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Advanced Technical Authoring training

Armada, In Reading (+1 locations)
Length
2 days
Price
645 GBP excl. VAT
Next course start
5 December, 2024 (+3 start dates)
Course delivery
Classroom, In Company
Length
2 days
Price
645 GBP excl. VAT
Next course start
5 December, 2024 (+3 start dates)
Course delivery
Classroom, In Company

Course description

Advanced technical authoring (2 days)

Teaches further techniques for producing professional standard technical documentation that is clear, concise and successfully meets the needs of users. Sessions cover:

  • Copy editing and proof reading.
  • Business and design standards for technical documentation.
  • Checking document integrity.
  • Graphics.
  • Grammar issues.
  • Editing and writing with others.

    New modules added recently:
  • Writing for Multiple Platforms
  • An introduction to topic-based authoring, XML and DITA.

Self-funders can spread the cost over 12 months, interest-free.

Upcoming start dates

Choose between 3 start dates

5 December, 2024

  • In Company
  • Reading
  • English

3 April, 2025

  • Classroom
  • Bristol
  • English

19 June, 2025

  • Classroom
  • Reading
  • English

Training venue

This Advanced technical authoring training course is hosted at our centres in Bromsgrove (near Birmingham), Bristol and Reading.

For our Bromsgrove courses, we offer a free daily taxi service from Central Birmingham to our training centre.

Delegates can enjoy fantastic facilities at our centres, with lunch and refreshments included.

Suitability - Who should attend?

Delegates should have attended Introduction to technical authoring and Intermediate technical authoring, or have equivalent knowledge.

Outcome / Qualification etc.

Technical authoring e-certificate
Upon completion of the course, delegates receive an e-certificate confirming they have attended and successfully completed Advanced technical authoring training.

Training Course Content

This course typically covers the following topics:

Defining readability

The technical writing process

  • Building readability
  • How people take on information
  • Working with how the brain works

Given/new and readability

  • Given/new – using a universal glossary
  • Structuring for readability
  • Reducing inferential load

Signalling in your document

  • Signalling with headings
  • 3-step process for effective headings
  • Signalling with sentences
  • Customer-focused persuasion

Business and design standards for technical documentation

Standards for technical writing

  • Darwin Information Typing Architecture
  • DITA and XML
  • Company style guides and standards
  • External standards

Types of style guides

  • Example style guide content
  • Creating a style guide
  • Using editorial reference guides

Creating better graphics

Designing the page

  • How readers process technical documents
  • Improving your document’s functionality

Basic rules of graphics

  • Controlling layout with tables and grids
  • Microsoft Word vs DTP software

Page design:

  • Typefaces, fonts, and white space
  • Layout and alignment

Expressing information with graphics

  • Identifying what works as a graphic
  • Getting the right level of detail using, photos, drawings and charts and graphs

Checking document integrity

Formal document structure and templates

  • Headings and the ToC
  • Other tables and lists
  • Checking
  • Captions and graphics
  • References and notes

Online vs print

  • Checklists for print and online
  • Checklist for online

Copy editing and proofreading

  • Marking up proofs
  • Using formal proof correction symbols
  • Checking your text
  • Checklist: proofreading and copy editing

Writing for multiple platforms

Targeting your platforms

  • Size and shape of the screen
  • Using responsive design

How readers scan pages online

  • Identifying what must be written
  • Building the inverted pyramid

Headings, menus, and links

  • 3-step process for effective menus:
  • Menus vs. links
  • Writing links that work

The online hierarchy

  • 4 key criteria for an effective home page
  • Creating transitional and content pages

Accessibility initiatives

  • Basic accessibility guidelines
  • BBC online rules

Grammar issues

Focusing sentences to communicate to the reader:

  • Putting the reader first
  • Different types of sentence
  • Making your writing more concrete

Key grammar problems in technical authoring

  • Subject-verb agreement
  • Complete sentences
  • Missing information
  • Unreadable text and how to fix it

Grammar and syntax

  • Usage issues
  • Creating cohesion terms: redundancy and transitions
  • Using parallel construction: sentences, tables and lists, headings

Editing and writing with others

Planning to meet your deadlines

  • Planning and estimating
  • Planning metrics
  • Meetings: objectives, rules, top ten issues, checklists

Feeding back to team members

  • The SBI model: delivering effective feedback
  • Questions to ask in difficult situations
  • People problems: communication styles*

Creating communication in the work environment

  • VAK: seeing, hearing, feeling
  • Filtering information with VAK preferences
  • Benefits of VAK preferences
  • Keeping the team Informed
  • increasing team involvement

Capstone exercise

  • Putting it all together

Why choose Armada

4.9 stars Google Review rating

Over 96% delegate experience rating on our Autodesk courses in 2021

5 locations across UK and live online courses

Customer Outreach Award 2019

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We believe that it should be easy for you to find and compare training courses. 

Our Customer Outreach Award is presented to trusted providers who are excellent at responding to enquiries, making your search quicker, more efficient and easier, too.

Expenses

Course fees are inclusive of all relevant course documentation, refreshments and a buffet lunch. Discounts available for multiple bookings. Delegates are also entitled to 30 days' after-course support via email.

On-request training

We can also provide one-to-one training or a 'closed course' for your group at one of our centres, or your venue anywhere in the UK. These can be tailored to your specific needs, taking into account delegates’ existing knowledge, and the skills gap identified.

Armada
6 west court, Saxon Business Park
B60 4AD Bromsgrove England

Armada

We specialise in: CAD design training. Our expert trainers cover the most popular CAD applications including AutoCAD, Revit, Fusion, SketchUp, Civil 3D, 3ds Max, used across all industries - architecture, engineering, interior design and others. Creative, video and animation training...

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