What Macaulay Culkin Can Teach You About XML-Based Technical Authoring Tools

OMG, I need an XML tech authoring tool!

Remember Macaulay Culkin? The child star of Home Alone peaked very early and, despite many attempts, never managed to make the same impact as an adult. Larry Kunz asks if a similar fate awaits DITA, the one-time golden child of the tech comms industry.

Larry says that last week another technical writer asserted that DITA has “jumped the shark.” “It’s not a new idea. I’ve heard other people say that DITA has already seen its best days, that it’s struggling to remain relevant in a world that’s passed it by. I was amused, I admit, because it was the first time I’d seen DITA compared to a TV show.”

What does the future hold for DITA?


Larry identifies four areas where DITA fits into the content creation lifecycle and also the benefits it offers technical writers.

  1. Content + Community — content comes from all over the enterprise, not just from the technical writing department, and from outside the enterprise (customers and end users) as well.
  2. Content + Structure— the next step is to organize & format this community-based content in usable way. DITA, based on XML, help tag content for the semantic Web.
  3. Content + Collaboration — DITA-wiki tools will make it practical for everyone to “contribute content… and for the content to be formatted in a consistent fashion according to the enterprise’s requirements.”
  4. Agile Software Development — DITA helps tech writers generate review drafts more easily as reviews are based on separate topics rather a single document.

Will DITA Become Adopted as a Standard?

Larry adds that “DITA is a standard. It can grow in whatever directions the community wants to take it.”

I have to admit, I’ve never got my teeth into DITA. It’s something I’ve read about but never had the opportunity to use. Why?

  • Products – If DITA was developed by a company with a financial incentive (i.e. productized) to make it work, then there may be a greater adoption.
  • Ownership – as it’s ‘just’ a standard, then no-one really owns it.
  • Compelling reasons – the third is that I can’t see (and forgive my ignorance here!) a compelling reason for companies to adopt DITA. I can see the benefits but for a company to invest in training, tools etc there needs to be a strong business case – and with DITA, I don’t see it. Whereas with XML, I could see the business opportunities that it offered, which no doubt accelerated its adoption.

Industry Adoption

I asked Larry which companies have embraced DITA, for example, is it part of Adobe’s FrameMaker or Tech Comms suite?

Larry’s take on this is that “DITA will have greater adoption if it’s embraced by the software vendors. The good news is, this is already happening.”

FrameMaker has been DITA-compliant since version 8 and while Adobe might not have “embraced” DITA with a whole-hearted DITA-Frame integration, it’s at least shown a willingness to shake hands.

  • Bluestream’s XDoc – DITA-compliant Content Management System
  • Madcap –Blaze and Flare support DITA
  • XMetal – DITA-based reviewing tool called Reviewer

Has DITA Jumped the Shark?

Last word to Larry: “the trend is clear. An increasing number of commercial vendors are seeing that there’s a market for DITA-compliant tools. And several of the tools are going way beyond simple DITA-compliance to full-blown integration with DITA.”

How do you use DITA?

Like I said, I haven’t used DITA on a live project.

  • Where do you see its role in the technical writing community?
  • What do we need to do to increase its adoption or raise its profile?
  • What is the one thing it offers to technical writers that other tools don’t offer?

Let me know what you think. Please add your thoughts below and let’s get the ball rolling.

PS – What is shark jumping, anyway?

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Using Google Wave to Write Technical Documentation in Real Time

Maeve asks on LinkedIn how we can use Google Wave to write technical documents. Well, the first consideration is that Google Wave is not designed as a tech authoring tool but for collaboration and ‘almost’ real-time information exchange. Saying that, it does offer many benefits if you need to plan/coordinate/review documents in a networked environment. Here are some ideas.

Where Google Wave Can Help You Write Document

If you look at the lifecycle of a technical document, you can see that there are several phases where documents (and diagrams) get reviewed, approved, edited etc – nothing to do with the actual writing, but all related to getting the document over the finishing line.

Most of my work is spent on the web, coordinating projects, often in different time zones.

Google Wave helps me with the non-writing activities, such as planning, scheduling, reviews, brainstorming, sign-offs, usability testing, interface design, videos. Most project communications is done by email but why not do it with Google Wave instead? Why stick with email?

