Pre-Class Friday Compare the new Lego kits to the older ones from last year. List one advantage and one disadvantage to the newer NXT kits?

Technical Writing communicates complicated levels of knowledge in understandable language

More about technical writing  One of the most widely read form of communication (e.g. “How to” guides)  Applicable to technical, business, and educational fields  Provides a message that is clear, concise, and helpful to readers

Before starting, consider:  How well do I know the subject?  Who is the main audience for this information?  What is the purpose of this document?  For what occasion is it written?

Content  Rule #1 Know your subject. In other words, if you are not an expert in the content, then you cannot write an effective technical document.  You cannot change this part of your writing…facts are facts.

Audience  Rule #2 Know for whom you are writing the document.  This has the biggest impact on how you write your document. What do they know of the topic? What would interest them the most? What questions would they ask on this topic if they could?

Purpose  Rule #3 Know the end before you begin.  The document should be logically structured from start to finish.  This directly affects your style conveying information.

Occasion  Rule #4 Know where the document will go.  This determines the type of document: Lab report Proposal Technical publication  This will directly affect the layout of the document.

Pre-Class Monday In writing a technical document, there are 4 things to consider before beginning. Give me one of them and explain why it is important to the technical document.

Let’s look at some…   y/EngJournal.aspx?id= y/EngJournal.aspx?id=7806 

Practice Writing Technically  Read the problem from the 2007 AP Physics: Mechanics test.  An announcement is to be made on the intercom to the entire school.  It is Science Week, so each day will have a new scientific invention or experiment emphasis.  The announcement will be read by someone who is not taking or has never taken AP Physics.