Engl 271 Burnett blog

Chapter 21 Tresidder & Gustafson

2007-04-16T09:53:00.000-07:00

Chapter 21 talks about instructions and how they are everywhere. There are several reasons to keep instructions updated, for the use of various audiences. Such as; personal safety and performance, process/product safety and performance, summary or overview of process/product features, orientation for new team members as well as sales and marketing personnel, or central location for documenting process/product specifications and modifications. Instructions are essential in everyday life, locally but also readable for across borders. Before instructions are published there are several factors to consider. One must analyze instructions by task, audience, and genre, in order to ensure that the instructions are correct and user friendly. There are several principals to consider in terms of your audience, such as; self-concept, rationale, experience, readiness, orientation, and motivation. Some other basic but important things to consider when making instructions is deciding the need for visuals, and then the amount of visuals. Not all people learn best from written text but more from visuals. Furthermore, when writing instructions a decision must be made on the level of difficulty they are. Based on the audience, they should either be user-friendly, which are directed to an audience who knows little about the product, or they can little pictures and use jargon because the audience that is using them has a lot of experience with the particular instructions. When writing instruction you need to make sure that the content of the instructions is accessible, comprehensible, and usable. A few things that should be consider about instructions that there is clear title, the necessary components are included, for example: a parts list, materials and equipment list, and definitions, the information is in chronological order, use clearer dictions, and accurate and verifiable details. Other things to think about in instructions are whether or not it is necessary to include justification in your steps, the steps should also be written in parallel form; meaning they all follow the same grammatical form. Another important and helpful part of instructions are visuals. Visuals can be essential in clarifying instructions if used right. It is important to use appropriate and accurate visuals and to consider whether it is even necessary to have them. It is also important to have a the right visual and verbal balance, you should look at the information you are using and consider if it would be best to use entirely visual, verbal and visual, or entirely verbal for the instructions. When making a safety sign is important that the right color and word is used to portray the level or danger or injury that is possible. It is recommended to use a graphic image on a warning sign to grab the attention of a person. It is also a liability to have the sign incase of injury, the sign should be accurate, accessible, and appropriate.

Chapter 14

2007-04-09T10:10:00.001-07:00

Chapter 14
by Matt and Kristen

Chapter 14 covers the topic of creating definitions. This chapter will help you accomplish the following outcomes: avoid problems caused by multiple meanings, complexity of meanings, technical jargon and symbols and make appropriate decisions about using definitions in glossaries, information notes and appendixes. Not only do the meanings of words change, but new words will enter our language as well. A lot of these new words are ones related to developing technology. Networking was not a well known word, but thanks to social networking sites like facebook or myspace, this word has become more household. You should make sure your viewers or readers are up to date with the new words. If they don't know the word, you are in trouble. You wouldn't want to go on talking about hypothesis' if members of your audience have never heard of the word. With all the new technology comes new words. When preparing technical documents you should keep in mind that readers could become confused by multiple meanings, complexity of meanings, technical jargon, and symbols. Effective definitions can also help an audience follow a technical document, and answer the audience's questions. The main categories of definitions are: formal, informal, operational, and expanded definition. A formal definition is identifying a broad category to which a term belongs as well as its distinctive characteristics. Informal definitions tend to be the type that we insert in communication without realizing that we are defining a term. An operational definition can mean different things to different technical professions. The activities that researchers use to measure a variable is one way of explaining it. In contrast, some would define it as being able to specify the functions of an object or a process. Lastly, an expanded definition explains and clarifies information while maintaining the audience's interest. Technical writers now have options of how they want to incorporate these definitions by choosing from a glossary, information notes and sidebars, incorporated information, appendixes, and online help (although not mutually exclusive).

