Reading: Document Design for Technical Writers

I've just begun my last in a series of three classes for an online Technical Writing Certificate with the California State University. This last course is on Information Design, and our textbook is Document Design: A Guide for Technical Communicators by Miles Kimball.

The CSU certificate program has done a really great job of mixing student participation, instructor participation, reading, assignments, and additional resources. It's a great blended learning environment.

I completed reading two and a half chapters as we're already into the third week of this class. But yesterday I took a deeper look into some of the other material that the book covers. I think I'm going to enjoy this textbook--and course!--a lot.

Much of the content in the book will serve as a good reminder/refresher of some of the document design concepts and techniques that I studied, a long time ago, in graphic design and journalism courses in college and post.

This time though, the stretch goal is to use a much more structured and logical approach, as we're applying a lot of the research and knowledge that's been gained in recent years, studying how users process, retain, and prefer to receive information. Good stuff!

The book has a good combination of organization, quick reading sections, and photos/figures to clarify concepts--the section on RGB alone is quite well developed, with enough detail but without going overboard.

A treat is that the course document design focus has more of an application for technical writing and the business world that can be applied across industries. And that's the whole point. Websites, reports, how-tos/guides, and business communications all have personalized audiences and topics, but the standards of good design apply to everything equally.

People nowadays have very little time to make an impression on potential customers or clients. It's important to convey clearly and in the best way possible any communication be it on a web site, email, or printed material.

This three course certificate was a stretch goal for myself, trying to span a bit of a gap I've struggled with since I first started studying about websites and programming in 1998. I've been a fan of techie things since forever and would love to get into IT one day. I may still dabble a little in programming in some courses I may take next. I'll see.

This certificate program has done much to reveal some personal and professional gaps that I can fill, and all around, it has been a great learning opportunity. I'm glad I have taken this up.

Researching: Tablets

After owning an iPad 2.0 and a Kindle Fire 1.0 I'm now researching the latest tablets to determine whether I want to get a new one or stay with my Kindle Fire. Then there's always the burn: my mom got a Kindle Fire HD and it has a camera. A. CAMERA. Yes. It's on! ;oP

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET) from Cnet Buying Guide
I just liked the club sandwich, it's one of my faves ^_^

I owned an iPad 2.0 from 2011 to 2012. I gave up on it because it didn't have the functional heft I expected, and I hated burning my hands/lap when it overheated (which was all the time). Sure, it's got the amazing, Apple user intuitive (pictograph) UI that we all have grown to love and admire, but no multiple tabs, no gesture typing/Swype keyboard, and lots of Apple bloatware.

Rather than keep getting irritated, and going back to my MacBook Pro to get anything done, I gave my iPad to the significant other unit. I began holding a raging slight grudge w folks who show off Apple products for looks or to look hip. I like function and form, and mostly, making my life easy, not using devices to make a social statement or for fitting in. /rantover

I discovered Gazelle and sold one of my two 3Gs iPhones (the one that still worked, sort of) and relished the little bit of cash I got--and told the significant other unit his iPad could be sold there if he wanted some moolah. Instead, he traded in his iPad 2.0 to Apple for an iPad 3.0. He's been very happy with it since...

In late summer 2012 one of the two SCRUM certification classes I attended offered a Kindle Fire (KF) 1.0 as an incentive. I had been using the Kindle app on my iPhone 3GS and then my Droid Charge phone when I switched, and also on my iPad and MacBook Pro.

I immediately loved the KF. You turn it on, personalize it with your Kindle login, and you're done! No instruction booklet, nothing to confuse the user. Its small size and portability,  as well as the black, slightly rubberized surface were huge bonuses. You can surf the net using the Wi-Fi connection, and download apps to keep in the carousel for easy access. Best of all, long battery life and no overheated surface.

So now, almost a year into owning my KF, I'm very happy. Why read up on new tablets then? To see what else has come along.

It's important to read up and narrow down your search for information based on particular features that you're looking for. There is A LOT to read on tablets out there.

My reading is already focused on a few specs:

• devices with the Samsung Swype keyboard or the Android Gesture Typing
• not sure what size I want, but I know I like lighter weight tablets
• easy UI
• good video (I watch a lot of YouTube lately)
• battery life is also important
• do I want a camera? Not really, I have two cameras (Sony and Nikon) and my smartphone.
• I'm an Amazon Prime member so Amazon will have a slight advantage in my reviews.

I have several resources I am tracking to learn more about tablets in general, and for those narrowed down specs I mentioned above. I hope these help.

Additional reading and resources to research tablets:

• Consumer Reports tablet buying guide 
• CNet tablet buying guide/Tablet Reviews/best tablets
• PCMag find a tablet
• ZDnet Best Android Tablets (July 2013) [thanks +Mike Kruzel]
• eWeek 10 Hot Tablets
• Wiki Swype page and Swype Competitors section
• TechTree.com: Google Keyboard Hits The Play Store, Features Gesture Typing
• Google Nexus tablet device comparison page
• Samsung Galaxy tablet page

Vine vs. Instagram Video

Instagram just implemented video, I haven't tried it yet, but am reading up on the differences between it and Vine.

Check out this great article from CNet titled Instagram vs. Vine: Battle of the Short-Form Video-Sharing Apps (try saying that three times fast!). CNet feels that Vine is buggy, and Instagram walks away the champion, in this comparison.

Another great article is at Forbes, Illustrated Guide to Using Instagram Video.

Programming Principles for Life

I was reading a post on Google's Official Blog and learned about Google's g2g and I2P programs.

The blog post (Finding the inner programmer in every Googler) is written from the perspective of an HR employee who was able to learn Python to make a process faster and more efficient. He didn't know programming, but he taught himself in order to achieve his goal. After folks learned about what he did, they wanted him to teach them how to code as well. This is how Google's I2P developed.

Here's the quote that hits the nail on the head, a list of principles which are from programming but that can apply to a variety of situations in life:

"If you’re interested in learning how to code, here are three tips from the course that you can practice on your own. While I’ve learned these principles via programming, they can be helpful in all kinds of fields!

• Practice and theory. You learn best when you have something to apply your learning to. With programming, find a project you want to apply your skills to and build the knowledge necessary to accomplish your project. 
• Bad habits die hard. If you are writing messy or convoluted code, you are building habits that will be very hard to break. Better to overcome the pain of doing it the right way initially so that you never have to go back and change. 
• Get feedback. Just because a script "works" doesn't mean it works well. Always get advice from others with more experience so that you are learning how to do things better, not just sufficiently well."