Technical Writing
During the course of the development of my various software package, I've done all of the documentation myself and have written several full length manuals a few hundred pages in length. I find that while the challenge of writing is quite different from the task of software development, I enjoy writing just as much and find the creative process to be similar.
Tools
I'm proficient in using the following writing and publishing tools:
- Adobe FrameMaker
Although FrameMaker is somewhat dated, it is a solid and extremely capable tool for long, highly structured documents such as full length books and user manuals. FrameMaker is not an easy tool to use and it takes some time to get a project off the ground due to its highly structured nature, but once the document framework is set up, it is very efficient and reliable. I consider myself an expert in the use of FrameMaker.
- Microsoft Word
Microsoft Word is a great tool for shorter documents such as reports and memos, but is not the best tool for longer, structured documents such as books and manuals. However, due to the prevalence of Word, I have used it to create long 200+ page documents using the multi-file features. Creating large, complex documents in Word can be frustrating, but it can be done.
- Adobe InDesign
InDesign brings together the ease of use of a tool like Microsoft Word with the robustness and structure of a tool such as FrameMaker. The pieces that I have created with InDesign thus far have tended to be shorter, more design intensive and less structured than the pieces that I have created in FrameMaker. I consider myself a competent beginning user of InDesign.
Portfolio
Below are some examples of my work.
Reference Manuals
Software User Manuals
Marketing and Communications
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