Wednesday

Write New Feature Documentation

Today I set aside some time to do some actual writing. I already met with the feature developers, so I have a lot of notes that I can work from. However, I realize I need to ask the developers some more questions, so I sit down to talk with one of them. It's tricky asking questions sometimes; each developer responds differently to each question, and I have to figure out which questions give me the information I want.

Soon I have everything I need to get started writing. I find a perfect place for this new content in the user manual. I think about what chapter title and section headings best communicate my information. I decide to use gerunds as headings, which inform readers what they will learn or accomplish in the chapter. This design is one component of the task-based approach to documentation.

I begin the chapter with just enough background material to put the feature in context. For more information, I reference a well-known textbook the developer told me about. After that, I include a tutorial that introduces several key terms and ideas.

From there, I discuss how the feature works. Because customers can use LabVIEW in so many different ways, I can't anticipate exactly what a customer will need from the documentation. I want to provide our customers with as much information as possible.

After I finish the first draft, I put it aside and work on other projects for a little while before proofreading. It's always a good idea to put some mental distance between draft revisions. Doing so gives your brain a chance to process what you've just written.

Volunteer at Shoes for Austin

Every once in awhile, a group of technical writers and developers will get together to volunteer at a local charity. It's always a good thing to give back to the community. Today we go to Shoes for Austin, a nonprofit organization that helps other nonprofits distribute brand-name athletic shoes to children and families who meet self-improvement goals. Shoes for Austin operates a warehouse in town where they store all the shoes they receive. Several of us spend the morning sorting, boxing, labeling, and carting shoes around the warehouse. By the end of the shift, we fill up several shipping palettes worth of shoes, ensuring they will get to their destination on time.

Attend a Brown-Bag Presentation

This afternoon I attend the brown-bag presentation that Robin and Neerja put together. They talked about our department's recruiting efforts and how people can get involved. Even though I'm fairly new to the company, I still want to get involved with recruiting other technical writers. Recruiting seems like a fun way to meet new people and take on new responsibilities at the same time. At some point I will join a recruiting team, most likely the one that goes to the University of Texas, and meet with other team members on how to attract and evaluate the best technical writer candidates.