The Impact of New Technologies on Technical Communication

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• The Impact of New Technologies on Technical
  Communication
• Presented by Victoria Sharpe

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Presentation Overview

• Summary of Impact of New Technologies on
  Technical Communication by Henrietta Shirk
• Reasons it may be difficult for technical
  communicators to keep up with technology

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What is the impact of technology on technical
communication?

• Leading edge vs. lagging edge
• The computer-literate technical communicator
• Electronic pens to assist creativity
• Viewing computers as partners
• Electronic links to facilitate connections
• Electronic web to support collaboration
• Electronic minds to stimulate reality

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Leading Edge vs. Lagging Edge

• For many technical communicators, the task of
  remaining on the leading edge of technology is
  often viewed with apprehension, and they feel
  that they are always lagging behind.
• They feel that there are too many technologies to
  learn, which is often being updated or replaced
  with still newer technology

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The Computer-Literate Technical
Communicator

• Common assumption that technical communicators
  are technically literate because we communicate
  about technical subject matters
• Two different kinds associated with computer
  literacy for technical communicators

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Two Types of Computer Literacy for Technical
Communicators

• Verbal Literacy
• word processing
• desktop publishing

• Visual Literacy
• color
• perspective
• typography
• page and screen layouts

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Computer Technologies as Beneficial in Helping
Technical Communicators Fulfill Job
Responsibilities

• 1. Extended Memory Storage
• Disks, CD-ROMS, and WORMs
• 2. Design Assistant-Visualization
• Graphic scanners, printers, and light pens
• 3. Media Manipulator-Recorder
• Capture playback mechanisms such as audio, video,
  and animation
• 4. Information Facilitator
• Communication tools such as modems, fax machines,
  and satellites

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Software to Support Technical Communicators
During the Writing Process

• 1. Planning assistant during pre-writing
• Audience analyzers, idea generators, outline
  processors, and project scheduling programs
• 2. Writing Tool Provider
• Word processors, graphic packages, bibliography
  generators, and electronic thesauruses
• 3. Change/Revision Agent in Editing
• Spell and grammar checkers, writing style
  analyzers, and editing response programs
• 4. Professional Publishing
• Desktop publishing tools, presentation programs,
  and hypertext and hypermedia

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Electronic Pens to Assist Creativity

• Computers allow technical communicators to write,
  edit, and create graphics and page layouts more
  quickly, to publish documents with professional
  appearance
• These technologies engage the user in creative
  space of a computer environment

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Common Misconceptions Concerning Electronic Pens

• Computers will do professional work for technical
  communicator
• Computers will do work better than technical
  communicators are able to do it

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Viewing Computers as Partners

• Use computers to assist in writing more
  effectively
• Use electronic links to facilitate connections
• Use electronic webs to support collaboration
• Use electronic minds to stimulate reality

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Electronic Links to Facilitate Connections

• Understand new communication methods, such as the
  ability to link texts, graphics, animation, and
  electronic sound and video
• Redefine our perceptions of audience
• Revision the interactivity of communication
• Confront the realities of electronic link
  technologies and how time consuming and labor
  intensive they are
• Develop a whole range of skills that have not
  traditionally been part of the profession

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Electronic Web to Support Collaboration

• Both hardware and software to support
  collaboration is being developed to allow us to
  work at home and connect with teams and then use
  software products that assist the whole team in
  the collaborative process

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Drawbacks to Electronic Collaboration

• Concern with results from lack of contact with
  collaborator
• All team members must commit to collaborate
  electronically

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Electronic Minds to Stimulate Reality

• Idea of electronic minds began with artificial
  intelligence and has now taken the form of expert
  systems, virtual reality, neural networks, and
  simulations.
• As technical communicators, we can lend our
  interviewing and observational skills to this
  software design process.

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Technical Communicators as Contributors to
Electronic Reality

• As interviewers and observers, technical
  communicators must refine their skills to include
  knowledge about cognitive psychology,
  linguistics, and related fields, in order to gain
  an understanding of content information and
  expert problem solving.

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Shirks Recommendations for Technical
Communicators

• Emphasize the fact that technologies are only
  tools in the education and training of technical
  communicators.
• Be aware that these tools do not make better
  technical communicators, but they do make tasks
  easier.

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Why is it so difficult fortechnical
communicators to keep up with technology?

• Workplace budgets for new software
• Lack of time
• Sense of being overwhelmed by it all
• Lack of information regarding new tools available