Description
Book SynopsisAn updated edition of the classic guide to technical communication Consider that 20 to 50 percent of a technology professional's time is spent communicating with others. Whether writing a memo, preparing a set of procedures, or making an oral presentation, effective communication is vital to your professional success.
Trade Review"I wish I had known of this publication years ago. It would have made the growth of a professional career less chaotic and better organized...highly recommended to all professionals..." (
Journal of Veterinary and Human Toxicology, Vol. 45, No. 5, October 2003)
Table of ContentsPreface xiii
PART I Getting Started: Writing the First Drafts
Can Engineers Write? 3
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-27(1) March 1984
Joan Knapp
Preparing to Write the Document: A Worksheet for Situational Analysis in the Workplace 7
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-27(1) March 1990
Ronald J. Nelson
Issue Trees: A Tool to Aid the Engineering Writer 12
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-37(2) June 1994
Joan Temple Dennett and Michael Hseih
Ready, Aim—Write! 21
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-31(1) March 1988
Ruth C. Savakinas
Beginnings and Endings: Keys to Better Engineering Technical Writing 24
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-40(4) December 1997
Marcia Martens Pierson and Bion L. Pierson
Could You Be Clearer? An Examination of the Multiple Perspectives of Clarity 30
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-35(2) June 1992
Ronald E. Dulek
The Grammar Instinct 34
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-45(2) June 2002
Alan D. Manning
Comparing the Two Cultures in Technical Writing 39
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-34(2) June 1991
Don Bush
PART II Construction and Content: Putting Documents Together
Creating a Doc Spec 45
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-42(2) June 1999
Liz Wing
Write a Good Technical Report 49
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-27(1) March 1984
Gael D. Ulrich
How to Avoid the Transitional Ax in Indirect Bad News Messages 55
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-34(1) March 1991
Thomas L.Wiseman
Job Hunting: Sharpening Your Competitive Edge 5
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-27(4) December 1984
Ron S. Blicq
How to Write a Recommendation 6
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-27(4) December 1984
Alan D. Wilcox
Some Guidance on Preparing Technical Articles for Publication 7
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-32(1) March 1989
Richard Manley, Judith Graham, and Ralph Baxter
Today’s Style Guide:Trusted Tool with Added Potential 8
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-41(1) March 1998
Jane Perkins and Cassandra Maloney
“Professional Communication” and the “Odor of Mendacity”: The Persistent Suspicion that Skillful Writing is Successful Lying 8
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-38(3) September 1995
Edmond H. Weiss
PART III Text and Graphics: Presenting Information Visually
Editing Visual Media 97
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-41(1) March 1998
Thomas R. Williams and Deborah A. Harkus
Visual Discriminability of Headings in Text 110
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-35(2) June 1992
Thomas R. Williams and Jan H. Spyridakis
Choosing the Right Graph 117
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-45(1) March 2002
Jean-Luc Doumont and Philippe Vandenbroek
Table Construction: Do’s and Don’ts 123
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-32(1) March 1989
Eva Dukes
Safety Labels: What to Put in Them, How to Write Them, and Where to Place Them 128
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-30(3) September 1987
Christopher Velotta
Editing Math: What to Do with the Symbols 134
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-33(3) June 1990
Barry W. Burton
Displaying Scientific Graphics on Computer 138
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-40(2) June 1997
Janet E. Lincoln and Donald L. Monk
PART IV Manuals and Procedures: Giving Directions that Work
Designing and Writing Operating Manuals 155
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-27(1) March 1984
Lidia Lopinto
Manual Dexterity—What Makes Instructional Manuals Usable 158
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-27(2) June 1984
James P. Gleason and Joan P. Wackerman
Selecting and Switching: Some Advantages of Diagrams Over Tables and Lists for Presenting Instructions 161
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-41(4) December 1998
Angelique Boekelder and Michael Steehouder
Using a Structured Design Analysis To Simplify Complex In-House Computer Manuals 174
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-35(1) March 1992
John S. Craig
Single-Source Manuals 180
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-37(2) June 1994
Gary Bist
The Effects of Screen Captures in Manuals: A Textual and Two Visual Manuals Compared 187
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-42(2) June 1999
Mark Gellevij, Hans van der Meij, Ton deJong, and Jules Pieters
The User Edit: Making Manuals Easier to Use 202
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-24(1) March 1981
Marshall A. Atlas
PART V Proposals: Writing to Win the Customer
Fifteen Questions to Help You Write Winning Proposals 207
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-26(2) June 1983
T. M. Georges
The Short Proposal:Versatile Tool for Communicating Corporate Culture in Competitive Climates 208
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-32(2) June 1989
Bernard E. Budish and Richard L. Sandhusen
Technical Writing and Illustrating Strategies for Winning Government Contracts 213
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-28(2) June 1992
Robert B. Greenly
Storyboarding Can Help Your Proposal 219
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-32(1) March 1989
Robert A. Barakat
Developing Winning Proposal Strategies 225
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-34(3) September 1991
Robert A. Barakat
Clarification Questions That Work 235
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-31(2) June 1988
Annette D. Reilly
Proposals: Write to Win 238
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-26(2) June 1983
Clark E. Beck
Broadening Employment Horizons:Transferring Proposal Writing Skills from For-Profit to Nonprofit Organizations 240
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-39(2) June 1996
Sherry Shebley Hamilton
