English 421Y: Technical Writing Online

I thought the Instructor Blog this week had some very interesting content about designs affecting the usability of the product. As the blog said, “Notice the objections really don’t have to do with how pretty the designs are, the comments have to do with how design actually facilitates or hinders access to the product.” I didn’t really understand what was meant by this until I read the post from the kottke.org website about how difficult the new design makes distinguishing the different Tropicana juices apart.

The technical process that I have chosen to write instructions for is how to prepare and list an item to sell on Ebay. In the instructions, I will include each step that the user will need to take in order to sell an item successfully on the auction site. It is my hope that novice computer and internet users will be able to follow the instructions easily and completely. I also hope that some veteran Ebayers will get some tips and possibly a structure to use for listing that might be a little more efficient and effective than what they are currently using.

The video about Google docs was a good example of instruction because it used such simple language and enforced everything with a visual representation. Many people wouldn’t even realize that there were now 4 copies of a document that they had just sent out as an attachment. But after seeing this video, I’m sure that they could see the problem with using email attachments and the benefits of using Google docs.

Two things:
1) Does the letter seem too redundant?
2) Should I include the address at the top even though it is on my resume already?

I have written several cover letters for my job search but when I was writing them, the instruction that I used came in the form of sample resumes from the Purdue Career Center website. I never thought directly about a lot of the tips that were presented in the readings this week. For example, I never considered including company specifics such as a problem that I could help fix. I also never knew that using a conversational tone in the cover letter was appropriate. It always seemed that the resume had to be so formal, that the cover letter should be so as well.

As was discussed in the instructor’s blog #2, it is so frustrating when you are writing a resume and putting all of this thought and time into it only to have a recruiter spend a maximum of 30 seconds skimming over it. It kind of makes me feel as though it would be impossible to please everyone and it has to do with luck of the draw whether the person that happens to be reading your resume likes the style you have chosen. That being said, I think the most valuable quote on this blog was from the Rockport Institute regarding the selling of a product.

I understand the need for an introduction, body, and conclusion in most documents, especially technical documents. For example, the letter about the O-rings was a perfect situation when points needed to be re-iterated and emphasized several times over. However, in many of my experiences writing memorandums and such documents, the manager reading them has specifically said or implied to ‘cut through the crap and tell me what I need to know so I do not have to read things that are considered fluff’.