Let’s look at a few places in the document lifecycle where Google Wave might move things forward

  1. Business Case – Getting the business case completed is one of the first things I do way before we start any writing. How do we justify the expense/resources involved in writing this document? Is there a real need for this material? Writing the business case s Google Wave or Email? Email is fine but slow. Everyone has to respond (one by one) until you get final consensus. With Google Wave you can all pitch in and do it in a single session. Or, you can start the discussion, save the wave, and then come back to it. Try doing this with Outlook.
  2. Project Plan – we’ve started to use Google Wave when discussing resources, costs, and getting dates with Dev, HR, Testing Depts. Google Wave v Email v Intranet? I now use Google Docs to maintain the project plans (usually in Docs but also in spreadsheet format. It doesn’t always have to be in Excel.)
  3. Information Development Plan – this is the ‘project plan’ for documentation deliverables, e.g. which documents are, what file format do we need, estimated page count, start/end dates, team, technical resources. Again, this can be run through with the team and the project manager is one or more waves. Think of the time this saves v endless emails back and forth.
  4. Status Reports – you can link to the ‘active’ status report on the intranet/Google Docs and use Google Wave to provide more detailed information. For example, if risks are identified in the status report, other members of the wave can join in the conversation flow and explain the root cause, shedding further light when/where necessary.
  5. SMEs – instead of holding several workshops (or conf calls) setup a wave, get everyone online and explore the subject matter. Upload charts, diagrams, videos and whatever gets this reviewed in one sitting.
  6. Reviews – right now, most of these are done in Microsoft Word (and that’s fine up to a point). We’ve done some test runs with Google Wave and managed to get the docs reviewed, re-written, and signed off in, more or less, the same time as we’d do with Microsoft Word.

BUT, this was our first time using Google Wave. Once we get over the learning curve, we’ll be able to get the documents turned around faster.

Remember, you can add videos and graphics to the wave.

  • “What do you think of this user interface?”
  • “What’s wrong with the nav bar? I didn’t understand your email.”
  • “How can we change the workflow of this process?”

You get the idea.

When you can present text, video and graphics at the same time, then you can change the way you manage projects.

It doesn’t always have to be email. Status reports don’t have to be in Word. Give Zoho a spin. Reviews don’t have to be in Microsoft Word. Use Google Docs and see how you can use track changes and version controls.

People making Google Waves

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Robert Scoble put it this way: “This service is way overhyped and as people start to use it they will realize it brings the worst of email and IM together: unproductivity.”

http://www..youtube.com/v/ZlZpH-CUkOo&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=de_DE&feature=player_embedded&fs=1</a>” />Things to Consider

While Google Wave is not meant for technical writing it, try and see where/how it can speed up the overall documentation lifecycle, especially those areas where you need to connect with many people.

Use Google Wave to centralize these communications.

Emails tend to create information silos. Snippets you have to cut/paste into other documents (e.g. reports) so they have real value.

How will you use Google Wave?

We’ve touched the tip of the iceberg here. Where do you think it adds most value? How do you plan to use it to save time and speed up internal processes? And. what’s the real problem in getting people to start using it?

Posted via email from Technical Writing Tips

Technical Writing Newsletter – Camtasia, Crystal Balls, Salaries, Metrics & Twitter

The first Technical Writing Newsletter of the year includes some interesting predictions on the future of technical communications, how to justify your role as a technical writer (i.e. metrics), news of Camtasia Relay’s UK Bootcamp and the results of the salary survey for technical writers in Israel.

Ten trends in technical communication for 2010 and beyond
Ellis “Let’s take the opportunity to look forward into 2010 and beyond. Here are, in no particular order, ten predictions to consider. 1. The battle between the “Engineering” and “Craft” schools of thought within technical communication will come to some sort of resolution…”

Technical communication trends in the 2010s

Larry Kunz, “The next ten years figure to be just as eventful. Here are a few trends that I see in technical communication in the 2010s:.. The rise of the content strategist: the person who can process information from all over the enterprise (and from its customers) and repackage it for different audiences. Audiences demand information that’s tailored to them and to the tasks they’re performing, and they look for it in all kinds of places. The stars of the 2010s will be the content strategists who can meet the demand.”

Documentation metrics: How do you prove you’re worth it?

Meanwhile over in Edinburgh (really great place!), Alistair Christie writes, “You know how sometimes you read something and it niggles away at you and you can’t quite get it out of your system? You might never be able to prove that customers are happier because of the work you do, but if you’re able to prove that customers are less annoyed with the products and increasingly able to get on with their business without calling support, then you might just be able to convince people that documentation is valuable.”

When to go with printed documentation

Who cares if they read it or not?

Gordon tells us to lighten up! “Seriously, do we spend too much time worrying about this? What do we get paid for after all, to write documentation, so that’s what we should concentrate on doing. So what if no-one reads it, as long as I’ve done my job I’ll get paid. And no, I don’t care if they don’t understand how to use the product properly, if they choose not to read the documentation then there isn’t much more I can do, is there? Yeah, they might get stuck but if I can learn it, so can they. If not then maybe they shouldn’t.”

