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Vester wrote:
//I love it.
//Further to that: in my experience, many (but certainly not all) Technical
//"writers" who are not degreed in the profession, and/or who simply drifted
//into it from some other profession, are lousy writers who do not
understand
//the basic precepts of grammer, syntax, punctuation, style . . .you name
it.
//They embarrass the profession and the companies they work for and take up
//job slots for which qualified professionals are hungry and deserving. I'm
//for certification, if for no other reason than to keep the bar raised high
//enough to filter these rascals out. There, I've said it and I feel much
//better.
Well Vester, you said a mouthful, and a pretty vile one at that.
I am one of those "writers" who simply drifted into technical writing from
some other profession. I have found through experience that it is far easier
to train a good technician to be a good technical writer (provided of
course, the basic language skills are present) than it is to teach someone
who has an academic background the technical knowledge required to be a
decent technical writer. I have yet to have the opportunity to work with
someone who has a degree in technical writing and while I applaud the
concept, I certainly hope that the majority of "degreed professionals" in
this field don't suffer from the same intellectual flatulance that you seem
to be afflicted with.
People who hold the elitist attitude you do tend to place more importance
on their wallpaper than they do on their ability to understand the
technologies they are required to write about. No one who has the need to
use the manuals that we produce gives a damn about your degrees or the
quality of your prose - they are interested in the information in the
manual. Your arrogance towards the qualifications of your collegues
embarrasses me. I thank god I don't suffer the misfortune of having to work
with you.
