FYI,
In early May, I'll be presenting at the conference of the Society for
Technical Communication (a professional organization for tech writers),
on the topic of documenting FOSS as a way to build one's skills and
portfolio. My original proposal was for a standard presentation, but the
program committee changed it to be part of a "progression" on
"Alternative Careers in Technical Communication". (A progression is a
series of small-group discussions; attendees move from one presenter's
table to another in 15 minute increments; presenters do the same
presentation/discussion several times with different groups.) I don't
see working on FOSS docs as an "alternative career" per se, but as a way
to boost a traditional career. A tech writer can use it as a way to
learn skills they might otherwise not get (e.g., XML) or to create
examples for their portfolio (when their work from their job is
proprietary and can't be shown). OOo is just one FOSS project of many
that tech writers could contribute to.
Just thought I'd let y'all know what I'm up to (inspired by
Jean-Christophe's post).
--
Janet Swisher --- Senior Technical Writer
Enthought, Inc. http://www.enthought.com
