not find easy was adjusting to the schedule set in the automated workflow. While the publications workflow (e.g. write-sme review-edit-editor review...) wasn't very different from how we did things before, there was this "topic" or "section" workflow that was entirely new. I was the type who would take my time in researching information, and then wrote content at the final 2 weeks or so before a submission. Now I am forced to do my research on a per topic basis, write them up in a few days, and have it go through the review processes immediately, for quicker submissions to translations. It's a bummer, but I'll take it if the trade-off is finishing a book in 4 months instead of 6.

Do you know of any technical communications group/organization here in the Philippines? It would be nice to network and share experiences with other pinoy tech writers. And of course, looking for better job opportunities would be easier if you're in a professional organization. :D

[Adroth]

Thanks for the info Madf. Those were the kinds of details I was looking for.

I never thought of XML documentation in terms of a database. Thanks for providing that piece of the puzzle.

The hard part, for me at least, was getting together with a group of writers and agreeing how a certain content was to be standardized. We "normalize" content prior to uploading them to the CMS database. The main objective was to come up with a single version of similar content so no duplicates exists. This was very difficult considering that the level of standardization goes down to the phrases, and sometimes even down to a single term. There were guidelines set for the standardization of the content, but that did not avert the heated disputes. The differences in career backgrounds and nationalities made the standardization efforts more difficult.

This is the part I've always been worried about.

My department produces technical documentation and training materials for a technical support audience. These are "how products work" docs, as opposed to "how to use" end-user docs. If my company were making cars, our stuff would be meant for the mechanics.

We've been looking for better ways to modularize our docs so that we can publish documents for specific sub-audiences. For example, a segment of support handles pre-sales activities (they go to large customers and install our products for them), so these guys are more interested in installation-related debugging and best practices and don't really need the whole body of information.

If we stick to traditional tools (e.g., Word, Framemaker, etc.), we would be forced to cut n' paste sections of the main document into a sub-document that would eventually have to be maintained separately. Not exactly a very efficient way of doing things. XML would have made it easier to omit redundant topics, and simplify the maintenance burden.

This is where your "normalization" process worries me. Since we are a teaching organization and our docs are not only used as self-study material but also as class references, a lot of our docs reflect the preferences and teaching styles of the individual writer/trainer. For example in my case, I tend to start major sections with either an analogy, or an over simplification of the concept, before I dive into the details of the subject (e.g., which DLLs are called, key words in the debug logs, etc.). Others simply simplify their topics; while others don't even bother with either of these approaches.

In your opinion, how much writing flexibility will a writer have to give up to be able to conform to an XML-based documentation system?

How do you maintain a "big picture view" of your doc?

How do you handle cross-references?

Do you know of any technical communications group/organization here in the Philippines? It would be nice to network and share experiences with other pinoy tech writers. And of course, looking for better job opportunities would be easier if you're in a professional organization. :D

I know that Wolfe was talking about setting up a chapter of the Society for Technical Communication in Manila, I'm not sure if the plan has moved forward though.

[madfedaykin]

We've been looking for better ways to modularize our docs so that we can publish documents for specific sub-audiences. For example, a segment of support handles pre-sales activities (they go to large customers and install our products for them), so these guys are more interested in installation-related debugging and best practices and don't really need the whole body of information.

Sounds like you have very interesting work there. Our service manual documentation is somewhat similar to what you are describing. However, I haven't had a chance to do service manual writing under the CMS so I couldn't really share any observations.

If we stick to traditional tools (e.g., Word, Framemaker, etc.), we would be forced to cut n' paste sections of the main document into a sub-document that would eventually have to be maintained separately. Not exactly a very efficient way of doing things. XML would have made it easier to omit redundant topics, and simplify the maintenance burden.

I believe XML can help you with this. Maybe your department can form a committee to look into it. It wouldn't hurt if you could hire consultants to help you define your group's requirements and suggest ways on how to implement an XML-based CMS. Some CMS vendors have their own services team that can provide consultancy work.

This is where your "normalization" process worries me. Since we are a teaching organization and our docs are not only used as self-study material but also as class references, a lot of our docs reflect the preferences and teaching styles of the individual writer/trainer. For example in my case, I tend to start major sections with either an analogy, or an over simplification of the concept, before I dive into the details of the subject (e.g., which DLLs are called, key words in the debug logs, etc.). Others simply simplify their topics; while others don't even bother with either of these approaches.

In your opinion, how much writing flexibility will a writer have to give up to be able to conform to an XML-based documentation system?

I understand your concern. The shift may involve drastic changes in how you write and structure content. It's really up to the writing team, with the information architect and editorial team as lead, to come up with the best way to do it. The important thing is, you should all decide at one point how much standardization will be introduced, and how much writing flexibility will be sacrificed. It was a grueling process for us. If you feel the team is going in the wrong direction, make a stand and try to influence them to go your way. But it really helps if you have a study (human factors, usability, etc.) that details which structure or writing style is most effective to your target audience. The information from these studies can break the deadlocks between writers, editors, architects on contentious issues. It's really hard to argue against customers (internal or external).
While you can always choose to vary the level of standardization across similar content, an InfoDev team should also note that the amount of single-sourced content is proportional to the amount of savings(in time, money, and effort) that you get from a CMS. The more content you standardize the more time you save in developing the documentation (the pubs development cycle is shorter because there is less content to write), the more money you save (in docs development cost, and translations cost), and more writer effort is conserved (only new content is developed from scratch, and they're only written once by a single writer, not several times across different documentation by different writers.)

How do you maintain a "big picture view" of your doc?

I'm not really sure what you mean, sorry. I am just guessing here:
If you're asking how you would view or manipulate the structure of your book in an XML-CMS, you can do it much like how you do it in Frame or any other authoring tool. Just choose a CMS that presents a book view (e.g. tree view, list view) and a structure editing scheme (e.g. drag-and-drop) that you are comfortable with.

You can also standardize the structure of the whole book/documentation per type of target audience. That should be part of the content standardization process. Like in the topic level normalization, you should also consider re-use as an objective. One writer should be able to pull-out a "generic" book or a previously-written doc from the database that is closest to the type of book that he/she wants to write, and then change(add, remove, modify) only the sections that are technically inaccurate. But again, you will all have to agree about what a generic book (or the standard structure of all books) should look like, or what topics should it contain. More issues to fight over. :D Similarly, you can decide to vary the standardization of the book structure.

How do you handle cross-references?
You can do it in the same way as your current authoring tool. That's one of the advantages of XML. Since it's a mark-up tool and non-proprietary, you can actually set your own rules of organizing, presenting, storing, and exchanging data. There are of course standard technologies (DTDs, Schemas, etc) that you use a base, but you can extend their features as you wish. You can even extend the functionalities of an XML authoring tool, incorporate your favorite Word or Frame features in them. The choices are as many as there are features/options in all authoring tools plus more.

I'm watching out for the open source XML-CMS. Most of the good ones are designed for website authoring and management. Once a mature open source XML-CMS that is designed for technical publications comes out, that will surely disrupt the business of the proprietary XML authoring tools and CMS.

[madfedaykin]

Here's a nice XML-CMS implementation case history:

http://www.techwr-l.com/techwhirl/pdfs/xmldocumentationmanagementsystem.pdf

Notice how they based their requirements from the limitations of FrameMaker.

[Adroth]

Here's a nice XML-CMS implementation case history:

http://www.techwr-l.com/techwhirl/pd...mentsystem.pdf

Thanks. That site was a life saver when I started out in the writing biz six years ago. Haven't visited it in a while.

