My Technical Skills Philosophy: Curiosity and Improvisation
Curiosity
Through classes like Writing on the Web and Software Documentation, I’ve come to believe that acquiring a technical ability has less to do with learning a specific software than it does cultivating a curious approach to technology. The truth is, as much as I wish I could snap my fingers and become an expert coder or a power user in PhotoShop, the only way that I can truly acquire these technical skills—and sustain use of these skills, even as technology evolves—is to understand the theories and general processes behind how these programs work. In this way, I should still be able to use RoboHelp to create an online help system five years from now. I'll be able to do this not because I know every technical detail of how RoboHelp works, but because I understand the basic idea of setting up a table of contents and have a knowledge of software documentation practices such as creating user personas, chunking information with effective headings, and designing intuitive content navigation. Thus, curiosity hits on the value of “theory” in the field of technical communication. The purpose of studying the work of theorists such Carolyn Miller and Amy Diehl is so that we can learn to transcend the technical difficulties we experience when the newest software update to Final Cut Pro arrives.
Improvisation
Another valuable lesson that I’ve learned about technical communication is how to improvise with technology and use free or low-cost alternatives to industry standards. The reality is, even if a student is exposed to every high-end Adobe product on the market, there is no guarantee that the employer will be able to provide that student with those same industry-standard tools. As a technical writer, I see it as my job to be flexible and creative and know what tools are right for the job and how I can modify those tools to do other jobs for which I don’t have access to the proper or most professional tools. For instance, I’ve learned how to wrangle PowerPoint to edit photos when PhotoShop is not available and how to use Jing as a screen-capture alternative to the more costly Camtasia.
Connection to Course Work
To demonstrate my ability to use research that utilizes technology to deliver an argument for a specific rhetorical situation, I've chosen to share a website called the New Domestics Collective. To demonstrate my ability to use technology to invent a text and create a usable and professional-looking document, I’ve chosen to share an asset map that shows the location and information related to free and low-cost medical clinics in greater Little Rock. To demonstrate my ability to work collaboratively on a large-scale project, I've chosen to share a WordPress Help System. In sharing my video tutorial designed to help students find articles using the UALR online library database, I demonstrate my ability to implement the principles of multimedia video learning. Finally, to demonstrate my ability to create an effective, visually-appealing presentation with an online presentation software, I've chosen to share a Prezi explaining the writing process.
Through classes like Writing on the Web and Software Documentation, I’ve come to believe that acquiring a technical ability has less to do with learning a specific software than it does cultivating a curious approach to technology. The truth is, as much as I wish I could snap my fingers and become an expert coder or a power user in PhotoShop, the only way that I can truly acquire these technical skills—and sustain use of these skills, even as technology evolves—is to understand the theories and general processes behind how these programs work. In this way, I should still be able to use RoboHelp to create an online help system five years from now. I'll be able to do this not because I know every technical detail of how RoboHelp works, but because I understand the basic idea of setting up a table of contents and have a knowledge of software documentation practices such as creating user personas, chunking information with effective headings, and designing intuitive content navigation. Thus, curiosity hits on the value of “theory” in the field of technical communication. The purpose of studying the work of theorists such Carolyn Miller and Amy Diehl is so that we can learn to transcend the technical difficulties we experience when the newest software update to Final Cut Pro arrives.
Improvisation
Another valuable lesson that I’ve learned about technical communication is how to improvise with technology and use free or low-cost alternatives to industry standards. The reality is, even if a student is exposed to every high-end Adobe product on the market, there is no guarantee that the employer will be able to provide that student with those same industry-standard tools. As a technical writer, I see it as my job to be flexible and creative and know what tools are right for the job and how I can modify those tools to do other jobs for which I don’t have access to the proper or most professional tools. For instance, I’ve learned how to wrangle PowerPoint to edit photos when PhotoShop is not available and how to use Jing as a screen-capture alternative to the more costly Camtasia.
Connection to Course Work
To demonstrate my ability to use research that utilizes technology to deliver an argument for a specific rhetorical situation, I've chosen to share a website called the New Domestics Collective. To demonstrate my ability to use technology to invent a text and create a usable and professional-looking document, I’ve chosen to share an asset map that shows the location and information related to free and low-cost medical clinics in greater Little Rock. To demonstrate my ability to work collaboratively on a large-scale project, I've chosen to share a WordPress Help System. In sharing my video tutorial designed to help students find articles using the UALR online library database, I demonstrate my ability to implement the principles of multimedia video learning. Finally, to demonstrate my ability to create an effective, visually-appealing presentation with an online presentation software, I've chosen to share a Prezi explaining the writing process.
