I am a technical writer! WELL… Not quite yet, but will soon be. I recently started my Introduction to Technical Writing on Coursera and I am more than glad I started from there.
Initially, I underestimated the course. I was convinced it wouldn’t enhance my knowledge or fulfill my needs as a beginner. I was wrong.
Let me walk you through my new discovery..
Prior to taking the course, I believed that what one really needed to be able to write was mere motivation. Now, I have seen that there is a need to educate myself on Technical Concepts, learn technical Tools, develop Writing Skills, and gain experience from practicing and more practicing!
The first opening chapter of week 1 is on what technical writing is — nothing new right?
Then it goes into the importance of planning and researching for technical writing projects. But during this course, I got to learn that effective planning assures that the document you are working on, consists of consistent and organized information.
I was not particularly new to researching but here is what I learnt that you might already know as well. Research guarantees that you, as a writer, provide accurate information in your document. This ensures valuable and informative content which in turn fulfills the needs of the target audience. Planning and research basically give you a roadmap of the document structure.
Here is a brief example I want to share with you just to give a sneak peek into everything I explained.
We recently had an interesting class session for my Internet of Things (IoT) course where we did a first-time simple setup where an LED light comes on when it is bright and off when it is dark. These advanced connections lead to improved efficiency and convenience in different areas of our daily lives.
Since I am taking the course on technical writing, I thought of a scenario where I was told to write about it to a first-timer who has never heard about this or did not attended this session. So here is the task broken into six simple steps:
- Gather materials
- Connect the LED
- Add the light sensor
- Write the code
- Upload the code
- Test the circuit
Now, let’s dive into the full details.
Creating a simple smart light bulb (LED) that you can control with your computer.
- Gather Materials:
Here is what you will need:
- A small computer board called an Arduino (this is like the brain of our project)
- A small light that can glow called an LED (this is like a tiny light bulb),
- A sensor that can detect light called a light-dependent resistor (LDR)
- A component called a resistor (it helps control the flow of electricity) (it looks like a small tube with colored bands)
- And some wires to connect everything together.
2. Connect the LED:
Stick the LED into the Arduino board. Connect one wire (a resistor) from digital pin 13 on the Arduino to the longer leg of the LED (this is called the anode), and connect another wire from the shorter leg of the LED (this is called the cathode) to the ground (-) rail on the Arduino board.
3. Add the Light Sensor:
Put the light sensor (LDR) on the Arduino board. Connect one wire from the Arduino’s 5V pin to one leg of the sensor, then connect another wire from the same leg of the sensor to one end of the resistor (around 10kΩ), and finally, connect another wire from the other end of the resistor to the ground (-) rail on the Arduino board.
4. Write the Code:
Next, we will need to download an integrated development environment or IDE. An IDE is a software application(or environment) that helps programmers develop software code efficiently.
The one we need is called Arduino.
Once you have it downloaded you will need to launch the IDE.
We will then need to write a set of instructions (The Arduino programming language is a modified version of C/C++) that tells the Arduino to read how much light the sensor is detecting. You can easily get this code online.
Here is the one I used:
// Define the pin numbers
const int sensorPin = A0; // Analog pin connected to the light sensor
const int ledPin = 13; // Digital pin connected to the LED
void setup() {
// Set the LED pin as an output
pinMode(ledPin, OUTPUT);
// Initialize serial communication for debugging
Serial.begin(9600);
}
void loop() {
// Read the analog input from the light sensor
int sensorValue = analogRead(sensorPin);
// Print the sensor value to the serial monitor for debugging
Serial.print(“Sensor value: “);
Serial.println(sensorValue);
// If the sensor value is below a certain threshold, turn the LED on; otherwise, turn it off
if (sensorValue < 500) { // Adjust the threshold value as needed
digitalWrite(ledPin, HIGH); // Turn the LED on
} else {
digitalWrite(ledPin, LOW); // Turn the LED off
}
// Add a delay to prevent rapid reading of the sensor
delay(1000); // Adjust the delay time as needed
}
5. Upload the Code:
Connect the Arduino to your computer with a special cable called the data USB cable (a charge-only cable will not work).
Since our IDE is all set and we have the code, it’s time to send the code you wrote to the Arduino by uploading it.
6. Test the Circuit:
Make sure everything is connected the right way and the code is uploaded to the Arduino IDE on your computer. Shine your phone flashlight on the sensor or cover it to see if the LED turns on and off like it’s supposed to.
Here is what mine looked like from my class session.
And a video of me testing it
View here
That was your introduction to IoT!
Now back to all things Technical Writing. The second part of my week 1 was Drafting and Revising in Technical Writing. Drafting before revising is important because it allows the writer to focus on content generation rather than structure, formatting as well as wording. This stage is also focused on identifying the audience’s needs, outlining ideas, and organizing thoughts. This makes room for revising which in turn achieves an effective, clear, and concise document.
The final part for week one is Strategies for Proofreading, Finalizing, and Publishing.
The final step in the writing process. This is the stage where you review your document for errors in grammar, punctuation, spelling, and formatting. It ensures that your work is free of mistakes and presents a professional image. Once proofreading is complete, you can finalize your document by making necessary adjustments and preparing it for publication! You just do not publish, it involves formatting your document for print or digital distribution and considering the best medium for sharing your work with your intended audience.
That sums it up for my first chapter of week 1 of learning technical writing. I will see you in my next update!
Thanks for reading.