I'm not really sure what you mean, sorry. I am just guessing here: If you're asking how you would view or manipulate the structure of your book in an XML-CMS, you can do it much like how you do it in Frame or any other authoring tool. Just choose a CMS that presents a book view (e.g. tree view, list view) and a structure editing scheme (e.g. drag-and-drop) that you are comfortable with.

My "big picture" and cross-reference questions are actually related, and revolve around the issue of ownership.

If individual writers are only responsible for writing modular topics that are then combined with topics written by other writers, how do you make sure that they mesh together?

Writing styles are definitely a concern here, but what worries me more is how to avoid information gaps. Take the following stick diagram as an example.

|<---------------------------------------------------------------->|
|<----- Writer A ------>|??????????|<---- Writer B ---->|???????????


The line on top represents the whole body of knowledge, while the lines below represent the topics covered by individual writers. The question marks are information gaps.

I know that a documentation plan is supposed to ensure that these gaps do not exist. However, Murphy's Law has a way of messing around with well laid plans.

Who is responsible for determining if such gaps exist, and dealing with them if they are found? This is what I meant by "the big picture"; ensuring that what needs to be document is really documented. Is the editing team responsible for this?

The cross reference question is tied in this way. Writer A knows that Writer B is reponsible for Topic A, so to avoid duplicate effort, he cross-references B's work. But if Writer B does not handle the subject as throughly as Writer A expects, then we have an information gap. In a worse case scenario, Writer B might assume that the part of Topic A that Writer A wanted to cross-reference to was already part of Writer A's material, and cross-references Writer A's work for that bit of information. The end result is a cross-reference loop that doesn't get the reader anywhere.

Have you dealt with these situations before?

[madfedaykin]

My "big picture" and cross-reference questions are actually related, and revolve around the issue of ownership.

If individual writers are only responsible for writing modular topics that are then combined with topics written by other writers, how do you make sure that they mesh together?

Yes, that is a valid concern. This is one of the most difficult aspects of CMS implementation. How to get writers to collaborate for the purpose of sharing similar content. It's really up to the organization how to address this. From the various implementations that I saw, including the approach that is implemented by our group, collaboration planning/meetings is the predominant approach. Some expand the roles of information architects, editors, and documentation project managers to include looking at existing content across the different documentation and deciding which can be written by a single writer. At the system level, a CMS application should have a function that allows writers, IAs, editors, project managers, to query the database for specific content. If a similar topic exists or is already being written by another writer, a writer can just link that content to his/her book. A CMS should also have a function that allows people to view which writer is currently developing a particular topic. This allows other writers who would like to use that topic to collaborate with the topic writer.

Writing styles are definitely a concern here, but what worries me more is how to avoid information gaps. Take the following stick diagram as an example.

|<---------------------------------------------------------------->|
|<----- Writer A ------>|??????????|<---- Writer B ---->|???????????

The line on top represents the whole body of knowledge, while the lines below represent the topics covered by individual writers. The question marks are information gaps.

I know that a documentation plan is supposed to ensure that these gaps do not exist. However, Murphy's Law has a way of messing around with well laid plans.

Who is responsible for determining if such gaps exist, and dealing with them if they are found? This is what I meant by "the big picture"; ensuring that what needs to be document is really documented. Is the editing team responsible for this?

A writer should be assigned as "owner" of a particular book/documentation until it is completed. The book writer/owner ensures the "integrity", accuracy, and completeness of the book's content, similar to how it is done in a non-CMS setup. The only difference under a CMS is that the "book writer/owner" may not necessarily write all the topics/content in his/her book. The writer may just link content that are existing in the database to the book. The writer assigned to a documenation may not write any topics in the book at all. If all necessary content are existing in the database, and no revisions are required...all he/she needs to do is to link all those topics to the book.
Also, some CMS applications structure a book in such a way that there are book-specific content (e.g. chapter titles, section titles, copyright notices, etc.) Using these types of CMS, a book writer/owner role is necessary.

The cross reference question is tied in this way. Writer A knows that Writer B is reponsible for Topic A, so to avoid duplicate effort, he cross-references B's work. But if Writer B does not handle the subject as throughly as Writer A expects, then we have an information gap. In a worse case scenario, Writer B might assume that the part of Topic A that Writer A wanted to cross-reference to was already part of Writer A's material, and cross-references Writer A's work for that bit of information. The end result is a cross-reference loop that doesn't get the reader anywhere.

Have you dealt with these situations before?

This can be addressed by how a CMS classifies and handles content. Most of the CM applications that I saw classifies topics into "approved" and "under development." Approved topics can either be topics that are "normalized" or topics that are done (has gone through the standard accuracy and editing checks). As a general rule, it should be safe for a writer to reference content from the "approved" repository of the CM database. These topics will no longer change. If any of the writers require changes to those topics, all he/she can do is to "clone" those topics into a new topic. The new topic does not go to the "approved" repository. It goes to the "under development" repository. Content on the "under development" repository are topics that are being written or waiting to be reviewed, edited, or approved. Generally, it would not be safe for a writer to reference under development topics to his/her book, as changes are still likely to occur. If a writer thinks that an "under development" content is the best match to his/her intended content, then he/she should be ready to closely coordinate with the "content/topic writer" to watch the development of that topic. Depending on the direction of that topic's development, the writer who references that topic can either stick with that topic until its completion, clone that topic and create his/her own, discard referencing that topic and look for another topic to reference.

How to effectively collaborate has been an ongoing experiment for us. It's really up to the organization implementing the CMS to figure out how to do it. The difficulty of collaboration will vary depending on the level of single-sourcing and standardization that the organization decides to implement. The more standardized the content, writing style, structure, and the fewer source content the organization will tolerate...the more difficult collaboration becomes. Good thing XML-based CMS are becoming more flexible to handle greater customization. With enough programming know-how, an organization can even generate a report showing the history of changes done to a topic. Or even have the system flag writers referencing a topic of any changes to that topic. The possibilities are endless. :toohappy:

Sorry if I'm becoming overly excited about all this XML-CMS stuff. :D But I'm seeing something in the technical communications field that we Filipinos can excel at. Hey, what else are we third-world citizens better at than our richer counterparts...we are better at adapting to destitution, and finding out ways to ease our hardships. Put that in the context of a technical writer's tasks instead of poverty...that can be called writer workflow automation design.

[Adroth]

Sorry if I'm becoming overly excited about all this XML-CMS stuff. :D

No apologies necessary my man. This discussion is fun. :)

I hope you don't mind if I post additional questions after I have digested the information you have shared thus far.

But I'm seeing something in the technical communications field that we Filipinos can excel at. Hey, what else are we third-world citizens better at than our richer counterparts...we are better at adapting to destitution, and finding out ways to ease our hardships. Put that in the context of a technical writer's tasks instead of poverty...that can be called writer workflow automation design.

Agreed.

So long as we do not rest on our laurels, and remember that there a still so many things to learn about technical writing field to learn (e.g., XML-based CMS, etc.) we will go far.

[gwaping17]

Hi there Adroth. What type of job must I do so I'll land on a TW job? I'm doing SW Support work for a SW Development company, what do you feel about my chances? For starters what must I learn?

What company are you working for? How long have you been a TW? Tell me about your beginnings, that would be very helpful. Thanks.

[Adroth]

Hi gwaping,

Your question actually goes beyond technical writing. So that we can keep this thread on track, I suggest that you start a new thread. I'll share a few ideas there.

