Meeting in Pune on October 5

Bangalore – August 2, 2002

A learning-cum-training session for technical communicators was held at Hotel Ashraya, Bangalore on August 2, 2002. This session included two exhilarating talks by Parwathy Mirlay and Romi Chugh. First, Parwathy, who heads Xpression, a Tech Writing Company, spoke on the ‘key to an effective presentation’. Aided by a gripping Microsoft PowerPoint presentation, Parwathy covered in detail subjects such as content management methodology and correlated it with general technical writing. She then discussed how to create a content outline, add the necessary text that stands, and test the presentation for completeness, accuracy, and impact.

After Parwathy’s presentation, Romi Chugh, a Techno-Artist in charge of Design at Xpression, demoed cutting edge presentation tools Microsoft PowerPoint, Flash and Director, and Photoshop. Romi discussed the advantages of each tools and their special features. Using case studies and examples Romi highlighted when to use which tool. The talk was highly interactive. [Source: Anu A.]

Pune – August 3, 2002

An information sharing session for technical communicators was held at VERITAS Software Training Room, Pune on August 3, 2002. The session started with Neeraj Bhatia, a technical writer with VERITAS Software, sharing insights on how to create a useful index. Neeraj started by defining the attributes of a good index and listed the ideal content that should go in it. He paraphrased the definition of a quality index from the Chicago Manual of Style, which is to record every pertinent statement made within the body of the text. Using examples, Neeraj discussed guidelines for creating good indexes. Examples included coverage of alphabetisation, capitalisation, page references, sub-entries, double postings, and cross-references.

Neeraj’s talk was followed by Sunil Gokhale’s presentation on Introduction to Technical Writing. Sunil, who is an associate consultant with i-flex solutions, initially wanted to discuss how to write fiction and educational programmes. However, as most participants were relative newbies in technical writing, Sunil changed the discussion to basics more pertinent for the audience. The talk was highly interactive and all participants shared perspectives and got clarifications on the basic hows and whys of technical writing. [Source: Suvarna Inamdar]

Mumbai – August 24, 2002

A learning session for technical communicators was held at i-flex solutions, Mumbai office on  August 24, 2002. The session consisted of discussion on two important themes crucial for attaining success in technical communication. First, Udit Chaudhuri an engineer turned technical communicator explained with passion and substance how technical communicators can act as the agent for growth for continual interaction between a product and its users. Udit insisted that a communication strategy is a critical part of the growth strategy of any organisation, and its in the definition of this strategy where technical communicators can act as ears and eyes of the organisation. Udit explained the concept of growth, as put together by Wolfgang Mewes who propounded the concept of EKS or Cybernetic Management Strategy and presented examples on market entry and brand building.

The second session, which was organised on popular demand, was conducted by Frederick Menezes, a senior technical writer with VERITAS Software, Pune. Frederick began by explaining the common elements of English grammar such as restrictive and non-restrictive clauses, modifier placement, and split infinitives. Next, Frederick discussed common style issues such as punctuation, capitalisation, and writing concise sentences. True to his style, Frederick made the session interactive and included quizzes to retain interest and test participant’s language skills. [Source: Shilpi Kedia]

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