INF 130 - Social Informatics

1. Identify the major components of technical communications
   1. Identify digital and human components of technical communications.
   2. Describe roles played by technical communicators
   3. List characteristics of effective technical communications.
   4. Prepare an effective technical document.
2. Analyze a technical documents purpose and audience
   1. Identify ways to deal with audience resistance to a technical document
   2. Develop a plan to gather responses to a technical issue and outline ways to deal with the responses.
3. Identify ethical issues related to technical communications documents
4. Outline the major steps in the research process.
   1. Discuss how to achieve adequate depth in the research process
   2. Explain tools used to interpret research findings.
   3. Discuss primary versus secondary sources and how to properly document them
5. Outline steps for evaluating and interpreting technical information
   1. Identify the importance of knowing the source, evidence and findings.
   2. Discuss ways to avoid distorted or unethical findings
   3. Discuss the impact of audience and culture on research findings.
6. Identify techniques for summarizing research findings and complex information.
   1. Discuss special types of technical summaries and explain why they are needed.
   2. Discuss ethical and global considerations when summarizing information
7. Identify different types of work place documents including: storyboarding, paragraphing, sequencing and chunking
8. Discuss editing for professional style and tone
   1. Edit a technical document for clarity.
   2. Edit a technical document for conciseness.
   3. Edit a technical document for fluency.
9. Identify techniques for designing visual information presentations
   1. Discuss when to use visuals and how to choose the right visual.
   2. Identify guidelines for using tables, graphs, charts, graphics, photographs and videos
   3. Explain how to properly obtain and cite visuals
   4. Discuss ethical and cultural issues related to the use of visuals
10. Analyze page design for a work place document
    1. Discuss guidelines for shaping, styling, emphasizing, using headings and proper orientation
    2. Discuss design in the context of digital documentation
11. Identify steps for designing and testing digital documents for usability
12. Discuss professional and ethical issues related to business email, on line chat, office memos, and work place letters
13. Discuss technical definitions, descriptions, specifications, and marketing material
    1. Identify different types of technical definitions and situations requiring them
    2. Identify different types of technical descriptions and situations requiring them.
    3. Identify different types of technical specifications and situations requiring them.
    4. Identify different types of technical marketing material and situations requiring them.
14. Identify formats for instructional documents and guidelines for developing them.
    1. Discuss digital, online and video instruction
    2. Evaluate the usability of an instructional document
15. Identify different types of informal reports including: trip reports, feasibility reports, expense reports, recommendation reports, justification reports, and peer review reports.
16. Explain the importance of Analytical Reports and Proposals and outline techniques for using them effectively
17. Discuss legal and ethical issues related to the use of web pages, blogs, wikis, and social networks