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Subject:Re: Engineer to Tech Writer From:Dave Neufeld <Dave_Neufeld -at- SPECTRUMSIGNAL -dot- COM> Date:Fri, 27 Aug 1999 11:19:22 -0700
While getting my Diploma in Electrical Engineering Technology (3 year
program) I always figured that someone must do the writing for all the
technical widgets being developed. I thought it would make a neat
occupation; that's why I'm a technical writer.
I have found, though, that my engineering background and interest biases
what I want to write about.
The more technically challenging the subject and the higher the audience
level, the happier I am. I don't want to write technical manuals for the
consumer market; I want to write for the engineering audience. Specifically,
electronic hardware and telecommunications stuff. I wouldn't be as happy (I
think) writing user guides for video games, word processors, and financial
software packages. I want to be the best at what I can be, and that means
leveraging my background to be a technical writer for companies making high
tech gadgets that only other engineers get to see and play with. It may
bring me close to having an aneurysm trying to quickly wrap my head around
some of the gizmos and schemes the developer's concoct, but it's fun. Well,
maybe not fun, but how about satisfying? Maybe I feel that I'm getting some
mileage out of all those full-time and part-time geek programs I took.
The upside of this is that my engineering background and interest give me a
powerful edge when going for hard-to-place and potentially lucrative jobs in
that type of industry. I believe that a technical writer must have a
comparable background as the minimum required by target audience to use the
product. In my current industry, that's an electrical or computer science
engineering degree/diploma or equivalent.
The downside is that I don't get experience writing for a more general
consumer audience. Writers with an Arts or Journalism background may be
better suited. My specialization potentially shrinks my job market.
I could pontificate further, but I gotta go work now...
David Neufeld
=======================================================================
Technical Publications
Spectrum Signal Processing, Inc.
dave_neufeld -at- spectrumsignal -dot- com
http:\\www.spectrumsignal.com
"no matter where you go..... there you are." -- Buckaroo Banzai
