Technical Writing Digest

News, articles and memes are right here to help you learn something new!

Technical Writers in Outer Space

Technical writers are everywhere. You might not see them, but the results of their work are omnipresent. Every piece of equipment you use, every tool is created according to technical documents written by someone. Even the jobs you take have documentation that holds their processes together. Technical writers can be found in outer space, too! Well, not literally. But the fact that we even have access to outer space is due to their diligent work. Working for NASA is a dream job for many. Today we will talk about how you can become a space writer!

Experience in Google Season of Docs 2019 with Apache Airflow

The author of the article came across Google Season of Docs (GSoD) almost by accident, thanks to his extensive HackerNews and Twitter addiction. He was familiar with the Google Summer of Code but not with this program.

It turns out it was the inaugural phase. He read the details, and the process felt a lot like Google Summer of Code (GSoC) except that this was about documentation.

Notes on Technical Writing

Over the past year, Marcus Kazmierczak has worked on and off documentation for WordPress. Marcus started contributing during a freeze around launch to help developers transition to the new platform. Marcus found writing documentation is something he enjoys, plus rewarding to help and educate people.

In this time, he has read various resources on technical writing and documentation. These are his notes, both to help him remember later, but also as a tool to help him think about writing now.

Automating Diagram Generation from Text

Within Mastercard, the team has the regular need to create sequence diagrams. These diagrams are used within documentation, both internally and externally, as a tool to communicate the architecture of a software system. They can be used to describe both the internal workings of a system, and also its interactivity with other external systems. In this article, Paul Bland tells us what diagrams is better for documentation and why.