[gwaping17]

I don't think this goes beyond the subject, which is "Technical Writer". We should still be on track if you'd tell us about how you started as a TW. Or kindly PM me for these details I asked you about. Thanks

[Adroth]

Ah, now I get it. At work, the acronym "TW" usually means "Taiwan" -- which coincidentally is where I actually got started. So I thought you were asking about how to get started in Taiwan.

I've been a Tech Writer for the past six years at Trend Micro. I started as an end-user documentation writer at our Taiwan office, then I moved on to writing technical support documentation at our US office. The docs I write these days provide "under the hood" details about how our products work. If our company were making cars, I started writing for drivers -- now I write for the mechanics.

Am I right in assuming that "SW" means software? Re the "support" part, do you mean that you take customer support calls, or you actually write the patches and hotfixes written in response to these calls?

Sadly, most companies look for writers with experience. One way around this would be to look for writing opportunities in your current job. What became my "ace" when I applied for the Taiwan job was a database management program that I wrote for my previous company. Not only did I write the code, but I also wrote a user manual and a newsletter for it.

A year after I got the job, the recruitment officer told me that my application was actually on the rejection list. My course was a poor fit for the job (Electrical Engineering), and to make things worse, I came from a provincial school. Happily, he ran through the rejected applications one more time and noticed my code/writing project. That saved my application, and helped me make the cut (they were looking for two writers, and I was #2).

Do you do any writing in your current position?

[Blue Zoo]

Hi there Adroth. What type of job must I do so I'll land on a TW job? I'm doing SW Support work for a SW Development company, what do you feel about my chances? For starters what must I learn?

What company are you working for? How long have you been a TW? Tell me about your beginnings, that would be very helpful. Thanks.

Gw, the Tech Writing field is relatively new, therefore there isn't a clear-cut entrance to it yet. You do software support but can you write?

If you can communicate in an organized and clear manner plus, at the very least, understand most of the basic programming operations and concepts (condition statements, iteration, arrays, modules, objects, etc), you can be a tech writer.

People have become tech writers with even less technical background, but personally, I and my friends are trying to set standards, otherwise the field will never evolve.

[madfedaykin]

People have become tech writers with even less technical background, but personally, I and my friends are trying to set standards, otherwise the field will never evolve.

You and your friends will set the standards?...otherwise the field will not evolve? Wow! :wow2:

[Blue Zoo]

You and your friends will set the standards?...otherwise the field will not evolve? Wow! :wow2:

You make it sound as if we are claiming to be a dictatorial authority on TW standards when really, I was simply saying that we are trying to set standards. I didn't say we were the only ones, I said we were trying.

And yes, as managers of various companies (both here and abroad), we try to delve deeper into an applicant's abilities when they apply for a TWriter position. It's not merely enough that they learned how to use Visio or did the documentation for their college thesis. There needs to be more to entering the TW field than that.

Otherwise, TW will become a haven for those with soft IT skills and the more that becomes the case, the more the stereotype of a Technical Writer as a glorified secretary will continue.

[gwaping17]

^ Guys, thanks for the responses. I'm actually only 20 and I am thinking of where I'd be two/three years from now. I would like to capitalize on my writing skills as I know I am good at it. Yes, I do Software Support. I don't write the patches myself but if coding is required, this will be escalated to the product developers (i.e. coders), who are just an email away.

Yes, I have good understanding of programming languages.

For beginners like me, exactly what would help? Books? Languages? Certifications? Sites?

Or better yet: What was the first thing/task assigned to you as a TW?

[xxtoyxx]

I landed on a technical writer job and I started just this year. I am approaching my 4th month, and aside from trying to improve technical materials being sent to me, I am tasked to create various reports that I datamine in their database. I am actually a TW cum business analyst. Haha! A bit tiring, but promising job.

My first serious writing stint was when I worked as a technical copy editor of an electronics publication.

Sometimes, I tend to think that tech writers are quite close to "glorified secretaries" as mentioned in a post above, or sometimes, I tend to think that my work is close to that of an administrative assistant at times. It is inevitable that I get assignments asking me to write something that would be presented in a meeting, or improve inputs so that you would turn a technical material into something that could be understood by marketing and sales people etc. Oh well. It hones my English skills, I guess.

I have completed tasks that involved long ISO documentations which I have to edit or improve. I have not actually written a full blown ISO document, but I think I have deliverables relating to actually writing one. I have written a work procedure, which I am quite proud that is now in the 'Help' tab of our service management database, that can be seen by DB users of our company worldwide.

I also own the newsletter item in our department, which I haven't started yet since they have given me tons of system analysis reports, which normally takes several man-hours per report. I have the materials to write the articles on, and I have no idea why I am even responding to this thread.

The key is flexibility. I have had no prior training about the product and services of our company, yet I can write technical stuff about it that makes sense, and comprehend technical jargons. My current company deals with processes, automation and controls. Before, I used to write about electronics, assembly lines, telecoms and stuff that marcomm people would love you if you get them published. Maybe next time, I will try to write about software codes, which I had exposure in the past. I used to edit articles with embedded codes within the article.

I think that engineers and programmers would make good tech writers if they can communicate very well via written media. I think it would be quite difficult for a non-technical person to assume a TW job, but they can still do the job if ample training could be provided.

[madfedaykin]

Business needs of individual companies sets the skills standards of technical writers. A company creating user documentation for their consumer products would hire techwriters who are good at human factors and user psychology; a company creating courseware would require technical writers who are good at instructional design; a chip fabricator which needs to make manufacturing process documentation would hire someone who has a background in industrial engineering; an automotive manufacturing firm developing diesel engine technology would require techwriters who know about auto mechanics; a petroleum company requiring documentation for a new generation industrial oil would require people who know tribology,...this lists can go on. Do these companies need technical writers who know at least basic programming?...No they would not. But would these companies require writers to have these so-called "soft skills" (e.g. good information structure design, minimalist writing, research and interview skills, etc.)...absolutely. The "soft skills" are core competencies of a good technical writer. Subject matter expertise varies depending on the individual's background and, more importantly, the business needs of the companies.

Information design is such a broad field that spans across various industries and disciplines. Not even IT-related technical writing can be narrowed down to a set of specific skills. There are a lot of IT techwriting positions that require no programming knowledge at all. A techwriter doing firmware chip layout design specifications, for example, would need a background in electrical engineering not programming. Some IT consulting and services companies, require that use case writers not have any programming know-how. That allows them to concentrate on the business transactions of the system, and not muddle in any development design, as all use cases should. Now, are these types of IT techwriters (business modeler-techwriter) of "lesser qualification" than his/her counterparts who know code...absolutely not. The business need requires them not to have any programming knowledge, and that is how it should be.

It would be as difficult for an educator or learning-psychologist to get into documenting code, as it is for a programmer to get into instructional design. Chemist-techwriters are as good at creating chemical technology journals, as usability expert-techwriters are at creating user documentation. The subject-matter areas and specializations are just too many to narrow down to a specific set of standardized skills.

Setting skillset standards to a broad field as "technical writers" is futile. Not even in "IT Technical Writing" is it plausible. There are specializations within this subset of technical writing that have skills requirements that are different from the other. There are as many types of IT technical writers as there are types of information needs in all IT companies. It's really up to the company to determine who best fits their business need. The cumulative direction of these business decisions by Philippine-based IT companies will determine the evolution of the skillset of the IT techwriters in the Philippines (just the IT techwriters in IT companies)...not by a specific group, guild, organization...not even by an STC-Philippine chapter...kelan kaya magkakaroon.

[gwaping17]

madfedaykin thanks for the info. I hope, being relatively technically inclined myself, I'd have good chances of being a TW. Please post stuff/stories when you guys were justing starting, I'll be reading.

