TECM 4180 Dr. Lam

 What a knowledge base is…  How to conduct interviews…  The difference between data, information, and knowledge…  What information architecture is…

 Technical style  Structured articles  Technology options

 Text CHRISLAM138 to 22333

 16% of readers read word-for-word (Nielsen, 1997)  79% of users always scanned web content  So…technical style on the web is technical style on steroids.

 Conciseness – shorter is almost always better  Clarity – language that is easier to understand is almost always better than complex language  Elevated language: Ambulation deters cardiac arrest.  Clear language: Walking helps prevent heart attacks.  Chunking – information that is grouped is almost always better than information that is ungrouped  Plain/Objective language – language that tries to inform rather than sell is often better received

Technical Style PrincipleStrategies Conciseness Use bulleted lists Use about half the word count Active voice sometimes… Clarity Use the inverted pyramid style (conclusion first) Keep it to ONE idea per paragraph Chunking Use meaningful sub-headings Highlight and hyperlink keywords Plain/Objective language Avoid elevated language (overuse of adjectives)

 Download the document labeled “technical-style-practice”  Rewrite and reorganize the article using the C3pO method.

1. Self-contained – reader can accomplish the purpose of the article without the aid of any other article. 2. Limited purpose – Scope and purpose is specific and limited. 3. Have a overarching type: task, concept, or reference  But tasks can have both concepts and references. 4. Structured – have a consistent “macro-structure” depending on the type of article

What article type are the following (task, concept, refrence)?     

 Let’s look at some examples:  roses/?internalSource=staff%20pick&referringContentType=home %20page roses/?internalSource=staff%20pick&referringContentType=home %20page  meatballs/?internalSource=staff%20pick&referringContentType=h ome%20page meatballs/?internalSource=staff%20pick&referringContentType=h ome%20page

 Title  Rule: Verb phrase in audience language  Description or Task overview  Rule: Reader knows exactly what they’ll get by the end of the article.  Procedure  Rule: Numbered list outlining the procedure  Troubleshooting section  Additional support 

 Come up with a macro-structure in the previous coffee article example. For each major section put the description of the section in parentheses.

 For each type of article you have in your Knowledge base, come up with a specific structure.  At a minimum, there must be at least 3 structures: task, concept, and reference.  Use visual design to enable your structure  Headings for each section  Repeat visual cues (same layout, font sizing, colors, spacing) for specific articles  User should know what they’re reading without actually reading

1. Wiki or website builder  PBWorks – formerly PB wiki  Google sites has several wiki templates. Google even has a knowledge base template.  Wordpress is a blogging software 2. Build in from scratch HTML/CSS (not recommended) 3. Other WYSIWYG option (Not recommended!)  Wix, dreamweaver, weebly

1. Take the architecture you came up w/ from your card sort. 2. Attempt to categorize each major article as a task, concept, or reference 3. Write one article for each 4. Come up with macro-structure and rules for each article type.