Technical Writing DSST

Who do you use salutation Miss for?

"Miss" is generally reserved for unmarried women. "

What is the Modified-Block indention format

"Modified" means that the sender's address, date, and closing are significantly indented.

Who do you use salutation Mrs for?

"Mrs." is reserved for married women, and usually only those who have taken their husbands last name. In older conventions

What is the Semi-Block indention format

"Semi-" means that the first lines of paragraphs are indented

Table of Contents is?

- "Contents or Table of Contents" -is a list of the parts of a book or document organized in the order in which the parts appear. -appears after the title page, copyright notices, and, in technical journals, the abstract

Abstract

- An abstract is a summary of a body of information. Sometimes, abstracts are in fact called summaries—sometimes, executive summaries or executive abstracts.

What are the Parts of a letter

- Heading - Inside address - Salutation - Body - Complimentary close - Signature - End notations

What order do you write a Technical Paper?

- Introduction - Findings - Conclusion - Recommendations

6 parts to an INTRODUCTION

- Topic - Purpose and situation - Audience - Overview of contents - Background on topic - Background on the situation

What are some products of writing to instruct?

- a manual for a product (ie a printer)

What is a Technical-background report ?

- the hardest to define but the most commonly written

What salutation is used if the name of the intended recipient is unknown?

-"Dear Sir/Madam" -"Dear Madam/Sir" -"Dear Sir or Madam" -"Dear Madam or Sir" -"Dear Sirs"

What is in a Informally solicited business proposal?

-A description of the seller's capabilities or products -A discussion of key issues -A description of the buyer's specifications and how they will be met -The cost of the offering -A schedule for delivery of the products or services -Proof of prior experience i.e. Testimonials from previous customers, Descriptions of previous projects

What are some things in an Appendix?

-Addendum, any addition to a document, such as a book or legal contract -Bibliography, a systematic list of books and other works -Index (publishing), a list of words or phrases with pointers to where related material can be found in a document

What is a White Paper?

-Corporations use white papers to sell information or new products as solutions that would serve their customers' needs. - is to advocate that a certain position is the best way to go or that a certain solution is best for a particular problem

What are the roles in business Proposal Management?

-Creator - responsible for creating and editing content. -Editor - responsible for tuning the content message and the style of delivery, including translation and localization. -Publisher - responsible for releasing the content for use. -Administrator - responsible for managing access permissions to documents and files, usually accomplished by assigning access rights to user groups or roles. -Consumer or viewer - the person who reads or otherwise takes in content after it is published or shared.

Resumes can be?

-Objective -Detailed -Functional -Thematic

Cover letters Types?

-Objective letters -Highlight letters

What is in a Formally solicited proposal?

-Requirements Matrix, which matches customer requirements with the paragraph and page numbers of where those requirements are addressed in the proposal -Executive Summary, which outlines the primary benefits of the vendors's solutions to the customer's requirements -Technical Volume, which demonstrates how each requirement will be met -Management Volume, which describes how the program will be managed -Cost Volume, which provides all costing data, as well as implementation plans and schedules

What is a Salutation?

-Salutations usually take the form "Dear [recipient's given name]" -is a greeting, in particular a formal greeting used in a letter -Has a style of valediction

What are the 4 ways to end a Business Report

-a summary -a true conclusion -an afterword -and nothing. Yes, it is possible to end a document with no conclusion (or "final section") whatsoever.

Glossary ?

-an alphabetical list of terms -at the end of a book -includes terms within that book which are either newly introduced or at least uncommon

What is a Technical Report or Scientific Report?

-describes the process, progress, and or results of technical or scientific research or the state of a technical or scientific research problem. -also include recommendations and conclusion of the research.

What makes Technical Reports different from scientific journals

-rarely undergo comprehensive independent peer review before publication. -there are no formal publishing procedures for such reports, except where established locally

What do PROPOSALS include?

-technical background, -recommendations -results of surveys -information about feasibility,

Memos have a twofold purpose?

-they bring attention to problems -they solve problems

Describe an IFB

-used by federal, state, and local government agencies -to solicit bids on clearly defined products or services

What is a style of valediction?

-valediction is commonly used in English to refer to a complimentary closing - a courteous, formulaic phrase preceding the writer's signature that expresses the writer's good will toward the recipient.

What is the traditional function of a signature ?

1. The provenance of the document (identity) 2. The intention (will) of an individual with regard to that document

What is a Memo?

A Memo is for ~inner~ communication. You would send a memo to your work colleagues or fellow students/professors from the same school.

