As technical writers we want to know if the docs we’re writing are accomplishing their goals. In other words, we want to know how good are docs relative to the business goals they’re aiming to support or improve. Are docs serving their purpose? Which of the three budgets are docs supporting? When tech bubbles burst, roles usually seen as cost centers, such as tech writing, are ripe for layoffs, no matter how staunchly we defend them. That’s why we continue mulling over the question of v...| passo.uno
Just when we thought that we wouldn’t be replaced by WriterBot, a mounting concern is ruining many a breakfast: Bad actors could still get hired as technical writers by feeding take-home assignments to ChatGPT and presenting the resulting soliloquy as their own. Nevermind that ChatGPT content is often wrong or trite: Some think that it’d still fool hiring managers. Let me suggest two solutions to this robocalyptic scenario.| passo.uno
There’s been a lot of fuss about ChatGPT, OpenAI’s conversational bot, and its docs capabilities. Some dismissed its skills; others are thinking of selling their possessions and flee to Patagonia. Let’s do something different and entertain a hypothetical scenario where OpenAI will be prepackaged and sold as WriterBot. Let’s suppose it’ll be relatively cheap and easy to run (some deep learning software runs on desktop machines after all). What would happen?| passo.uno
As a technical writer, I often want to know what works and what doesn’t in the docs I’ve released. Oftentimes, I also want to know if the documentation is achieving its purpose. There’s a very good way of getting answers about the quality of your documentation, and that is user research. Analytics or feedback widgets can only get you so far.| passo.uno
Dear software developer, You might have heard about technical writers, those mythical creatures. You might even be working with one. Whatever the case, I’d like to send you advice on how to achieve a healthy work relationship with technical writers so that you can get the best possible documentation for your product.| passo.uno
I get it. It’s hard to read articles about OpenAI’s coding and writing skills without feeling a shiver of neo-luddite panic running down your spine. Especially when one reads passages like the following.| passo.uno