July 11th: Word Choice and Effective Documents for Users

Make sure you start reading I, Robot this weekend...

Overview for Today

Of course, we always stick to what we're doing, so here's a roadmap:

• Prose Revision Assignment (3 paragraphs)

• Tebeaux and Dragga Ch. 4 & 7

• Text and Subtext
• Tebeaux and Dragga Ch. 5 & 10

Chapter 4 in Tebeaux and Dragga

As I mentioned, these two chapters are foundational chapters--they have basic information on revision and types of documents used for communication. Our class activities cover a good portion of the chapters, but we're not going page by page reviewing each detail. Of course, you are suppose to read, and reading is good for your Midterm and Final Exams.

I do want us to focus on a couple of places in Ch. 4, so pull out your books and let's illuminate the following:

• p. 49--Style is specific to the preferences of an organization, so organizational culture will determine style
• p. 49--Conciseness (or concision) vs. Brevity
  • Concise: "An organization's culture guides its style preference."
  • Brevity: "Org culture prefers specific style."
• p. 51--Characteristics of good and bad writing
  • Really, we should say "effective" and "ineffective writing."
  • What's the purpose of technical writing?
• pp. 59-61--Word choices for clear, concise prose.
  • Why are those words under "business jargon" on p. 61?
• Obviously, we'll refer to Ch. 4 over the next few days, but Ch. 7 is one that should be in your minds throughout the semester. We won't go page-by-page (unless I think there wasn't enough reading...), but we will address the concerns Ch. 7 brings up throughout the term.

Chapter 7 Tebeaux and Dragga

I also want us to focus on a couple of places in Ch. 7, so pull out your books and let's illuminate the following:

• pp. 134-136--Tone doesn't carry well in e-mail because the reader doesn't have voice or body language cues.
  • A brief acting lesson...
• p. 136--Good list of questions for thinking (critically) about audience and purpose.

Text and Subtext

I want us to start thinking about implicit communication, the communication conveyed outside of standard language. Whenever we approach a communication situation, we have a priori ideas about a speaker/author based on previous assumptions. Also, sometimes a speaker communicates a message he or she did not necessarily intend, but the context creates the meaning for the listener. Sometimes the speaker is trying to be subtle about an implicit communication (e.g., You're a "really" good dancer).

Based on our discussion of assumptions, culture, and experiences, consider the following communication acts and discuss with a neighbor the subtext of the communication. The text is there, but the context clues might present different subtextual meaning(s). Try to discover the subtle, subtextual message/s in the communications. The rows below correspond to the class rows:

• Rows 1 and 4
  
• Rows 2 and 5
• Rows 3 and 6

Writing For the User

These next few days will get us thinking about traditional technical communication documents--instructions or sets of procedures. You already have a set of instructions assignment on how to upload a webpage for UNCC students, but you'll also have a portfolio assignment called Set of Instructions, which we'll go over soon.

For now, though, please check out this webpage on writing for the user and Ch. 5 and 10 in Tebeaux & Dragga.

Per usual, I expect this will carry over to next class.

Homework and Future Work

We'll continue these lessons if we haven't finished them tomorrow. Read Ch. 5 & 10 in Tebeaux & Dragga.

Your Prose Revision assignment (three paragraphs) is due on Monday (7/15).

Make sure you start reading I, Robot this weekend...