Chapter 17 Mandi and Sarah

2007-04-04T09:54:00.000-07:00

Chapter 17 bases their main points around oral presentations. It starts off by saying a very surprising statistic, more than seven hundred out of the surveyed managers said that the ability to communicate and plan effectively in front of an audience is the most important career skill. There are two types of presentations, informal and formal. Informal is where you most likely know your audience and it’s you are presenting material that the audience knows some background on. Informal presentations can range from large amounts of people to very small business meetings, as can formal presentations. The difference between the two though is that a formal presentation usually takes a lot more effort to prepare because the audience is probably not going to be familiar with you or the topic that you will be discussing. Class presentations are kind of a practice for the real world. When you give presentations to your classmates, they can give you feedback and tell you what your strong and weak points are. You can then use their advice to improve your presentation skills. This chapter also talks about getting to know your audience. It is important to know who you are speaking to in order to get your point across effectively. There are four possible audiences, professional peers, non-expert professionals, international audiences, and general audiences. After you decide what audience type you will be speaking to it is time to establish the purpose of the presentation. Is it an informative presentation where you will be providing people with general background information about a topic or helping them to make a decision? There is also persuasive presentations where you try and get your audience to see whatever topic you are discussing your way and to agree with you. It is very important to establish common ground between yourself and your audience. The next type of presentation is a demonstrative presentation, where you usually show the audience a process of some sort. The last one is a training session where you are educating, demonstrating, and teaching your audience how to perform a task. Visuals are a good way to get your audience attention, keep their attention throughout the speech, and make them remember what you have taught them. We have now discussed all the main points from chapter 17 and have taught you all about the different types of oral presentations.

Chapter 20 Daryl and Ryan

2007-04-03T20:09:00.000-07:00

Reports are used in many fields of business. The different factors to consider when writing a report are purpose, formality, audience, organization, and genre. The three different purposes that a report may have would be to report information, analyze information, and persuade an audience. The purpose of the report should be made clear at the beginning of the report. Another thing to consider when writing a report is whether the report should be formal or informal. This usually depends on the relationship to the audience. Identifying the audience is also another important factor of reports. Generally an audience will have a diverse background that needs to be considered. The information in the report needs to be organized for the report to be effective. Some criteria that should be considered is an overview, background information, recommendations, evidence, and discussions. When writing a report you must also select the genre. You may use prepared forms, memos, letters, and formal reports to convey your information.

There are several different types of reports. These include research reports and articles, task reports, periodic activity reports, progress reports, trip and conference reports, and meeting minutes. Research reports are used to give information that has found through experiments and research. Task reports are used to discusses different procedures that are to be carried out and other recommendations. Periodic activity reports are used to give information on work that is being done. These are written very frequently. Progress reports are like activity reports in that they inform an audience about work being done. Although, progress reports are written at defined times that are less frequent than periodic activity reports. Another document is Meeting Minutes, which is simply a record of the proceedings of any deliberative group. This allows members to go back and look at what was discussed or resolved in previous meetings. Sometimes, when a meeting is very important, and the group doesn't meet very often, a conference report is created for all members to look at before the meeting occurs. This is to ensure that the meeting runs smoothly, and time is not wasted. The chapter goes on to discuss, in detail, different purposes and practices of font matter. It breaks a document down into specific parts and shows what is appropriate and what is not in certain sections. It also shows the purpose of each section so that you know what the goal is of what you are writing. Overall, the chapter was very informative and gives very specific examples so that it is easier to follow what is going on.

Chapter 16 Matthew and Kenton

2007-04-02T11:02:00.000-07:00

This chapter explains process explanations, a process explanation explains sequential action list to the audience it gives just enough detail to explain the process but not to be able to complete the process. A process explanation is used in many documents, in marketing brochures it helps make decisions about what to buy and why to buy it. Process explanations are also found in technical manuals. It can be easier to follow directions if you know what the complete process is. The book gives examples of people looking for information about things in everyday life such as how a wind turbine works or how hurricanes are tracked. Sometimes a process explanation can be flawed by having wrong information. This can be intentional for greed or can be accidental by miscommunication. Some people find this an ethical and professional responsibility to change the information to correctly convey the information. Many businesses and companies keep their process explanations in reports and manuals up to date. Process explanations vary depending on the audience that they will be meant for. For example, if the process explanation is meant for students then there needs to be more detail and more background information, such as terminology and definitions, in order to help the student learn the information and retain it. If the process explanation is a public document then it needs to be tailored in a way as to make it simple and easy to understand. This not only allows younger people to understand it but also people who would get confused or lost from large words, but also allows people who have extended knowledge of the subject to read the article thus giving a larger reader base. If a document is easy to read it is also easier to read in a limited amount of time allowing people to read the article quickly and not get bored with technical details that hurried readers would probably not care about. Another important aspect to consider while creating process explanations is to list the steps of the action. This allows for a more accurate and sequential order and also aids in the use of visuals because steps that are difficult to explain can be supplemented by a visual. Visuals are significant in process explanations because they provide the information that is difficult to explain in words and also help the reader organize and understand the information. Lastly the types of visuals are also important to consider needing to assist the text and not detracting or confuse the reader.