How many Appendices can a report or book have?

A document may have more than one appendix.

What is a Letter?

A letter is for ~inter~ communication. You would send a letter to someone from a different company than yours, or a different school, etc.

What's the difference between a Letter and a Memo?

A letter is more formal, requires more address information, politeness, use of titles

Signatures?

A signature (from Latin signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and sometimes stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname or even a simple "X" that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent.

What are Titles?

A title is a prefix or suffix added to a person's name to signify either veneration, an official position or a professional or academic qualification. - for example, Graf in German, Cardinal in Catholic usage or clerical titles such as Archbishop or Ter in the Armenian Apostolic Church)

What is a professional journal?

A trade magazine, or trade rag, also called a professional magazine, is a magazine published with the intention of target marketing to a specific industry or type of trade.

When should abstract be written

Abstracts should be written after a paper is complete so the abstract accurately reflects the paper.

What is a technical description?

An textual account, usually detailed, of the mechanics of all or part of the technology vested in the project.

What are the four indention formats that Business letters generally conform to

Block, Semi-Block, Modified Block, and Modified Semi-Block

What does a Letter and Memo have in common?

Both have a - MAIN POINT (one-three sentences). Then write your supporting details. -EVERYTHING that is relevant. Don't leave things out, but don't put in things that aren't necessary for the Main point. -Your request if there is one -Polite closing -Your initials/signature

What is Conciseness ?

Concision: terseness (Brief and to the point; effectively concise) and economy in writing and speaking achieved by expressing a great deal in just a few words.

Describe an RFP

Effective RFPs typically -reflect the strategy -short/long-term business objectives -provided detailed insight upon which suppliers will be able to offer a matching perspective.

Examples of Numbers in writing

Examples: I rehearsed my presentation three times. The association added 150 new members. One hundred and fifty new members joined the association. We have had over a thousand requests this month.

What is Functional Analysis ?

Functional analysis is the branch of mathematics, and specifically of analysis, concerned with the study of vector spaces and operators acting upon them

What is H-A-T-S

HATS: A Design Procedure for Routine Business Documents

What are Headings ?

Headings are like the parts of an outline that have been pasted into the actual pages of a report or other document

How popular are Instructions as a Technical Report?

Instructions - probably the most familiar of all the types of reports

What is an IFB?

Invitation for Bid

What MAKES a PROPOSAL a Proposal?

It asks the audience to: -approve -fund - or grant permission to do the proposed project. *A proposal is overtly persuasive.*

Business Letters - What are the types - Examples

Job Applicants Cover Letter or Letter of inquiry about a job or opportunity.

What are the two things people send to employers when looking for a job

Letter of Inquiry and Résumé (CV), to an employer for whom they would like to work.

Appendix ?

Located at the end of a formal report, proposal, or other long document, and supplements or clarifies the information in the body of a document

Online résumés

Many employers now find candidates' résumés through search engines, which makes it more important for candidates to use appropriate keywords when writing a résumé.

Who do you use salutation Ms. for?

Ms." is for cases in which the marital status is either unknown to the writer or is irrelevant.

How are numbers represented in documents?

Numbers, when are they spelled out - (1 through 10 are spelled out. Anything after 10 is listed as a number).

What is a schematic?

Picture (of a diagram or other representation) symbolic and simplified.

What Salutation is used for Professionals?

Professional titles such as "Professor" or "Doctor" are often preferred over social title

What should be in the beginning of a report

Readers need a basic orientation to the topic, purpose, situation, and contents of a report

What is a RFP?

Request for Proposals

What is a Technical Report also called?

Scientific report

What is an Introduction in a REPORT for business or technical documents

Should include: -such as what is it about -why was it written -what's it for -for whom it written, -its main contents.

What are Instructions ?

Step-by-step explanations of how to do things: assemble something, operate something, repair something, or do routine maintenance on something.

Conclusions and Recommendations

Summaries, True Conclusions, Afterwards

Tables

Tables, are those rows and columns of numbers and words, mostly numbers. They permit rapid access to and relatively easy comparison of information

Graphs?

Technical writing contains graphics — drawings, diagrams, photographs, illustrations of all sorts, tables, pie charts, bar charts, line graphs, flow charts, and so on

What is a periodical?

The popular periodicals are magazine and newspapers. The scholarly periodicals are found in libraries and databases. Also are Journals

Spell out HATS

The presentation outlines -how to use headings, (information) -access, -typography (fonts), and -space in routine professional documents to promote user-centered communication.

