TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
In response to Greg Kushmerek's request for opinions on what should be
included in a style guide, I offer the following:
- a chapter on document preparation that covers
. format and document design
. types of documentation (this varies, depending on the organization)
. formatting options (dependent on the DTP software you use)
. fonts, point sizes, and type styles (when to use)
. front matter (items included)
. back matter (items included)
. chapters or sections (tips on organization, etc.)
- a chapter on the body of the document that covers
. designing the document
. creating clear headings
. using running headers and footers
. using lists
. using tables, figures, and examples
. using notes
. using footnotes
- a chapter on uppercase, boldface, italics, and other conventions that covers
. documentation conventions
. terminology conventions
. hyphenation conventions
. numbering conventions
. punctuation conventions
. spelling conventions
- a chapter, if needed, on file naming conventions
- a bibliography of books on technical writing and document design
- and, of course, a terrific index!
(Can't resist an opportunity to put in a plug for indexes!)
Hope this helps.
Lori Lathrop
Lathrop Media Services
Georgetown, CO
(currently on contract assignment at the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Lakewood, CO)
INTERNET:76620 -dot- 456 -at- compuserve -dot- com
or lathropl -at- mail -dot- fws -dot- gov
