RE: The Origins of Techwriting (WAS:Re: Techwr-1 polls)

Subject: RE: The Origins of Techwriting (WAS:Re: Techwr-1 polls)
From: "Curtis Brautigam" <curtisb -at- nurserysupplies -dot- com>
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Date: Tue, 14 Nov 2000 08:37:34 -0500

I think it would be an interesting project for someone do a history of
technical writing. While it seems that technical writing as a profession is
a rather recent phenomenon, technical writing has been around for a long
time (since the beginning of humanity). I am sure that the early ancient
civilizations (Mesopotamia, Egypt, and China) had technical writing. In
fact, the Bible contains technical writing, with the text giving clear
building specifications:

Noah and the Ark: Genesis 6: 14-16
The Tabernacle: Exodus 25 to 28, 30: 1-6

Whether you believe in the Bible or not, these passages are great reading
when it comes to technical writing. I wonder if any of the Greek and Roman
classics contain technical writing.

Another more recent example of technical writing that I can think of is the
"Encyclopedia" written by the French Enlightenment philosophes (Diderot,
d'Alembert, etc.). It also contains a lot of engineering, scientific, and
technical writing.

Curtis R. Brautigam
Technical Writer
Nursery Supplies, Inc.
Chambersburg, PA.


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Develop HTML-based Help with Macromedia Dreamweaver! (STC Discount.)
**NEW DATE/LOCATION!** January 16-17, 2001, New York, NY.
http://www.weisner.com/training/dreamweaver_help.htm or 800-646-9989.

Sponsored by SOLUTIONS, Conferences and Seminars for Communicators
Publications Management Clinic, TECH*COMM 2001 Conference, and more
http://www.SolutionsEvents.com or 800-448-4230

---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as: archive -at- raycomm -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com
Send administrative questions to ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com -dot- Visit
http://www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.


Previous by Author: RE: Here's why formatting and layout can really matter:
Next by Author: Re: Languages and reality
Previous by Thread: Re: The Origins of Techwriting (WAS:Re: Techwr-1 polls)
Next by Thread: RE: The Origins of Techwriting (WAS:Re: Techwr-1 polls)


What this post helpful? Share it with friends and colleagues:


Sponsored Ads