English 421Y: Technical Writing Online

While I was reading Chapter Three, I realized that it is just as important to understand the audience that you are writing to then anything else. I thought that there are very good charts (like the Reader Analysis and Context Analysis charts) that a writer can use to evaluate the type of audience that you they are performing for. I also thought that it was unique to learn that there are so many different types of audiences that you can write for. If you break this down and really think about it, there are so many different types of people that you can write for.

According to Chapter 3, entitled Readers and Contexts of Use, from Technical Communications Today, one of the most important aspects of technical writing is an understanding and appreciation of the reader. To fully accomplish this, the writer is advised to make preparations by completing both Reader Analysis and Context Analysis charts. Such preparations will provide countless benefits, including a stronger and more persuasive technical document.

Typically when I'm writing technical papers,these issues, discussed in chapter three, are what are constantly on my mind. A lot of the ideas seemed quite intuitive, specifically the section containing the context analysis chart. For example, a hypothetical situation in which a factory is proposing a budget plan revolving around toxic waste expulsion from their plant.

The focus of chapter 3 was on understanding your readers and how they will use your content. The chapter contained a couple charts that can be used to properly identify your audience. One of these charts included three key items when considering a reader’s perspective. These three items are needs, values and attitudes. It is important to know what type of needs your audience has to know how to better address them. Knowing your audience’s values will help you to better understand how important they think your topic is.

After reading Chapter 3 – Readers and Contexts of Use from Technical Communications Today, it is clear that this excerpt covers various writing strategies for accommodating the various types of readers that may encounter one’s literary work. One of the most important points is that technical communication is best presented by considering the readers first. Although this suggestion is rather common, it’s also seems common for people neglect to consider their audience when communicating information.

The importance of considering your audience when writing is presented in this week's assigned reading, “Chapter 3 – Readers and Context of Use,” from Technical Communication Today.

When I read it I couldn’t help thinking, "I already know that!" But if I'm honest with myself, I know most of the time I don't think that way when I'm writing.

The topic discussed in Chapter 3, Readers and Contexts of Use, was the need to know your readers. The author began the section by explaining a way of profiling your readers. He suggests using the Five W and How Questions to define the readers along with using a series of guidelines that suggest what to include when writing to them. The author also incorporates some useful information on using search engines showing that with the addition of a few symbols a search can greatly be defined.

In chapter three, the author offers many pieces of advice to consider about audiences in writing. The main point stated by the author is to know the different types of audiences that will be reading your work. While there is an audience that will (hopefully) definitely read your work, there are also additional audiences that may or may not read it. Technical pieces should be focused on the main or primary audience that the piece is intended for, but they should also be understandable for other groups that may read them. Another point the author made about audience is cultural differences.

Chapter 3 of Readers and Context of Use shows how useful knowing your audience can be in your writings. By doing a little research and planning ahead of time, it can make your writing much more understandable and effective in getting your goals across. The reading also points out the importance of thinking about all your potential readers and not only focusing on the primary audience.

Chapter Three, Readers and Contexts of Use, stresses that knowing your readers is very essential to communicate successfully when using technical communication. Another important point from this chapter is that the writer needs to realize who will be reading their document and how to present their information to those types of people.