Billy and Paul's Chapter 19

2007-03-31T18:10:00.000-07:00

While identifying types of proposal information such as situation, planning, benefits, approach, evaluation, and qualifications, this information should be included. Solicited proposals, and unsolicited, are the two main proposals specified in this chapter. Unsolicited proposals are usually internal documents and responses to an individual in an organization. Solicited proposals are simply a written response to an RFP. When an organization turns to a researcher, the RFP will identify the missing specifications needed in order for it to be accepted. RFP’S are usually accounted by several types of organizations. These types of organizations include: research and not profit foundations, educational institutions, government agencies, and private businesses. When requesting a proposal you need to remember to put the information in order starting with the most important. Using persuasion for your proposals audience is the most imperative concept to grasp. This will help you convince your audience to accept your proposal. During your proposal you need to have concerns of the audience, credibility of the speaker, and logic of the message. These are critical concerns needed to persuade your audience of your proposal. While writing the RFP you must identify the problem, provide background information, define the desired outcome, specify the service you need, and require detailed information. Planning your proposal will make the proposal go smoother and easier. Once you have the project established you need to plan a detailed review of what’s expected. To do this you must identify problems, organize an outline, analyze competition, and create a manageable budget. Budgeting are important features for a proposal. A budget identifies expenses for equipment, travel, and indirect cost. Finally, you need to evaluate, revise, and submit your proposal. In conclusion, this chapter outlines how to prepare, organize, and write an accurate proposal.

Chapter 18- Samantha and Julia

2007-03-27T18:57:00.000-07:00

Correspondence includes many different types of emails, memos, and letters. When composing correspondence you have to make sure you have certain guidelines, the appropriate attitude and tone, responding to the audience, organization, format, and visual displays. Accurate and unambiguous correspondence include emails, memos, and letters. These types are the everyday communication that people use in the workplace. When delivering correspondence people sometimes have it sent by mail, but these days people use the Internet and send emails which is asynchronous correspondence. Others use instant messaging which would be synchronous correspondence. All electronic messages should be informative as if you were writing. Also these messages can be forwarded, printed, or permanently stored, or misdirected. Do not send an electronic message that you would not want everyone to read. Effective correspondence should have a descriptive subject line, address audience directly, state objectives or ask questions, organize you material in a certain order depending on positive or negative response, bullet items for clarity and neatness, make sure you are specific about action, and finally end with a friendly comment. Emails, memos and letters should have attitude and tone, organization and finally the format. No single correspondence exits alone, especially in the work place, it usually becomes a chain, making organization extremely important. The book had a great example of corresponding many emails, memos, and letters together and that organization keeps you from getting confused.

CHAPTER 15

2007-03-09T10:44:00.001-08:00

This chapter focuses on technical descriptions. Technical descriptions give information about the physical aspects of an object. This includes appearance such as shape size and color. It also includes characteristics such as weight, density, and texture. Technical descriptions can help convey information, and it can help in persuading an audience. Technical descriptions are used in many fields of business. They can be used to record information during research and testing as well as informing people on how to conduct tasks. Many manuals use technical descriptions to help the reader understand the process that they are conducting. They can also be used in proposals to describe certain equipment or geographical areas. Visuals can be very helpful in a technical description because it helps the reader understand the text better. Technical description should also address who the audience is, and then be sure to use the proper diction when giving information. Also, it is important to seperate your information into groups that the audience will understand. This will differ from audience to audience. When selecting a proper diction for the audience take into account word usage and make sure that the terms you use are accurate and user friendly. In addition, the proper use of visuals is important in technical descriptions. It gives another way for the audience to see what you are giving information on. Finally, it is important to organize your information into specific parts so that it is easy for the reader to follow. Be sure to include background information if the audience is unfamiliar with the subject.

