While we don’t focus heavily on tools, we realize that the tools and techniques of the trade can be important. But that doesn’t mean we’re going to focus on the same old thing!
Here are a few posts on this subject from the past year.
Category Archives: software
Favourite posts from 2011: tools and techniques
Text editors and the technical writer
Text editors. I’m sure that more than a handful of people in our wacky profession don’t see text editors as valuable tools. But for many of us they’re that and more. A good text editor is indispensable.
You might be editing HTML or XML — as I did to get around a problem I had. You might be viewing a shell script or a batch file. You might be perusing some code. Or you might just be taking a peek at a README file or change log to figure out what’s new in an application you’re documenting. Pulling those kinds of files into a word processor is overkill.
And what if you want to embrace your inner geek, and get your hands dirty? Using a text editor is a great way to do that.
Open Source invoicing for consultants, or anyone else
As consultants, something that’s important to both Aaron and myself is getting paid. We enjoy what we do, but job satisfaction doesn’t pay the bills or fund our vices. Obviously, to get paid we need to invoice clients.
Anyone who knows how Aaron and I operate understand that we do quite a bit of our work in the cloud. For the longest time that included using a Web-based, for-pay invoicing application called Blinksale.
Even though we like using Web-based tools, Aaron and I also prefer to have as much of our data in our won hands. On top of that, we’re enthusiastic users of free and Open Source software (FOSS). It not only cuts our costs, but also gives us more flexibility.
Recently, we were looking around for a FOSS invoicing solution. We found a few, and decided to go with one called BambooInvoice.
A public statement of neutrality
At least as far as the tools of our particular trade go. I’ve mentioned it in this space before, and this is my solemn declaration of my position.
Gordon McLean summed it perfectly for me when he wrote:
The tool is not important
And Adam Hyde of FLOSS Manuals expanded on that thought when he told me that he’s found that there’s a lot of tool fetishism in the wacky world of technical communication. I’ve felt that for a number of years, but it took someone from outside of our wacky world to articulate that feeling for me.
I’m not going to go into a long rant about tool and technology fetishism. It’s been done before. Consult your favourite search engine to learn more.
This is coming from a guy who, a decade ago, thought it was FrameMaker or nothing. How times and opinions change … I realize now what I always seemed to know: how you write and publish content pales in importance to the quality of the content itself.
FrameMaker, RoboHelp, Word, OpenOffice.org Writer, Flare, Blaze, AuthorIt, DocBook, DITA, WebWorks. Single sourcing, content-based authoring, component content management. All of them (and many, many other tools, techniques, and technologies) have their uses, their strengths, and their places.
I’m not going to ponder which one is better than another, or which is the best. I’m not going to stress over radical changes to the interface in a new release of a particular app. I’m not going to swoon over the latest fad or fancy in authoring techniques.
Instead, I’m going to do one of the few things that I’m really good at: I’m going to adapt as needed. I’m going to take advantage of my knowledge and experience. I’m going to learn. I’m going to use the right tool and the right techniques for a particular job.
And that’s what works for me.
A quick look at Linux screen capture tools
I don’t have to tell you that a decent (or better) screen capture tool is an essential tool for the technical communicator. While I’m not a big fan of cramming a document full of screen captures, the judicious use of an image can enhance documentation.
Most of us are familiar with the standard Windows screen capture tools (and if you’re not, read this article at the WritersUA site). But what about those of us, like me, who use Linux extensively in their professional and personal lives? Read on.
A little tool fetishism to brighten your day
Adobe’s released version 9 of FrameMaker. There are a lot of new features in this version including improved book functions, better PDF output, an improved user interface, and better support for DITA.
What’s interesting, and timely, is how Adobe’s positioning FrameMaker 9.0. When you browse to the FrameMaker page at the Adobe Web site, take a look at the SEO in your browser’s title bar. Frame 9 seems to be intended as a complete XML and structured authoring environment.