There are not many free technical writing ebooks on the Internet that cover a wide range of questions. Nowadays, technical writing is a complex phenomenon, it implies not only writing itself but also SEO optimization, using different metrics to improve the content, mobile optimization and much more.
Here, I gathered some fee ebooks on different technical writing tips that are not only about writing.
Responsive Layouts: Getting Started Guide
People are mostly using their smartphones to look something up online real quick nowadays. This means that technical writers should be prepared to answer the challenge of making online documentation responsive. Are you sure your screenshots will fit into iPhone screen nicely and will not produce horizontal scrollbar, which ruins readability?
If you know a little about responsive design, this ebook is a great place to start.
In this ebook, you will find:
- Most popular screen resolutions used by website visitors.
- Easy ways to emulate mobile, tablet and other screen resolutions.
- Free mobile UI validation tools.
- Top 3 mobile experience problems and their solutions.
- Mobile experience do’s and don’ts.
- Introduction to responsive styles.
Technical Writing: Readability and Text Metrics
The main goal of a technical writer is to create user-friendly documentation. In order to do this, you should figure out the level of knowledge of your target audience on the subject in question. When creating documentation for professionals, you need to really go in-depth. If you are writing for novice users, make sure to cover all the key moments and leave out more complicated stuff. But how to be sure that your documentation will be clear for your target audience? Here is where readability and text metrics step in.
In this ebook we will tell you about:
- Why metrics are important in tech writing.
- How to measure the effectiveness of your documentation.
- Top 5 text metrics to consider for user documentation.
- How to review technical documentation.
- Where to get all the necessary metrics.
- And much more!
SEO and Technical Writing
Nowadays, technical documentation is created online for many reasons: users can get access easily via any device, content is more user-friendly, your documentation can be used as a marketing tool.
In this ebook, we’ll talk about the last point — how to get the most SEO effect of your online documentation as software documents and user guides don’t only help convey a technical writer’s ideas to an audience, but also make way to marketing opportunities.
From this ebook you’ll learn:
- SEO tips for technical writers.
- How to use Google Analytics in technical writing.
- Tips on improving your online documentation to make it SEO-friendly.
You can find more ebooks on the ClickHelp website: ClickHelp.
Ann Green, Content Manager at ClickHelp.com — best online documentation tool for SaaS vendors