Chapter 13

2007-03-06T00:43:00.000-08:00

Chapter 13 starts out discussing about how electronic communication is an interactive and nonlinear, virtual and open, complex and dynamic: what they writers mean by this is that our means of using technology to communicate is always growing and expanding. Now our biggest tool for communicating is the Internet, and the World Wide Web. Websites all have there own environments, the World Wide Web is held up by the, or servers and networks. The individual websites are collections of files that include individual web pages and graphics. There audiences and electronic communication meeting the audiences needs are the primary goal of the writers and designers of electronic communication. Some important things to know for when creating a document on the Internet incorrupt these five things; screen and page size, legibility, responsiveness, Navigation, Equipment and service. Principles and practices of effective design, there're three things that designers need to keep in mind and that’s information architecture; information should be interlinked. Page/Screen design; the look and feel of the information helps users understand information. Content; is organized and written differently for electronic communication that for traditional print documents. Information Architecture it’s very important that the information is categorized, and the categories have relationships between them and all points made/presented are well established, and be sure to label all of the information so that readers easily understand. Navigating information it’s important to leave "bread crumbs" such as menus which are sequential lists of pages that users know where they are on the site and where they have been.
When designing a web page or screen it is important to keep three things in mind. They are layout, color, and graphics. When considering layout remember that with a web page you are combining many interface elements that must work together. The layout should consist of 75% content and also include good identification. Sizing of your layout is also important. You should consider the applications that are going to be using it and their resolution. You should also leave white space and not make the user have to scroll horizontally. Color should highlight and unify your screen as well as use contrast to make it easier to read. Different colors can also be used to identify various elements of your page. Graphics are used to enhance design and usability, establish identities, help navigate and provide information. Size and type of graphics should be considered especially concerning loading times. There are three types of graphics discussed on page 494; JPG, GIF and PNG. Your page should be easy to read and navigate as many people often skim more then read with so much information available. There are different standards and tools available that are used to maintain consistency throughout pages. Some of them are HTML, style sheets and style guides. More information about each is available on page 501.
I'm done with mine so whenever you are done just copy it to the blog.

Chapter 12: Using Visual Forms by Mallory and Lisa

2007-02-26T17:24:00.000-08:00

Chapter 12 begans by explaining how visuals not only attract someone’s attention and create appeal but also give readers a better understanding of what they are reading. Well-designed visuals can usually be understood more easily than text, can be processed more quickly than text, and can help readers learn better. When given all these benefits, we can see that visuals can be extraordinarily important in increasing the accessibility and usability of documents. Visuals can be adapted to different audiences by the complexity of content, presentation, and sometimes color and size. Take for example Figure 12.3 and Figure 12.4 on page 416. Figure 12.3 is much easier to follow for the general reader, whereas Figure 12.4 is more for science professionals. Some other very important rules when making effective decisions is to think about textual reference, labeling and placement of visuals. To begin with, you should always refer to visuals in the text. Don’t expect the reader to see the visual and try to connect it to the appropriate section of the text. Next, complete labeling includes identification, title and a caption. Last, you should always place visuals as close as possible following the text reference, and always leave some white space around the visual.
There are several reasons why visuals are important for technical documents. This chapter outlines seven of them: provide visual recognition, organize data, show relationships, define or explain, present chronology, illustrate appearance or structure, and identify facilities or locations. Each of these functions will help keep a document more organized and visually appealing to its audience. Another important aspect of the use of visual forms to consider is color. Staying away from too much color, cultural insensitivity, and overuse of decorative color are all good suggestions. Because so many documents are printed only in black and white, adding color can add variety to a document. This chapter lays out seven reasons why color is always a good option: signal safety, attract attention, enable accurate identification, show structure or organization, highlight components and their function or movement, aid comprehension, and influence interpretation. Whether it be a photograph or a chart, visual forms always help to enhance the look of and help to better understand a technical document.