PART VI Revising and Editing: Refining Your Documents
Theory and Practice of Editing Processes in Technical Communication 247
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-28(1) March 1985
Roger E. Masse
When the Basics Aren’t Enough: Finding a Comprehensive Editor 256
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-37(3) September 1994
Laurel K. Grove
Collaborative Writing in the Workplace 260
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-32(3) September 1989
Charles R. Stratton
Reverse Engineering: The Outline As Document Restructuring Tool 265
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-29(3) September 1986
Dietrich Rathjens
How Writing Helps R&D Work 271
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-30(2) June 1987
Herbert B. Michaelson
The Paradox of Revision: A Study of Writing as a Product in the Revision of Manuals 271
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-39(1) March 1996
Alice I. Philbin and Melissa M. Spirek
Online Editing: Mark-Up Models and the Workplace Lives of Editors and Writers 279
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-38(3) June 1995
David K. Farkas and Steven E. Poltrock
PART VII Oral Presentations: Speaking Effectively to Groups
A Quick and Easy Strategy for Organizing a Speech 289
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-33(3) September 1990
Richard A. Lindeborg
A Good Speech is Worth a Thousand (Written) Words 293
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-27(1) March 1984
Bert Decker
The Engineering Presentation—Some Ideas on How to Approach and Present It 296
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-26(4) December 1983
Ronald C. Rosenburg
Authenticity Beats Eloquence 299
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-30(2) June 1987
Susan Dressel and Joe Chew
Handling a Hostile Audience—With Your Eyes 301
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-32(1) March 1989
Gilda Carle
Improving Oral Marketing Presentations in the Technology-Based Company 304
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-31(2) June 1988
Michael F. Warlum
Illustrations in Oral Presentations: Photographs 308
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-41(3) September 1998
Thomas Walsh
Producing a Video on a Technical Subject: A Guide 312
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-36(2) June 1993
Danny Dowhal, Gary Bist, Peter Kohlman, Stan Musker, and Heather Rogers
PART VIII Listening, Meeting, and Teamwork:Working with Others to Get Results
You Haven’t Heard a Word I Said: Getting Managers to Listen 323
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-37(1) March 1994
Jo Procter
Becoming an Effective Listener 326
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-23(2) June 1980
Marion E. Haynes
Toward Better Meetings: A Psychologist’s View 330
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-24(3) September 1981
Eugene Raudsepp
Presenting the Successful Technical Seminar 333
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-26(1) March 1983
Thomas Ealey
Project Characteristics and Group Communication: An Investigation 336
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-45(2) June 2002
Tom L. Roberts, Paul H. Cheney, and Paul D. Sweeney
Between Silence and Voice: Communicating in Cross-Functional Project Teams 351
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-34(1) March 1991
Linda Loehr
A Dialogue Technique to Enhance Electronic Communication in Virtual Teams 357
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-43(2) June 2000
Bernard C. Y. Tan, Kwok-Kee Wei, Wayne W. Huang, and Guet-Ngoh Ng
Videoconferencing as a Communication Tool 370
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-40(1) March 1997
Jan A. Sprey
PART IX Global Communication: Conveying Meaning Internationally
World Language Status Does Not Ensure World Class Usage 379
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-35(1) March 1992
Joann T. Dennett
English Language Education for Specific Professional Needs 380
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-44(3) September 2001
Thomas Orr
When Culture and Rhetoric Contrast: Examining English as the International Language of Technical
Communication 385
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-42(4) December 1999
Kirk St. Amant
The Organization of Japanese Expository Passages 389
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-42(3) September 1999
Waka Fukuoka and Jan H. Spyridakis
Measuring the Translatability of Simplified English in Procedural Documents 398
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-40(1) March 1997
Jan H. Spyridakis, Heather Holmback, and Serena K. Shubert
Babel in Document Design: The Evaluation of Multilingual Texts 407
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-43(3) September 2000
Leo Lentz and Jacquelin Hulst
Aligning International Editing Efforts with Global Business Strategies 417
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-35(2) June 1992
Carol Leininger and Rue Yuan
Tackling the Needs of Foreign Academic Writers: A Case Study 425
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-40(1) March 1997
Shimona Kushner
PART X The Internet: Making the Most of Cyberspace
Stylistic Guidelines for E-Mail 433
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-77(4) December 1994
Renee B. Horowitz and Marian G. Barchilon
“Who’s Reading My E-Mail?” A Study of Professionals’ E-Mail Usage and Privacy Perceptions in the
Workplace 439
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-40(1) March 1997
Patricia A. Chociey
Customer Partnering: Data Gathering For Complex On-Line Documentation 446
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-40(2) June 1997
JoAnn T. Hackos, Molly Hammar, and Arthur Elser
Challenges in Developing Research-Based Web Design Guidelines 455
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-43(3) September 2000
Mary B. Evans
The Web and Corporate Communication: Potentials and Pitfalls 466
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-39(1) March 1996
Gary Ritzenthaler and David H. Ostroff
Editing A Web Site: Extending the Levels of Edit 473
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-41(1) March 1998
Steven L. Anderson, Charles P. Campbell, Nancy Hindle, Jonathan Price, and Randall Scasny
Web Accessibility for People with Disabilities: An Introduction for Web Developers 484
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-44(4) December 2001
Jeff Carter and Mike Markel
A Conceptual Framework for International Web Design 493
IEEE Trans. Prof. Comm. PC-44(2) June 2001
Fatemah M. Zahedi, William V. Van Pelt, and Jaeki Song
Index 515
About the Editor 519