[Adroth]

madfedaykin thanks for the info. I hope, being relatively technically inclined myself, I'd have good chances of being a TW. Please post stuff/stories when you guys were justing starting, I'll be reading.

Gwaping17,

Yup being technically minded is definitely an asset. *okay*

Take what we say here with a grain of salt. Put 10 tech writers in a room, and you will probably end up with 10 opinions about what a tech writer should be. When you finally jump in to the biz, you will have to find your own path.

There really are no concrete standards for what skills a technical writer should have. Even the Society of Technical Communicators the US has difficulties setting these baselines -- and they've been at it for years.

Some, IMHO, focus too much on tools. Although one cannot deny that these play an important part (Framemaker and/or RoboHelp knowledge is a definite advantage), but there are simply so many out there that its hard to focus on a particular one. Based on information from former employees from industry giants like IBM and Oracle, some companies have their own proprietary tech writing tools, so no amount of preparation will actually help you.

Aside from basic writing ability, when we size up a writer candidate we try to look at the following qualities:

Natural curiousity - Mediocre writers simply edit what is given to them. Good ones actually treat the data offered with skepticism and verify the data

Interview skills - a good writer must be able to convince his subject matter expert (SME) that sharing information is in the SME's best interest as well as the writer's. To achieve this, the writer must know how to establish rapport with his/her development team.

I've seen writers fail miserably because they expect to be GIVEN the information, then whine and complain if they don't get everything in one go. Tough luck, that's not how the real world works. Even Microsoft writers have to come up with gimmicks to get engineers to spend time with them.

In a way, a tech writer is similar to a journalist. We go after the story, the story doesn't come to us. (Although once you've established your reputation with your SME's they will learn to be proactive and offer bit of info to you)

Prioritization skills - the STC describes this as "the ability to recognize particular trees in a forest, but still be able to take in the forest". My department looks for people who adapt a layered approached to research, that way, we don't end up with too much depth on one aspect of a product, and end up with nothing on others.

[Adroth]

Setting skillset standards to a broad field as "technical writers" is futile. Not even in "IT Technical Writing" is it plausible. There are specializations within this subset of technical writing that have skills requirements that are different from the other.

One can make a similar argument with the medical field. The human body is a such a complex machine that doctors now specialize on specific aspects of the body. Nevertheless, the medical profession has established baseline skills that all doctors must know before they can move forward. Once the basics have been achieved, they move on to areas of specialization (e.g., internal medicine, gynecology, etc.)

Can't a similar approach be taken with technical writing? Perhaps we can establish a fellowship / apprenticeship system of sorts.

Not having these standards can make things difficult for all of us. Below is an example.

Last week I was in the Philippines delivering support training. This was an advanced course that went deep into how our product worked -- as opposed to how to use the product. Since the target audience was technical support, it also payed special attention to aspects of the product . .. that didn't quite work.

I wrote the technical handbook (kinda like a college textbook) as well as the training manual that were used during the training, so I identified myself as a "technical writer." This decision had an interesting impact on first impressions.

At the end of the second day of what was turning out to be a very productive course, I was chatting with one of our engineers from Nanjing. Half way during the conversation, he confessed that at the start of the training, he was a bit disappointed when he learned that that it was a "technical writer" that was handling the training, and not an engineer from software development group. Most of the writers he had been in touch with before were end-user writers who really focused more on the writing than the technical aspects of the job. So he naturally expected that I wouldn't know anything beyond what was in the user guide.

So when I was delivering information went behind the user interface, and even offered more information than some of the presentations that our software engineers were delivering, he was very surprised -- and pleased.

Morale of the story: Tech writers don't get respect, because people don't know what to expect

[Adroth]

The key is flexibility.

Agreed. Sadly, some of the writers I've seen don't seem to understand this.

I think that engineers and programmers would make good tech writers if they can communicate very well via written media. I think it would be quite difficult for a non-technical person to assume a TW job, but they can still do the job if ample training could be provided.

When dealing specifically with IT matters, yes. Other industries, however, may have different needs.

[Blue Zoo]

Setting skillset standards to a broad field as "technical writers" is futile. Not even in "IT Technical Writing" is it plausible. There are specializations within this subset of technical writing that have skills requirements that are different from the other. There are as many types of IT technical writers as there are types of information needs in all IT companies. It's really up to the company to determine who best fits their business need. The cumulative direction of these business decisions by Philippine-based IT companies will determine the evolution of the skillset of the IT techwriters in the Philippines (just the IT techwriters in IT companies)...not by a specific group, guild, organization...not even by an STC-Philippine chapter...kelan kaya magkakaroon.

It is not futile. To say that the field is so broad that it defies a capacity for standardization is too convenient. Marketing, management, programming and (as Adroth mentions) medicine, these are all fields that are also broad yet have managed to define and set standards for themselves.

Similarly, the idea that the forces of the market will simply determine the skillset of Techwriters is short-sighted. While there will always be an aspect of a company having certain requirements of a tech writer, there must first be a generally accepted norm of what a tech writer can deliver.

If this is not done, how do you train tech writers for the future? How do you create the base of expectations and deliverables that is at the heart of all big company staffing? Or is all this too broad that it has to be handled case to case, company by company?

[madfedaykin]

Like I said in my previous post, the "soft skills" are common across the vast technical writing disciplines. Certain soft skills (not even all) can be the baseline skills. But to standardize technical aptitude requirements?...good luck. How do you uniformly measure technical know-how between chemists and programmers, for example. You evaluate them on separate standards, that's how.

And Marketing, Management, Programming, and Medicine?...when did it happen that best practices in these fields was thought up by a certain individual, group, or guild? Standardizations in these areas were products of the needs of their industries and professions. The same will happen in the technical communications field. Standards will be established by a company or group of companies with similar technical writing needs. The standards they set will be born out of their shared business needs. A company or group of companies with a different set of business needs will have their own standards. There's no reason for them to adopt the standards by another company or group if it does not meet their requirements. But a common technical aptitude requirement standard for the whole technical writing proffession, and formulated by an all-knowing individual or group?...that will never happen.

[Blue Zoo]

But the fact remains that standards must be created. You cannot just say that market forces will dictate standards for the TW field. So every company makes its own standard and so tech writers from different companies will have varying strengths and competencies depending on their original company? That's crazy. No HR will ever want to hire a tech writer if having X number of years of experience tech writing doesn't mean anything, if you can't draw a baseline idea of what skills someone at that level should have.

Just look at the programming industry, every day conferences are held and debates are started, trying to arrive at more standardization to make the industry more stable. Why does it mean so much to come from a company like Accenture or E&Y when you're a programmer? Because these places have standards that other companies can measure. Is it right that Accenture and E&Y get to dictate these standards? Of course not. It's not even reliable since you have no guarantee that a 5 year programmer from Accenture is better than a 5 year programmer from ABC company. But it's happening because there was nothing else being done to create standards.

And it's not that an all-knowing group or person will set standards, but groups of people should and a consciousness of a need to have standards must begin.

[madfedaykin]

Who ever said that standards must be done away with?

Here's a summary of my main points:
1. It is not possible to set an all encompassing technical aptitude standards for the whole technical writing profession;
2. The only achievable standards that can be set for the whole technical writing profession are standardization of some "soft skills";
3. Technical aptitude standardization is only achievable within a compay or a group of companies that have similar technical writing needs;
4. Standardization will not come from ideas of individuals or groups, but business needs of companies will dictate the establishment of standards.
Nowhere in these points did I say that there should be no standards.