Chapter 11 by Reagan and Bidhya

2007-02-25T21:55:00.000-08:00

This Chapter illustrates the fact that, regardless of your technical specialty, part of it will deal with the design of information in both electronic and print documents. Your skills to combine verbal and visual elements to communicate will help distinguish you from other professionals. The chapter presented detailed principles that affect accessibility/legibility, comprehensibility, readability, and usability and it also states variations and adjustments that are important when presenting Power Point presentations, technical and scientific posters, and websites. Information design and document design is when you organize and present information to increase audience's understanding. As you design information you would manage 5 categories of elements which are: textual elements, spatial elements, graphic elements, color and textural elements, and dynamic elements. These 5 categories are very crucial if you're designing print documents or web pages.
This chapter starts off by showing basic principles for information designing to follow in managing text, space, graphic elements, color, and movement in both electronic and print documents which are: Chunking and labeling, Arranging visual and verbal information, and Emphasizing information. Chunking and Labeling information deals with grouping or chunking related information and then labeling that information in your print document or website for the readers. There are two factors involve in making the decisions about chunking: Logical topical relationship and audience needs for the information. You could chunk related information by specific characteristic as types of materials, strength of materials, applications, eimensions, resistance to corrosion and distinctions. You could also make a decision about how to chunk the information based on the needs of your audience. Once the chunk of information is determine you then can separate chunks by using white space to make it look more appealing. Use heading and subheadings to label chunked information to identify the importance of these chunks in the document. Heading also gives the readers a chance to take a literal and mental breath.
In arranging information you could draw on designing conventions as well as avoid design problems. Two practices used by professional designers that will produce more effective documents: selection of appropriate grids and placement of visuals near related text. Also when you arrange your information to avoid cluttering visuals with chart junk such as miscellaneous graphics, they are useless. Another problem is tombstoning, it involves aligning the headings so that readers mistakenly chunk the text. A third problem is, heading placement, from leaving too few lines after heading and subheading. The chapter will show figures with all of these kind of problems and adjustments to the problems.
Once information is chunked, labeled, and arranged you will still need to Emphasize information to make the information more accessible,usable and comprehensible. Thus, typeface and typographic devices remain important. By appropriate use of typeface influences the size all 10 point does not look the same size. Different variations of of type provide visual appeal and variety. When you pick the style of your text be real careful because it could influence the audience. On the computer software you have the capability of using capitalization, small caps, boldface, and italics, and fancier variations such as shadow or outline.
Also sometimes you need to emphasize information by separating it from the text sometimes you could do this visually. The use of effective devices includes numbered lists, bulleted lists, underlining, boxes, shading or tints, and colors. But avoid using to much devices that it may make your document cluttered. Using Boxed and shaded information is emphasized. Information that is boxed is another way of emphasizing and so is color to make the visual more appealing visual device, which often contributes to the effectiveness and clarity of a document.

Ch 9 Ensuring Usability By David and Travis

2007-02-21T11:27:00.000-08:00

The goal of usability is to place user concerns, rather than text features, at the center of the design and development process. This chapter is about how easy users can interact with a document. Usability is the degree to which texts, regardless of their material or mode, effectively and easily enable people to accomplish their goals. There are five critical principles of usability, and those are learn ability, efficiency, memorability, error recovery, and satisfaction. You can test the usability of your document measuring the degree in which users can effectively and easily enable people to accomplish their goals. The tests tend to be inaccurate because you can never test every circumstance. If you test a document by using text-based testing, you would examine a range of local-level language, visual, and design features and than draw conclusions, and figure out what you need to change. If you use expert-based testing, you are using several kinds of reviews, such as reviews from subject matter experts, substantive editorial reviews, and possibly design reviews.

Information from users as they read and use a text is called concurrent testing. Information after they finished a text is retrospective testing. As you plan your usability testing, consider the following issues: goals, criticality, constraints, schedule, involvement, timing, goodness of fit, ease of use, usable form, and updating. When designing documents, web sites, and software interfaces you often have to focus on content, design prefaces, and perceptions of the task or activity that the communication is meant to be for. After all of the issues are considered, implementing the test plan is the next step. Locating participants, developing strategies for inquiry, figuring out the test locating, explaining the test to the participants, and conducting the test are the main point to make sure you do in the testing process. Then you must report the test results.

Chapter 10 Organizing Information by David/Travis

2007-02-19T10:49:00.001-08:00

This chapter focuses mainly on organizing information. Organizing information helps a lot with producing quality documents, presentations, and visuals. Transforming information into knowledge gives the information meaning. As a topic is explored, you can create a writer based document (presentation or visual), that helps you examine and organize information; the goal should be to create an audience based document for all of the readers, listeners, and readers. The overall persuasiveness of your document, presentation, or visuals depends on organization. Outlines are easy to use because changing an outline is easier than changing a draft. You can also use story boards to test the organization of the information. They have two broad purposes and audiences: a powerful organizing tool for the writers and designers, and a short visual summary showing the main point of the final project for the clients and customers.

