Re: Resources for learning Structured Writing?

["Stuart Burnfield" <slb -at- westnet -dot- com -dot- au>]

From: "Janoff, Steven" 
> In following up on the recent thread regarding migration to DITA:
> it became clear that whether or not one migrates to DITA,
> learning the skill of structured writing is a good idea.

> Therefore: Does anyone know of any good resources for learning this
skill?

Developing Quality Technical Information: A Handbook for Writers and
Editors, 3rd Edition
http://www.ibmpressbooks.com/store/developing-quality-technical-information-a-handbook-9780133118971

Chapters 3, 5, 9 & 10 are the most apt for structured writing and
DITA, but the rest of the book contains plenty of good general advice
for TWs.

DITA Best Practices: A Roadmap for Writing, Editing, and Architecting
in DITA
http://www.ibmpressbooks.com/store/dita-best-practices-a-roadmap-for-writing-editing-and-9780132480529

I haven't read this one myself but by the same people as DQTI and it
sounds pertinent:
"... three DITA pioneers offer the first complete roadmap for
successful DITA adoption, implementation, and usage.

Drawing on years of experience helping large organizations adopt DITA,
the authors answer crucial questions the âofficialâ DITA documents
ignore, including: Where do you start? What should you know up front?
What are the pitfalls in implementing DITA? How can you avoid those
pitfalls?

The authors begin with topic-based writing, presenting proven best
practices for developing effective topics and short descriptions
Next, they address content architecture, including how best to set up
and implement DITA maps, linking strategies, metadata, conditional
processing, and content reuse. Finally, they offer âin the
trenchesâ solutions for ensuring quality implementations, including
guidance on content conversion. "

--- Stuart


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Read about how Georgia System Operation Corporation improved teamwork, communication, and efficiency using Doc-To-Help | http://bit.ly/1lRPd2l

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

You are currently subscribed to TECHWR-L as archive -at- web -dot- techwr-l -dot- com -dot- 

To unsubscribe send a blank email to
techwr-l-leave -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com


Send administrative questions to admin -at- techwr-l -dot- com -dot-  Visit
http://www.techwhirl.com/email-discussion-groups/ for more resources and info.

Looking for articles on Technical Communications?  Head over to our online magazine at http://techwhirl.com

Looking for the archived Techwr-l email discussions?  Search our public email archives @ http://techwr-l.com/archives