Varying competencies based on prior experience and training is a fact of life. It's up to the hiring company to select a technical writer with a skill set that matches its business need (AGAIN, that term). That's why it's a market. A company buys the services of a techwriter that it needs; a techwriter sells his service to a company which needs his expertise. The company will not buy the services of a techwriter with skills that does not match its needs; a techwriter is better off with a company that needs his expertise, lest he will not be accepted or will eventually be fired.

And no, programmers does not have a technical aptitude requirement that applies to all programing jobs. Again, only "soft" programming skills are the baseline. Different technologies have standards and patterns of their own, which is different from the standards of other technologies. Take a look at the XP, RUP, and waterfall methodologies. Each of these standard methodologies are effective in certain development scenarios but not in another (e.g. XP is effective in small groups, RUP in bigger groups, waterfall in scenarios were stakeholders micromanage development). Which programmer does a company hire--the one with experience under XP, RUP, or waterfall? The proponents of Agile methodology/standards say that XP programmers have qualities of what should be a model programmer. Will the company choose the XP programmer based on what the Agile people say. No, the company will hire the programmer which matches the development methodology that it uses. Whether it be XP, RUP, or waterfall. AGAIN, based on its business need. Companies don't hire based on what a standards body dictates should be a qualified applicant, they hire employees with skills that their businesses needs. And this may vary from company-to-company, sector-to-sector, or from across industries.

It will always be about "what the business needs". Hiring, management, etc is dependent on this fact. Even standards development is subordinate to this dictum. A company will contribute to the development, and adopt a standard if it is beneficial to its...you guessed it...its "business needs". It will never be about what some group of people think is best for a profession. What's best for technical writing is relative. It is dependent on...*need I say the words*.

[Blue Zoo]

Look, the goal that my friends and I have is simple. We simply seek to be able to define for each of our companies (and hopefully for others eventually) what exactly can be expected when you say, Technical Writer.

Right now Technical Writer is applied by companies to just about anyone who writes, from the person who creates system diagrams and logical maps to the person who writes the instructions on how to open MS Word. In fact, it seems that a common idea now is that Technical Writer simply means a writer for a Tech company. The actual content is immaterial and it's the employing company that defines if you're a Writer or a Tech Writer.

And this attitude will never change if the answer to the question, "What do you need to know to be a Tech Writer?" remains, "Oh you don't need anything really to be a tech writer, just writing skills."

And it is not that companies will hire based solely on a standard. Companies can and will always have specific needs but if they at least have an idea of what the baseline is supposed to be, they can gauge how extraordinary or mundane their specs are for a TW.

As people in this field, I don't see why we shouldn't have a stake in defining this baseline. Otherwise, any untrained Tom, **** or Harry can call himself a Tech Writer, smooth talk his way into a company and, once he's wrecked everything there, be fired leaving the company and its executives with a sour image in mind of Tech Writers in general.

This has happened and it will continue to happen unless we, the people who are proven tech writers (in whatever form or flavor), get involved. Technical Writing is a new field and a good field, giving its practitioners a chance at a long and prosperous career. Why just leave that all to chance? The programmers have started to take steps towards standardization, why not us?

[madfedaykin]

Look, the goal that my friends and I have is simple. We simply seek to be able to define for each of our companies (and hopefully for others eventually) what exactly can be expected when you say, Technical Writer.
There you go. Define it for your own companies or other companies with similar business needs. Not for the sake of the "evolution" of the whole technical writing field.

Right now Technical Writer is applied by companies to just about anyone who writes, from the person who creates system diagrams and logical maps to the person who writes the instructions on how to open MS Word. In fact, it seems that a common idea now is that Technical Writer simply means a writer for a Tech company. And this attitude will never change if the answer to the question, "What do you need to know to be a Tech Writer?" remains, "Oh you don't need anything really to be a tech writer, just writing skills."
This does not happen in our company, for example. So we have different techwriter role definition needs as your company. AGAIN, it varies from company-to-company, industry-to-industry, etc.

And it is not that companies will hire based solely on a standard. Companies can and will always have specific needs but if they at least have an idea of what the baseline is supposed to be, they can gauge how extraordinary or mundane their specs are for a TW.
AGAIN, This baseline will be based on the needs of the company or a group of companies with similar business needs...it is not separate from it. And it is not a baseline for the whole technical writing profession...just the company or group of companies with similar techwriting needs.

As people in this field, I don't see why we shouldn't have a stake in defining this baseline. Otherwise, any untrained Tom, **** or Harry can call himself a Tech Writer, smooth talk his way into a company and, once he's wrecked everything there, be fired leaving the company and its executives with a sour image in mind of Tech Writers in general.
Yes, people and groups will work toward standards on technical aptitude for techwriters. But only for their own industries, sector, groups. Not for the whole profession. This baseline of technical aptitude for technical writers does not apply to techwriters in other industries. How do you define a common technical aptitude requirement for a programmer-techwriter from a chemist-techwriter then? Do you require the chemist-techwriter to know SDLC or UML, for example? You don't. You set a different technical aptitude standard for each. There will never be a single standard to measure the technical aptitude of the whole techwriter profession. The disciplines involved are just too many to narrow down to a single set of technical qualification standards.

Why just leave that all to chance?
Who says standards should be left to chance? AGAIN, techwriter technical aptitude will be set per company or group of companies with similar techwriting needs. This will be based on the business needs of the organizations they belong to. Not even a group with representation from all techwriting disciplines can prescribe an all-encompassing technical aptitude standard. The most standardization that can be done on a profession-wide scale are for some "soft skills" because these are common across different techwriter disciplines.

:sad: This is getting nowhere. This is the last from me on this issue.

[Blue Zoo]

Well I wholeheartedly disagree.

If tomorrow, Microsoft came out with a Technical Writer Certification, you can bet as hell that companies will suddenly look to this as a standard. They will weigh their needs against the MS-defined standard and use this as a starting point to determine what they want in a Tech Writer.

Now whether MS will be correct or incorrect in their mold of a technical writer is immaterial. It will not stop companies from using that as a benchmark because frankly, they're begging for one. So many companies have huge documentation needs and they need to have justification for their budgets to include a tech writer.

And the example of a tech writer in the pharmaceutical industry versus one in the IT industry is completely off-base. Of course there will be separate standards for judging one from the other. People don't lump DBAs with Web Developers but that doesn't mean each can't have standards.

[madfedaykin]

Huh?! I thought my previous post was the last on this issue. But this one is just too absurd not to react to.

When did MS have techwriting expertise? And will they ever? MS can't even fix the usability problems of Windows. An MS Certified Technical Writer? :rotfl: Did Java programmers flock to Sun to get Java certifications? No. A better example...do most US companies require their technical writers to have Technical Writing courses/certifications? No. I work for a Fortune 500 company, and never did my company require its techwriters to have any form of certification. You'll get a better dose of technical writing reality by browsing through US-based forums such as techwr-l, techwriterjournal, and others. There you'll find out how a large majority of the techwriting population in the US shun certifications.

And please. Read through the recent posts, and read carefully. You're starting to disagree with yourself and mimic my views. Jeez.:rolleyes:

Hope that was my last.

[Blue Zoo]

Are you being deliberately dense? Microsoft's capabilities are immaterial to the analogy. Regardless of whether MS has tech writing expertise or not (or even programming expertise), the point is that standards and certifications mean something to big business and it's something they look for.

When programming started, there were no certifications or standards and every company was left to fend for itself. Eventually standards and certifications arrived and, even though today not every company goes by these, there is an awareness of a general level of competency and skill when you say that you're Java-certified or .net-certified. Can a company still hire a programmer that's not certified, of course! But that doesn't change the fact that there exists a base level of skill that you can use as a yardstick.