The whole/parts method of organization is making a document into parts, but relating those parts to the meaning of the document as a whole. An example would be the assembly of a car. A person's job may only be to put the tires on, but in describing how the tire relates to the rest of the car, the person understands better what they should be doing. Chronological order is showing readers information in the order it happens or in a certain sequence. Spatial order is arranging information in the order of there physical location relative to a certain point. Ascending/Descending order is arranging data in a quantifiable order, such as alphabetically, or from least important to most important. Organizing information using a compare/contrast technique is useful in talking about the advantages and disadvantages of a product or task. Cause and effect is organizing information by first talking about an occurrence, and then talking about the direct consequences that happen.

Chapter 8 Revising and Editing by Bidhya and Reagan

2007-02-13T13:44:00.000-08:00

This chapter explains many ways of conducting multiple tasks related to revising and editing. Chapter 8 mentions that the fundamental purposes of revising and editing are to increase the accessibility, comprehensibility, usability of documents, presentations, and visuals. According to this chapter, there are different ways and types of revising and editing. There are 6 points shown by this text that will help you reach the choice for revision and they are: retrieve feedback, access feedback, make attribution, test text, set goals, and select strategy. If you go through all these steps, then you are prepared for the revision.
Revising is rewriting the whole document. Editing is correcting and changing some parts for an improved version. Effective editing improves a document’s technical and textual accuracy. There are different levels of editing: substantive edit, format edit, integrity edit, mechanical style, screening edit, language edit, policy edit, clarification edit, and coordination edit. Among these, Substantive edit reviews the document globally for accuracy, logic, completeness, coherence, consistency, organization, and tone. Proofreading is one of the very important components of editing. The documents are proofread by individuals who have enough command of language appropriateness as well as the skill and sensitivity to create reader-based documents.
These people sometimes use some software to reduce the burden of excessive proofreading and editing documents which might have some benefits. But it is not crucial that these kind of soft wares are always accurate. Overall, this chapter has described some effective ways of editing and revising which can be helpful to anybody trying to improve their presentations, documents and even visuals.

Chapter 7 by Matt and Kristen

2007-02-11T20:13:00.000-08:00

Chapter 7 - Planning and Drafting
By Kristen and Matt

Chapter 7 discusses the strategies writers use as they explore, plan, and draft documents, presentations, and visuals. Experienced writers recognize the importance of researching their subject as they plan the approach they will take when organizing their project. Skillful communicators begin by asking about the context, the subject, and the document, presentation or the visual itself. Figure 7.1 on page 229 in book gives a good visual to asking yourself questions in your planning of a document. Once you are confident in the approach you would like to use, branch out to give yourself a few more options. Problem-solving processes allow your work to be much easier. Burnett discusses strategies including Brainstorming, 5 W's plus H (who, what, when, where, why, and how), cause-and-effect analysis, and synectics (bringing together diverse people and ideas). Insufficient project planning is one of the major reasons that projects fail to pan out. Because of this, professional often turn to time-and-project management tools. Planning is also usually more productive if it is collaborative. One of the more difficult aspects of planning is making sure it is logical. In order to make a project logical, noticing the problems that accompany it is useful. Using data from authorities, presenting facts without drawing inferences, drawing inferences, and establishing causal relationships are all problems that need to be recognized. One of the most frequent relationships employed in technical documents, oral presentations, or visuals establishes causes and resulting effects. Your audience can be misled by several kinds of poorly drawn causal relationships, including a condition not being sufficient cause, variables not being correlated. One thing to avoid in your communication is density. Sometimes your draft will focus on a single topic and has the appropriate structure, but is difficult to read because you have packed the ideas so tightly that the connections are obscured. Use headings and subheadings to identify key sections and illustrate objects and concepts to aid understanding to avoid density. Information in drafts that follow given-new structures is typically easier to read and remember. In addition, given-new structures make the relationships between ideas clear to the audience.

Chapter 6 by Julia and Samantha

2007-02-05T15:48:00.000-08:00

This chapter talks about how to find and use information that will help the audience better understand what you are saying. The chapter also touches on the four steps of knowledge management which include finding and selecting, organizing, synthesizing, and using. When searching a new topic most of us tend to go straight to electronic resources. Burnett recommends researching in this order; Library's online catalog, online reference materials. general reference databases, discipline-specific databases, government databases, and the Internet and world wide web.

