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.
Elizabeth Bailey wrote "One of the best methods for efficiently
disseminating information to others is in the form of Frequently Asked
Questions or FAQs."
But mostly, FAQs are NOT Frequently Asked at all! Usually they are
hints and tips that some technical writer considers not adequately
covered or not sufficiently accessible elsewhere in the documentation.
If the list of FAQs is generated from Help Desk statistics, then they
are truly FAQs. Otherwise, please call them something else.
Our craft depends upon having a language with consistent meanings and
interpretation, and our credibility depends upon our truthfulness and
reliability. Please let's not distort our use of language, nor use
untruthful names for our lists of hints (nor for anything else, I
guess).
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Peter Collins, VIVID Management Pty Ltd,
26 Bradleys Head Road, MOSMAN 2088, Australia
+61 2 9968 3308, fax +61 2 9968 3026, mobile +61 (0)18 419 571
Management Consultants and Technical Writers
email: peter -dot- collins -at- bigfoot -dot- com ICQ#: 10981283
web pages: http://www.angelfire.com/pe/pcollins/
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