What is Causal Analysis?

The search for the cause or causes of particular events and objects. A causal factor is a variable which causes change in another variable

What is a signatory?

The writer of a signature

What is a Solicited Letter?

You write a solicited letter of inquiry when a business or agency advertises its products or services.

What is an Unsolicited Letter?

Your letter of inquiry is unsolicited if the recipient has done nothing to prompt your inquiry.

What is Jargon?

a vocabulary particular to a place of work

Index?

alphabetical list of all the major topics and sometimes subtopics in a written work

What is Active Voice?

an active sentence, the subject is doing the action. A very straightforward example is the sentence "Steve loves Amy." Steve is the subject, and he is doing the action: he loves Amy, the object.

What is a business Proposal? or PROPOSALS?

an offer or bid to do a certain project for someone

Highlight letters (Cover Letter)?

application letter, the type you do for most technical writing courses, tries to summarize the key information from the resume, the key information that will emphasize that you are a good candidate for the job.

Hybrid résumé

balances the functional and chronological approaches. A résumé organized this way typically leads with a functional list of job skills, followed by a chronological list of employers. The hybrid résumé has a tendency to repeat itself and is, therefore, less widely used than the other two

What are the 2 most common styles of indention for Business Letters

full-block and modified-block

What is different about a Functional Resume?

has separate sections for -work experience -education

What is a technical writer?

is a professional writer who engages in technical writing and produces technical documentation for technical, business, and consumer audiences.

What is Technical drawing?

known as drafting or draughting, is the act and discipline of composing plans that visually communicate how something functions or is to be constructed.

Reverse chronological résumé

lists a candidate's job experiences in reverse chronological order, generally covering the previous 10 to 15 years. Positions are listed with starting and ending dates. Current positions on a résumé typically list the starting date to the present or to the current year. Both are considered acceptable.

Who are Technical reports mainly created for?

often prepared for sponsors of research projects

What are some products of writing to inform?

progress and activity reports

The Descriptive abstract

provides a description of the report's main topic and purpose as well an overview of its contents. It is very short—usually a brief one- or two-sentence paragraph. In this report design, it appears on the title page. In this type of abstract, you don't summarize any of the facts or conclusions of the report.

Informative abstract

provides information from the body of the report—specifically, the key facts and conclusions. To put it another way, this type of abstract summarizes the key information from every major section in the body of the report.

Objective letters (Cover Letter)?

says very little: it identifies the position being sought, indicates an interest in having an interview, and calls attention to the fact that the resume is attached

What is different about a Thematic Resume?

separate sections for -the different areas of your experience -education

What is an executive summary?

sometimes known as a management summary, is a short document or section of a document, produced for business purposes, that summarizes a longer report or proposal or a group of related reports

Which part of a technical paper will most people read fully?

the abstract

There are different kinds of abstracts—your technical report uses two types

the descriptive abstract and the informative abstract. Abstracts are typically 200-250 words

What is in the Final Section or Conclusion of a end of a Business Report

the final section is some combination of the first three ways of ending the document. (Summary, conclusion, afterword)

What are the 3 Sections of a Resume?

the heading, the body, and the conclusion

What is Concision?

the removal or rewording of a wordy sentence to take out unnecessary items.

What is Passive Voice?

the target of the action gets promoted to the subject position. Instead of saying, "Steve loves Amy," I would say, "Amy is loved by Steve." The subject of the sentence becomes Amy, but she isn't doing anything.

What are some products of writing to document?

trouble or trip reports

What is in a Letter of inquiry or Cover Letter for a job?

usually short and to the point, containing only the request and a short introduction with an address, phone number or e-mail address from the sender's side

What are the 2 types of Inquiry Letters?

• Solicited • Unsolicited

the requirements for the informative abstract are

• Summarizes the key facts, conclusions • Usually about 10 percent of the length of the full report • Summarizes the key information from each of the main sections of the report, and proportionately • Phrases information in a very dense, compact way. Sentences are longer than normal and are crammed with information. • Omits introductory explanation, unless that is the focus of the main body of the report. • Omits citations for source borrowings • Includes key statistical detail. One expects to see numerical data in an informative abstract • Omits descriptive-abstract phrasing * presents details of conclusions and recommendations

What are the Types of Technical Reports?

• Technical-background report • Instructions - probably the most familiar of all the types of reports • Feasibility, recommendation, and evaluation reports • Primary research report - aka Lab report • Technical specifications • Report-length proposal • Business plans