BASICS OF TECHNICAL WRITING MANSOOR AHMED MEMON

BRAINSTORMING:
What is technical writing?
What characteristics do you think distinguish a technical text from a non-technical
one?
CONTENT OF THE LECTURE:
❖What is technical writing?
❖Samples of technical writing
❖What is required for technical writing?
❖Aim of technical writing
❖How technical writing is different from other forms of writing?
❖Characteristics of technical writing
 WHAT IS TECHNICAL WRITING?
1. Technical writing is used to inform, instruct, or direct a
specific audience through maximum clarity and
precision with a specific goal in mind.
2. Technical writing is a form of writing that is
extensively used to prepare manuals, description
of new electronic products, instructions on how to
operate a particular machine, etc.
3. It involves explaining complex technical ideas in
simple terms to the user.
 CONT.
❑It is also used to persuade, the persuasion is indirect
through informing, instructing or directing.
❑It is not based only for particular field. It is based upon
plain style, which is used to make simple direct statements.
❑It is sometimes referred to as business writing because it
is used in a variety of businesses disciplines.
EXAMPLES:
Lab reports Textbooks
Handbooks/training materials Tutorials
Forms and surveys Hiring resources
Government laws Training manuals
Business documents Job description
Contract or guidelines Offer letters
Job applications Most web pages
 WHAT IS REQUIRED FOR TECHNICAL WRITING?
1. Writing process: prewriting, drafting, revision, and
editing are still expected though they may vary slightly.
2. Time/effort: short does not mean easy or fast
3. Strong language skills: grammar, punctuation, spelling,
sentence structure, word choice
4. Research: if you don’t already completely understand
your audience, topic, and purpose. You must thoroughly
research.
TECHNICAL WRITING IS A PROFESSION:
Are you planning to make a career in this field? For
that, you must know the characteristics of technical
writing.
 AIM OF TECHNICAL WRITING
The aim of technical writing is to translate scientific and technical
information in a way that is clear and easy to understand. The
specific information conveyed should be helpful to the reader.
HOW TECHNICAL WRITING IS DIFFERENT FROM
OTHER FORMS OF WRITING?
Other forms of writing Technical writing
Use of flowery words, double Technical writing is different from usual
meaning suggestions and essay writing. People often confuse
explaining the same thing in a technical writing with essay and creative
different way is often found in writing.
essays. Technical write ups are precise and
essentially focus on the subject, which is
explained in the most convincing manner.
Yet the data is concise and the language
used is straightforward.
 CLARITY
It is essential to understands the reader's background and
needs.
1. Making the documentation too technical can confuse the reader.
2. Technical writers always provide a solution to problems.
3. It demands simplicity of language and clarity of expression.
4. One must avoid unnecessary words that may put the readers in
a difficult situation.
5. The written document must be clear and concise so that the text
becomes easier to grasp and understand.
 DESCRIPTIVENESS
1. Electronic products often come with manuals that tell how to
operate it. As the customers may come from a non-technical
background, care must be taken that the manual is not difficult
to understand.
2. Explaining the product in layman's terms is absolutely necessary.
3. Good technical writing conveys ideas in the most effective
manner. A well-written technical document always contains
answers to anticipated problems in the product or application.
This aspect of technical writing is commonly seen in articles that
are related to troubleshooting a particular software or product.
ACCURACY
Accuracy is an important characteristic of any technical
document. A slight mistake can have grave consequences.
For instance, if you forget to mention some important features of a
new mobile phone, the customers may think that there is nothing
special in that phone and will not prefer to buy it.
Effective communication requires quality content and
language that is accurate and readable.
 CORRECTNESS
1. The grammatical structure of your technical document should be
correct and free from any kind of ambiguities.
2. Hence, apart from providing correct technical information,
ensure that the data is grammatically correct.
 FORMAT
The way you present your technical data is also very important from the
user's point of view.
1. Your technical data must be divided into sub heads.
2. For instruction manual, use bulleted format.
3. For sequence of instructions holds priority, one should go for numbered
list.
4. Key points pertaining to precautions or warnings may be emphasized
using bullets.
5. To make data easily accessible, one can give technical specification of
any product in a tabular form.
6. Use graphic images of the product in focus.
CONT.
For technical articles to be effective, it is essential to
implement the aforementioned characteristics of technical
writing. If you follow the above guidelines, the users will
definitely appreciate your technical manuals

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