There are primary and secondary sources. Primary source information is reported by people directly involved with an event and secondary is given by people that are not involved. No matter what source you decide to use, and you can use both, you need to make sure that the information is credible, check the sponsoring agent, and the date the information was obtained. There are also many different types of information that you can use, including: Print and electronic resources, internal records, personal observation, interviews and letters of inquiry, surveys and polls, and empirical research. When writing a paper you have to be careful and make sure you don't plagiarizing. You have to make sure to show credit to the author when taking information that isn't yours. There are ways to assess the credibility of web documents; identifying the author, time, purpose and content of the source.

With an information interview, there is some preparation about asking the right questions to get the right information you need and this can be done is three ways. Gather information about the subject, find the person you want to interview, and identify the categories of questions you want to ask. There are guidelines for asking effective interview questions. There can be successful ways for effective interviewing as well which includes interpersonal behavior, body language, interviewing conventions and mechanical considerations. As mentioned earlier surverys and polls can be quite usefull. There six different types mentioned in the book, including dual alternatives, multiple choice questions, rank ordering, like scales, completions, and essays or open-ended questions.

Chapter 5 summery by Matt and Kenton

2007-02-04T22:11:00.000-08:00

Every one of us has collaborated in the past and will have to do it much more often as we get jobs. Collaborating is a big part of the workplace. It has many advantages and some disadvantages. Chapter five talks about reasons for collaboration including subject, process, product, and benefits it also talks about reasons collaboration can be a problem. The subject you do a project on may cause you to need to collaborate by needing opinions and expertise from others. The process may be too involved for one person and must be done with a group. The product again might be too large for one person to handle the book gives examples of Web sites, newsletters, user manuals, and proposals. Benefits of collaboration include not having to travel being able to get help using technology. Reasons that collaboration can cause problems are, time, discomfort, control, credit, conflict, criticism, ethics, style, responsibility, and technology.
Being a good collaborator is key to the group’s success you need to engage and cooperate, you need to be prepared during meetings and do your part. Do not just sit back and say nothing be involved in the conversation. Listen, be an active listener and pay attention to what the other person is saying and not saying. Listen to the tone of voice to be able to tell context. Part of being an active listener is to respond to what the others say, ask for clarification to make sure you understand.
Conflicts in groups are going to happen but if you take care of them early in the project they are much easier handled. Discuss things like procedure and problems you notice. If you take care of things early they will not hurt the group as much and be much easier to change. The main part of problems is that you have to agree and discuss before you can have a resolution. If you understand the group problems and fix them you will have a successful group.

Chapter 4 By Sarah & Mandi

2007-01-29T20:00:00.000-08:00

In chapter four we discuss addressing audiences and its importance of identifying your purpose, categorizing types of audiences, and analyzing factors that influence them.
First we identify our purpose, most people who prepare these documents have two purposes to convey information and to persuade or argue. Before analyzing an audience we must identify it. Most technical document readers often want specifics rather than general issues. Several strategies exist for analyzing audiences. The book gives characteristics to help plan the audiences’ needs and expectations. One of the most effective ways is to talk with them and the people they work with. A vital consideration is the context in which we present our technical documents. Not only do we need to focus on the physical aspects but also the political context in which the audience may interpret the information. Knowing an audience’s purpose and motivation helps you adjust the organization of information. Prior knowledge and the reading level are important to know to determine the content and vocabulary use toward your audience. Organizations are generally categorized as hierarchical or nonhierarchical. A hierarchical organization has bosses at the top, managers in the middle, and workers at the bottom and believes being directed works best. Nonhierarchical organizations have everyone contributing equally to the productivity of the organization and think participating in decision making is most effective. Changing the complexity of the concepts, language, details, and examples for different levels of technical audiences helps the people understand and follow along. You should maintain a similar level of complexity for audiences with parallel roles in an organization but emphasize aspects that are relevant to their organizational role and their particular point of view. If you understand these concepts you will be successful in addressing any audience.