Camtasia Relay UK Bootcamp

Reporting for the Salary and Rate Survey

From Israel, Svi Ben-Elya has the results of the recent salary survey, “The reporting period has started for the salary and rate surveys for technical writers, marcom writers and copy editors. This is the most accurate survey of salaries and freelance rates for technical writers, marcom writers and copy editors working in Israel.”

Interview with Dave O’Rourke – Lead Camtasia Studio Developer

Betsy Weber “Kelly Rush, TechSmith’s videographer and I have been roaming behind the scenes at TechSmith and filming as part of our ongoing series about the people at TechSmith who make the products you use. This time, we stormed Dave O’Rourke’s office. Dave is the Lead Developer for Camtasia Studio. As Lead Developer he’s not only involved in software engineering and design, but he’s also responsible for the code that makes Camtasia Studio work. Dave also steers the development of Camtasia Studio”.

5 Reasons to Write Procedures in Twitter

Julie Norris “Recently, I’ve been exploring the need for writing procedures in real-time, focusing on Twitter in particular. This is the fourth post in the series. In my last post, I was asked by Larry Kunz in a comment for thoughts on situations in which one might write procedures in Twitter. Five come to mind; I’ve described them below.”

Technical Writing Events

LinkedIn (I’m at http://www.linkedin.com/in/ivanwalsh) lists ten events that might interest those in the technical writing community.

eSeminar: PDF-based Documentation Reviews for Technical Communicators

With over 90% of all computers connected to the Internet already having the free Adobe PDF Reader installed, conducting PDF-based Reviews of Technical Documentation is one of the most intuitive and cost-effective solutions in the market.

Writer River

Special mention to Writer River, a collaborative news site for the field of technical communication. Lots of great links and building up a nice following on Twitter.

I follow as many technical writers as I can on Twitter and with my Google Reader. That’s where these links come from. If I’ve overlooked you – or you know of a company/product I should follow, please let me know.

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How To Differentiate Yourself As A Technical Writer

Tom Peters says, “the value of services will continue to fall” and that the only way to survive is to differentiate yourself from the competition. Is this true? How do you as a technical writer make yourself stand out from the crowd? If you don’t, what impact could this have on your career?

How to Differentiate Yourself as a Technical Writer

Here are five suggestions to do this:

  1. Video Blogging – use your Camtasia skills to create videos that show how products work. Cisco is doing a great job in this area. They gave flip cameras to the IT people and encouraged them to make short, snappy videos that show how to use their hardware, networks, and systems. Which would you prefer? To read 20 pages or watch a 3 minute video?
  2. Screencasting Training – now that you know how to make the videos, why not use this to teach others to do this same. Position yourself as a screen-casting expert, setup the blog, get involved, and show others how this works. FWIW there is a very active video marketing group on LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.com/in/ivanwalsh) that you may want to join.
  3. Web-based Training – if you’ve spent years writing guides, you must have developed an in-depth knowledge of 2 or 3 fields. See which of these are most in demand (Google searches and forums will be a starting point) and then develop training modules that you can present online. Lynda.com does a great job in offering training over the web. Sign up with them and see how it works.
  4. Social Media Writing – you know how to write, right? Well, most people don’t. As Social Media continues to explode leverage your writing skills and show (“the benefit o f communicating well on Facebook is…”) others how to get their message across on these Social Network. Look at how Debbie Weil does it. http://www.debbieweil.com
  5. Business English – the upside of all these jobs getting shipped to India, China, Brazil is that their Management teams want to do more business in the west. How can you help them write better reports, communicate more clearly, protect them from being misunderstood – you get the idea!

These are just five ways you can stand out from the crowd and position yourself as a specialist. My suggestion is to look at who is doing this right, e.g. Debbie Weil, and study them diligently. Then develop an action plan and start getting the rewards you deserve.

What other careers can you think of? Is it possible to differentiate yourself as a Technical Writer? How would you do it?

PS: Tom Peters is here: Thriving on Chaos: Handbook for a Management Revolution and Debbie Weil The Corporate Blogging Book: Absolutely Everything You Need to Know to Get It Right is here.

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Product Brand Name Template

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The Brand Naming Toolkit includes:

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Business Brand Name Template (DOC). This is a “working”, interactive template that elicits the information your naming team (even if it’s only a team of one) can use to focus on and generate relevant name candidates. It can also be described as a “Name Creation Brief”.

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