True, your idea of a free-wheeling, laissez-faire, market-determined standards system is what is in place today but it's not going to last. Of course most US companies don't require Tech Writing courses or certifications because there are none. But more US colleges today are beginning to offer Tech Writing courses, more than the five that did when I went to college.

You work for Fortune 500 company and, even if it has nothing to do with certification, it has standards for a Technical Writer. I'll bet that if your department head talked to another department head from a similar company, they'll find similarities in their needs and lo and behold, a standard will begin to come into being.

This is all that my friends and I have been doing. We talk to each other and compare our experiences with the Tech Writers that work under us. We are all IT managers and we already have an idea that if a Tech Writer cannot create certain types of documents, he cannot possibly meet the standard. And when we talk with managers of other companies, they see that the standard makes sense and they avoid hiring tech writers who would just basically be wasting their time and money because they could never do the work in the first place.

And ultimately, the proof, as they say, is in the pudding. IT Managers I talk to that are hiring tech writers for the first time (or not) love to have a baseline idea of what to look for. It gives them things to look for when interviewing and a certain sense of confidence that, when they hire a tech writer, he can do what they need him to do.

Because maybe your Fortune 500 company has a clear idea of its needs and standard but many other companies (particularly smaller ones) don't. And in this day where even a technologically-inept English major will try to pass himself off as a tech writer, I don't understand why any legitimate tech writer would be against a move to set industry-wide standards that would protect his job and the reputation of the field in general.

[gwaping17]

So, if wide-ranging standards are not set, at least where do starters look? What do employers want to see in my resume so they'll hire me? What sets apart a potentially promising technical writer from the others? What are his qualifications? We are talking about the good employers.

[roxyd3428]

openings@hsbc's new editorial and design group
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• Business Manager (Alabang)
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• Senior Designer (Alabang)
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[Adroth]

Blue and Madf,

In the final analysis, both of you agree on the following things:

- The technical writing field is very broad, with areas of specialization
- There ought to be a baseline for skills expected from a techincal writer
- The skills that are important ought to be determined by the market

Both of you appear to be arguing over the latter point -- even though both of you actually agree on this in principle.

Each industry will have its own needs, and companies within those industries will have to define technical writing requirements that meet those needs. Since these companies are the first-line consumers of the tech writer's product the companies ARE the market. So Blue's groups efforts are actually an example of "the market" figuring out what it wants from its tech writers -- at least for their industry.

I think this is where all the hoolabalo came from:

People have become tech writers with even less technical background, but personally, I and my friends are trying to set standards, otherwise the field will never evolve.

You and your friends will set the standards?...otherwise the field will not evolve? Wow! :wow2:

There you go. Define it for your own companies or other companies with similar business needs. Not for the sake of the "evolution" of the whole technical writing field.

From Blue's perspective, his words were benign. However, things are different when your on the receiving end, and unless one keeps an open mind its easy to percieve this as being arrogant (no offense Blue, but I noticed it too). Furthermore, its the kind of arrogance that triggers the Filipino's infamous "sino ka ba" reflex.

IMHO, for discussions like this to progress, we ought to give allowances for these kinds of gaffes. Let us not be overly sensitive.

At last this thread is focusing on matters that are of importance to the industry as a whole, not just for individuals seeking entrance into our world. I believe this should continue. I am sure Blue's group is not the only one that is thinking of setting standards for themselves. If we keep this thread alive long enough, groups in other industries just might drop in and join the party.

Now, can we help this man with his question? Thus far, what requirements has your group come up with Blue?

So, if wide-ranging standards are not set, at least where do starters look? What do employers want to see in my resume so they'll hire me? What sets apart a potentially promising technical writer from the others? What are his qualifications? We are talking about the good employers.

[Blue Zoo]

Adroth, I fail to see what was so arrogant about my statement. Managers of their respective departments have every right to determine the needs of their teams. And, if upon discussion with other managers of other companies they find they can help each other, then what is arrogant about that? This is actually encouraged within the industry, that's what conferences are for.

Anyway, with regard to what we look for in a tech writer (in the IT field), there are several key indicators:

1. Knowledge of programming: A tech writer cannot possibly comment code or draw charts if he does not understand programming flow. Comment writing has particularly stringent syntax knowledge requirements, of course.

2. Articulate writing style: I generally have applicants submit an essay explaining their favorite hobby. From this, it is quite easy to judge just how organized and concise the applicant's thoughts are. For my part, I believe brevity and clarity are the more valuable traits in tech writers.

3. Thoroughness: If I show an applicant a component map, I pay very close attention to the questions he/she asks. Can they actually explain what it is they're seeing upon receipt of the document? If I left an illogical path in the map, would they spot it? Or are they just asking questions because I asked them to ask questions?

This for me, and my friends who agree, forms the baseline of a standard. It eliminates the wannabes and the posers who often wangle their way past a company's HR department. The non-technical English majors may very well go on to write soft documentation for other companies (and call themselves tech writers) but I only hire tech writers who do the hard stuff.

[Adroth]

Adroth, I fail to see what was so arrogant about my statement.

Blue Zoo. I do not question the need for standards, or the DUTY (not the right) of managers to accurately assess the needs of their teams. It was your delivery that needed work.

I've already highlighted that "problematic" part of your post. If you need evidence of its incendiary nature, I present Madf. I don't think he would have reacted that way if your statement were completely benign.

Remember, the message that one wants to impart is not as important as the message that is actually recieved. That is something that all technical communicators must keep in mind -- regardless of industry.

At any rate, no foul on my end. Am just sharing an observation to avert a pointless cat-fight. Think of it as reader feedback. Take it or leave it.

Re your list. When you mean "knowledge of programming", you are referring to "programming logic", right? The programming or scripting language itself is not important to you.

If that is the case, then the list does form a sensible baseline for a technical writer that works in a software development environment.

[woulfe27]

Last year, I hired 4 tech writers for our software/harware documentation group. One is a com sci grad, one a fine arts grad, one is a psychologist, and one is an ECE grad. so far, magaling naman sila lahat.

We have 7 writers in MNL, 4 writers in Bangalore, and 2 writers in California. NONE of us know how to write/read code. But we get the job done, even if we're just here to do "soft" documentation tasks.

Here are some of the documents we've completed. All these documents were approved by the FCC:

http://www.verifone.com/services/techsupport/index.html

Although most of these are hardware docs, we also write programmers guides, which contain APIs, scripts, code samples, etc. We don't read codes, but that's what engineering reviews are for.

Depende din kse yan sa documentation needs ng isang company. In our case, we don't need tech writers who can read code. BUT we need tech writers who can create good line arts using Adobe lllustrator, like the one below.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y13/woulfe27/97%20Corolla%20TRD/Vx670.jpg

And regarding standards, even the STC itself find if very difficult to implement its own set of standards.

BTW, I was a lead tech writer at Microsoft from 1999 to 2003, and we had many programmers there who were not even Microsoft-certified.

And recently, a friend of mine was hired by Lawson Software as documentation manager. She has a degree in English Lit, and she doesn't read/write code either :D

[woulfe27]

And a Microsoft Technical Writer Certification?! BWAHAHAHA :rotflmao:

Maybe if Word is the only documentation tool available. Don't tell me that up to now you're still using Word to create 500-page manuals?