Billy and Paul's chapter 3 summary

2007-01-27T15:22:00.000-08:00

This chapter was all about reading and writing. It explained to the reader effective ways to get the most out of a document efficiently and effectively. Everywhere in the workplace reading can be categorized into four overlapping categories. These categories are reading to assess, reading to learn, reading to learn what to do, and reading what to do. As a writer one should imagine themselves as a member of the audience that will be reading the document you are creating. As a reader there are three things that need to be done before carefully reading a document. These three things are skim, scan, and predict. Skimming is reading through a document very quickly. This allows the reader to get a sense about what is most important in the document and where it is located. Scanning is running your eyes down a page to look for specific information. This allows you to identify key terms to you. Predicting takes place during the skimming and scanning process. In predicting you anticipate what the text will can contain and formulate questions that can be answered by more careful reading.
Abstracts are a document feature that is the most important part of a technical report. When looking at an abstract finding the objective, methodology, results, and conclusions can decrease your reading time, and increase your comprehension of the document.
Another way to get the most out of a document is for a reader to generate questions to help themselves understand a document. Knowledge questions emphasize the recall of specifics. Comprehension questions require responses that incorporate knowledge as well as understanding. Application questions require specific applications or principles of theories. Analysis questions emphasize the separation of objects, mechanisms, systems, organisms, operations, or ideas into constituent parts, clearly establishing the relationship between these parts. Finally, synthesis questions expect the reader to focus on organizing or structuring the parts to form a unique whole.

Chapter 2 Understanding Culture and the Workplace

2007-01-23T10:05:00.000-08:00

There is a good chance that you will be involved with a multinational corporation in the near future, if you already haven't. It is important to be able to communicate with people of a different culture in business and in everyday society. The book has multiple definitions of culture the one I liked the best was "a system of learned beliefs and values that influences attitudes and actions." Culture can be categorized in different groups such as: race, ethnicity, nationality and religion, it can also be broken down into subcultures. Every ones culture is "normal" to them. It is important to think outside the box and take the time to look at other cultures, it is easier to communicate with other cultures when you understand them. There are two different kinds of businesses global and local. It is important to remember the difference; globalization works across borders, where as localization reflects the local culture. There are culture differences all around the world. These distinctions characterize all nations. One of the most visible aspects of a national culture is language. English is the first or second language in five continents, but often not the first language of a country. For this reason people must acknowledge and understand this to be respectful to their cultures. English is not the same in each country and/or culture. The same word may have a different definition or multiple meanings. A culture with similar characteristics is a discourse community, many times people belong to several discourse communities. Often times they belong to the same group or organization, which usually leads to a common use of language. Proxemics is the physical difference from people, which varies depending on the type of space it is between the people. The space can be as little 18 inches with intimate space, but can be as much as 12 feet with public space. There are two types of time, monochronic people are inflexible and tangible, whereas polychronic are flexible and fluent. Because work time varies from cultures conflicts can occur. This is one situation that you should be prompt and patient in order to avoid any conflict. Organizational culture is a key tool to be aware of in order to have relationships with businesses around the world. Personal factors move people into subcultures that could affect people professionally. Being knowledgeable with the above characteristics of communication will increase your awareness when interacting with other cultures. It is essential to observe, listen, show respect, and have interest when in a unfamiliar setting. Before entering a new culture it will be beneficial to understand the culture's customs, language, hierarchy, and who you will be working with. If you approach a situation safe, smart, and welcome new experiences it will increase your level of success. Remember to remain patient, be flexible, and engage in conversation.

Chapter One Recap by Ryan and Daryl

2007-01-20T14:32:00.000-08:00

Over the past half a decade many advancements in the field of technical communications have been made. Technical communications have been becoming more involved in our society, especially in the modern day workplace regarding genre, communities, technology, and ethics. Each of these plays a major part in how businesses use technical communication. For example, when you are trying to push your idea onto someone, whether it is a co-worker or a customer, you are going to have to adjust your approach based on how you think they will react. This is changing the genre of your communication. In addition to this the chapter mentions how communities, technology, and ethics effect the workplace viewed through a technical communications standpoint. The chapter also discusses how advances in communication in the workplace have made more productive and higher quality of work. This is by knowing how to communicate and get the best out of workers. Another part of technical communications are the constraints. They must be dealt with in order to complete your task. Time constraints limit the amount of time that you will have to finish your document. The subject, audience and type of presentation are also constraints. You will need to adjust your approach to satisfy your audience and presentation style. Whether you work independently or in a group affects your approach. As an independent you are required to do all of the work for the project which can take more time. Group work can take less time but, may be more difficult. The collection of data and the use of technology may also be a constraint because the information and technology may not be readily available. Noise or interference comes in a variety of forms and is a constraint in every environment. There are many constraints that need to be dealt with in order to make your technical documents successful.

Welcome to English 271-07 @ MSU, Mankato

2007-01-17T09:45:00.000-08:00

Welcome to our MSU, Mankato English 271-07 blog. We'll use this space to discuss our readings in Burnett's Technical Communication.