If there's one organization that may have the credibility to issue a Technical Writer Certification, it will be the STC. But Microsoft?! BWAHAHAHA ulit :bop:

Microsoft doesn't even use Word to create tech manuals. It uses Adobe's FrameMaker and Macromedia's RoboHelp. :naughty:

[Adroth]

So, if wide-ranging standards are not set, at least where do starters look? What do employers want to see in my resume so they'll hire me? What sets apart a potentially promising technical writer from the others? What are his qualifications? We are talking about the good employers.

Mr. G,

The discussion thus far provides a cross-section of what different companies expect of their writers. The more of these expectations you can satisfy, the better your chances of getting in the biz.

Some will require their writers to be able to beautify their docs as well as write the text. For this, you will need knowledge of de facto industry standard software tools. Wolfe has restated his tools of choice, which are actually good ones to master and should improve your chances in landing your first job.

Madf's company requires writers that thrive in very structured writing environments. When you become part of these kinds of teams, two words will govern your world: "style guide".

Microsoft offers one from its Web site that provides interesting tips for making docs user friendly (e.g., when and when not to use bold, etc.). It is not the ultimate reference mind you, but its an interesting place for newbies to start. Another reference to consider is the Chicago Manual of Style. I haven't seen a Web-based version of this yet though, so the MS guide will be easier to access.

Remember that guides are not laws. So as you go from company to company, you will invariably find different guides -- which may or may not conflict with each other. Remember to always keep an open mind and that in the end, the guy who pays your salary is always right.

Keep Blue Zoo's requirements in mind. If you can satisfy them, then you will thrive in a software development environment.

[woulfe27]

The MS Style Guide for Technical Publications is also available in CHM format, so it's probably available for download on the net :)

[Blue Zoo]

No one is saying that writers are not needed to do the type of documentation that woulfe outlined above. However, this leads us back to the question, just what is a technical writer?

Should technical writer be applied to every documenter in the technical field? Does an English major who can proofread a user guide (but nothing more technical than that), a technical writer just as much as a code reader who produces detailed engineering schematics?

[gwaping17]

Adroth, now I am trying to gather all these information as I read every post. I think TechWriting is a very broad area that even some people from different disciplines fit in. I also like to think this exchange is a good thing for you guys. Thanks all.

[woulfe27]

If an English major can create a well written Programmer's Guide from poorly written engineering docs or product requirement docs, then in my book, he/she is a good technical writer. The end justifies the means.

The degree, sometimes, doesn't matter. At Microsoft, we had SQAs who are chemical and mechanical engineering graduates.

Most of the time, problems arise when a person who doesn't know anything about technical writing or information design is given the authority to hire, supervise, and rate the performance of technical writers.

BTW, one shouldn't confuse technical writers with requirements analysts. They're just not the same.

[Blue Zoo]

Just as in many other fields, you may not necessarily have had specific training in Technical Writing yet you still found a way to make a career out of it.

For me, however, this does not change the fact that a definition of Technical Writer has to be found, one that does not make the entire profession a generality.

Because, just as we're seeing in this thread, people are coming out and want to become good technical writers yet we can't tell them what to do. The basic message so far is that you can come from anywhere and become a technical writer, which is a horrible message. We can't even point young people in the right direction because there is no mold that is defined that can be aspired to.

The best way I can figure to establish a mold though is to ask this question: if a college course in Technical Writing were to be offered, what would be in it? Surely then, if enough colleges offered a Tech Writing course, then eventually a baseline will be established. Of course, there will still be those who are somewhat out of the mold, but at least something will be established.

[woulfe27]

That's true. You can come from anywhere and become a technical writer. You can have a degree in midwifery and still become an excellent technical writer, IF you have the right skill set, which is determined by the needs of individual companies and not by entire industries. What's so horrible about that? Our VP for Product Documentation has a degree in psychology but he's been a tech writer since the late 80s.

Blue Zoo, it seems you're obssessed or very easily impressed by people with college degrees and certifications. Does that mean that you don't think of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs as really "technical" coz they're just college dropouts? Are you horrified that they're involved in the IT industry considering that they didn't even finish college? And we can add Larry Ellison to the list.

After finishing high school, I was tempted to enroll in a journalism course. But I opted to enroll in an engineering course. My dad said "If you really want to write, you can do it for a living even if you have a degree in electrical engineering. Provided that you're a really good writer." And he was right. Of course, this only applies to writing (can't think of anything else). You can't have a degree in electrical engineering and expect to become a good chemical engineer without taking additional chemistry subjects (which I hated).

What's horrible is when somebody discourages other people from being flexible (i.e. "you're an engineer, go back to designing power plants and stop writing about function calls and procedures. you're an English major, go and find out what Shakespeare really meant with all those stuff and stop fiddling with that RoboHelp. you're a disgrace to the profession"). Maybe somebody should have told Einstein to "lay off that theory of relativity BS and go back to the patent office and resume your work as a clerk, you Robert Smith look-alike!" :D

Hmmm..... now, where did i put all those power plant design books? *okay*

[woulfe27]

[QUOTE=Blue Zoo]And ultimately, the proof, as they say, is in the pudding. IT Managers I talk to that are hiring tech writers for the first time (or not) love to have a baseline idea of what to look for. It gives them things to look for when interviewing and a certain sense of confidence that, when they hire a tech writer, he can do what they need him to do.
QUOTE]

When hiring a technical writer, I wouldn't consult IT Managers/Programmers who have very limited knowledge of information design, lest my manuals end up no better than engineering docs.

I have been interviewed by such people years ago and most of them ask very stupid questions (Can you do outlines? What do you need FrameMaker or Robohelp X5 for when there's MS Word?)

The good thing about my current employer (and Microsoft, too) is that we let tech writers interview tech writers, while programmers interview programmers. Makes sense to me, like milk in my coffee :D

[madfedaykin]

So, if wide-ranging standards are not set, at least where do starters look? What do employers want to see in my resume so they'll hire me? What sets apart a potentially promising technical writer from the others? What are his qualifications? We are talking about the good employers.

Gwaping, I read in your previous posts that you have an IT-education (correct me if I'm wrong), which part of the field do you think you are good at...or which part of IT do you enjoy doing the most?

If you are good at programming, then you'll have a better chance at getting a techwriter position that requires documenting code or writing systems design specs;
If you are good at business requirements, business modeling, data modeling etc, then you might be good at a techwriting position that requires you to write systems requirements specs;
If you think you are good at chip design and hardware engineering stuff, you might be good at a techwriting job that requires writing firmware specs;
If you're interested in technical support and hardware reliability stuff, you might be better off in a techwriting job with reliability or tech services manuals;
If you have a knack for usability and human factors concerns; then try user documentation.

Technical writer needs of IT companies vary depending on their technical writing requirements...or you could also say--depending on the type of the documentation that they want to develop. There are more IT-related techwriting needs outside of the list I provided above. I came across a job ad sometime ago requiring user documentation applicants to have knowledge of financial terms and concepts. Which is just fair since they will be documenting enterprise financial software. The configurations of technical aptitude requirements for techwriters by IT-companies are vast. Some IT companies may not even require their techwriters to have IT courses. One experienced Information Development Manager (an IBM veteran) once told me that some of the best technical writers he met are education majors. :)

For techwriters (seasoned and newbies) looking for techwriting jobs, one trick is to find a techwriting opening with requirements that match their skills. But be prepared for technical aptitude tests of any form. Any good HR of a good IT company can easily determine if you match the level of technical skill that they require.

Remember also that the "soft skills" (good writing, sensible document structuring, research skills, interview skills, etc.) are prevalent requirements. Be prepared for tests on these areas as well. You can learn more about these skills from techwriting forums such as techwr-l and techwriterjournal.

More help to come later...pa-isa-isa lang...dami pa ko trabaho...hehe :D Hope I am helping instead of confusing you, gwaping.

[madfedaykin]

And recently, a friend of mine was hired by Lawson Software as documentation manager. She has a degree in English Lit, and she doesn't read/write code either :D

Hey woulfe, Any feedback on Lawson Software? What tools they use...what type of documentation they produce...the compensation...the management style and office culture? A friend has a pending offer from them. Thanks.

[woulfe27]

Companies like Lawson, Siebel, Microsoft Business Solutions, and Deltek prefer tech writers (and SQAs) with accounting background because they make financial software packages. MBS, in particular, provides short-term accounting courses to req analysts, SQAs, and tech writers.

[Adroth]

Adroth, now I am trying to gather all these information as I read every post. I think TechWriting is a very broad area that even some people from different disciplines fit in.

I'm glad you find the discussion useful.

I also like to think this exchange is a good thing for you guys. Thanks all.

Yup. The tech writing threads on Pex haven't been this lively in years.

[woulfe27]

Hey woulfe, Any feedback on Lawson Software? What tools they use...what type of documentation they produce...the compensation...the management style and office culture? A friend has a pending offer from them. Thanks.

madfedaykin, my friend will join Lawson as Docu Manager on June 15, and some of the writers I supervised when I was Docu Manager at Alvion Tech have also joined Lawson. OK naman compensation package, but as of now wala pang tax shield and stock options and hindi pa fully flexible yung work schedule nila. Wala ring referral fee kaya wala ako reward sa pag-refer ko sa Docu Manager nila (hopefully, papainum sya *okay*)

Regarding the tools, here's what one of my former Alvion subordinates told me:

- manu-mano DAW paggawa ng online help, as in you need to be familiar with manual HTML tagging. I was surprised coz I had the impression that they're using RoboHelp X5 or XML Metal already.

- medyo magulo DAW documents kase the writers in the US have no time to do peer-to-peer editing (naubos siguro oras sa HTML coding hehe). kaya madami daw grammatical and spelling errors sa manuals.

- and this one's more surprising. they dropped Adobe FrameMaker in favor of Word, siguro DAW part of cost cutting ito. but still, to me that's a dumb thing to do. have you tried writing a 500-page manual using Word?!

- Medyo magulo DAW ang templates kse they customize document appearance based on the request of each client Pag sinabi ng isang client na Times New Roman size 12, yun gamit nila. kaso siempre yung ibang clients ayaw nung font and size na yun kaya kanya kanyang styles).

But knowing Moira (the Docu Manager), I'm sure she'll do something about this. When we were at Microsoft, we got rid of Word and bought FrameMaker licenses, and Word is a Microsoft product. Is that another definition of the word "irony"?

:lol:

[madfedaykin]

Thanks Woulfe. *okay* I'll pass on the information.

I'm surprised about their choice of authoring tool myself. I saw their job ad and it mentions about FrameMaker, RoboHelp, Dreamweaver, Epic Editor, and Documentum. Oh well, I guess my friend better go back to the job interview session and ask more questions.

[woulfe27]

bro, 2nd hand info yung nakuha ko kaya di ko sure kung totoo yun. kita ko rin sa ads nila they need FM users kaya pinadala ko yung ads ke moira. nagulat din nga ako when one of their writers told me na manu mano HTML coding. baka gusto lang sila i-surprise hehe

but they do have Documentum DAW :)

[gwaping17]

My tech writer bone is acting up so I have to bump this thread.

[gwaping17]

Hi guys, what can you say about Networking (Network Engineering) + Technical Writing?

[Adroth]

CNN Money ranked Technical Writing is consider one of top 50 best jobs in the US. Its ranked #13.

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bestjobs/snapshots/13.html

(I know of some writers in the six figure range though, so Salary.com just gives a ballpark figure)

Average pay: $57,841

Salary / Total compensation (includes bonus)
75% in this career make more than: $48,856 / $49,718
50% in this career make more than: $56,217 / $57,230
25% in this career make more than: $63,979 / $64,902

Top potential compensation (5% make more): $95,538

[gwaping17]

Gwaping, I read in your previous posts that you have an IT-education (correct me if I'm wrong), which part of the field do you think you are good at...or which part of IT do you enjoy doing the most?

If you are good at programming, then you'll have a better chance at getting a techwriter position that requires documenting code or writing systems design specs;
If you are good at business requirements, business modeling, data modeling etc, then you might be good at a techwriting position that requires you to write systems requirements specs;
If you think you are good at chip design and hardware engineering stuff, you might be good at a techwriting job that requires writing firmware specs;
If you're interested in technical support and hardware reliability stuff, you might be better off in a techwriting job with reliability or tech services manuals;
If you have a knack for usability and human factors concerns; then try user documentation.

Technical writer needs of IT companies vary depending on their technical writing requirements...or you could also say--depending on the type of the documentation that they want to develop. There are more IT-related techwriting needs outside of the list I provided above. I came across a job ad sometime ago requiring user documentation applicants to have knowledge of financial terms and concepts. Which is just fair since they will be documenting enterprise financial software. The configurations of technical aptitude requirements for techwriters by IT-companies are vast. Some IT companies may not even require their techwriters to have IT courses. One experienced Information Development Manager (an IBM veteran) once told me that some of the best technical writers he met are education majors. :)

For techwriters (seasoned and newbies) looking for techwriting jobs, one trick is to find a techwriting opening with requirements that match their skills. But be prepared for technical aptitude tests of any form. Any good HR of a good IT company can easily determine if you match the level of technical skill that they require.

Remember also that the "soft skills" (good writing, sensible document structuring, research skills, interview skills, etc.) are prevalent requirements. Be prepared for tests on these areas as well. You can learn more about these skills from techwriting forums such as techwr-l and techwriterjournal.

More help to come later...pa-isa-isa lang...dami pa ko trabaho...hehe :D Hope I am helping instead of confusing you, gwaping.

Hi guys, I am in a mess right now, thinking of my current job, and how I can break through Tech Writing. I have been working for the past two months doing Software Support. Yes, the job entails a bit of documenting (step-by-step) procedures for our Support Group in MNL, and for worldwide clients.

Modesty aside, I know I have good soft skills - you pointed out good writing, sensible document structuring, research skills, and interview skills.

I don’t know about brilliant, but I am more inclined in doing Networking aspect of IT.

Here’s the dilemma:
I am thinking of leaving my current work, and be a JSE (Junior Software Engineer) in a company called Accenture, who, by the way, has been chasing me for the longest time. If I were trained as a developer, I am thinking this will make me a good TechWriter in the future. Thing is, coding/programming is really not my thing. It’s like something psychological; I always have this “taking the road less traveled” attitude.

I got good, if not excellent grades in programming when I was in college but it’s really not what I find interesting. At all.

I am doing Software Support, but I don’t think it makes me a master of anything in the field of IT.

I know that this post only concerns me, but what do you guys think I should do?

[Adroth]

If I were trained as a developer, I am thinking this will make me a good TechWriter in the future.

This is good preparation for becoming a technical writer in a software development environment. Its just one of many areas you can get into.

Remember, as other writers here have mentioned, technical writing is a very wide field. For example some of the hotest writing jobs around are in the biotech industry. These, however, are more often than not filled by medical school drop outs or doctors that have lost their licenses. So a programmer's background isn't going to be of much use there.

Networking background will be a major plus if you document middleware applications or client-server products. Its particularly useful if you become a writer / trainor. One of my MBOs for the year is get Network+ certification.

The following thread actually has interesting information about how to get into the biz:

http://www.pinoyexchange.com/forums/showthread.php?t=193664