Technical Writing Projects
Here are some technical writing projects that I'm proud of. They span the later half of my decade-plus career as a technical writer. You'll find an extensive Webhelp project developed using the DITA methodology and technical manuals in PDF format. All work was produced by me, with the consultation of SMEs of course.
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Click the View button under a description to open the project in a new tab.
Infor Birst Help (Topic-Based WebHelp)
This documentation is a comprehensive Webhelp library for a multinational analytics software named Infor Birst. It contains release notes, user, administrative, and installation information.
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Although the structure was created by a predecessor, the library has seen numerous updates in its CSS design, content, and layout by our team (with my fingers in just about every process). We maintained and authored this content in MadCap Flare using MadCap source control mechanisms to push versions and releases to a GitHub repository. It was then embedded in the software product. Our team would take on the monumental task of migrating this content to a structured DITA format in a CCMS architecture.
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Tools used: MadCap Flare (authoring, design, indexing, and maintenance), GitHub (repository), SnagIt (screen capture), OxygenXML (migration authoring platform), IXIASOFT (DITA version CCMS).
ImageDirector Capture HelpÂ
(Topic-Based WebHelp)
Similar to the sample project above, this is a Webhelp library. The product is a document imaging software named ImageDirector Capture. It contains user, administrative, and installation information. In traditional paginated format, the content probably runs close to 1000 pages.
The content, structure, CSS design, and indexing was created by me. The content was first produced in a structured XML authoring application named OxygenXML, using DITA topic-based architecture and XSLT formatting. The documentation was later migrated into a semi-structured format in FrameMaker and then into RoboHelp to produce Webhelp.
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Tools used: OxygenXML (initial XML structure), FrameMaker (final XML structure), RoboHelp (CSS webhelp design and indexing), Adobe Photoshop (screen capture), and a virtual software testing environment.
Birst Dashboards and Visualizer Training Guide (Topic-Based PDF)
This documentation is a training user guide for specific features of the analytics software named Birst.
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The documentation contains course and lesson information, user functionality associated with target features, worksheets, and more.
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We produced this guide in OxygenXML (DITA), with various topics assembled in the IXIASOFT CCMS to produce the final workbook. Just a demonstration of the power of DITA to create targeted documentation combining various resources that I and others authored over time.
This guide was not produced alone. Information Architects (IA) and I worked hand-in-hand to generate this workbook. My focus was authoring, mapping, and assembly. IAs focused on formatting and design.
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Tools used: OxygenXML (authoring), IXIASOFT (assembly).
Capital Credit Management User Guide
(Topic-Based PDF)
This documentation is a customer user guide for an application called Capital Credit Management. The application is part of a utility service software suite named Meridian.
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The documentation covers all user functionality of the application and includes some administrative system configuration definitions.
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This work was produced in Confluence (interesting right?) and in topic-based format. Topics were compiled into a PDF format, providing the final structure and design.
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I also produced eLearning webinars for this application, which you can view here.
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Tools used: Confluence, SnagIt (screen capture), GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP), virtual software testing environment.
ECR Vault User Guide
(Topic-Based PDF)
This documentation is a comprehensive user, administrative, and installation guide for a software suite named ECR Vault. ECR Vault is a cloud-based content management system for medical clinics that need a HIPAA-compliant solution for patient documentation. The suite contains a document management system, capture and imaging system, and content retrieval system.
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This documentation was produced in unstructured FrameMaker and later converted to an XML structured format. Just like the ImageDirector Capture project above, this was ultimately put into a CSS webhelp format using RoboHelp.
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Tools used: FrameMaker (final XML structure), RoboHelp (CSS webhelp design and indexing), Adobe Photoshop (screen capture), and a virtual software testing environment.
VisionWeb: Uprise Server Administrator Guide
(Conditional-Text & Topic-Based PDF)
This documentation is an administrative guide for a document management system named Uprise Server. Actually, it is a "reskinned" version of a flagship software suite named ImageDirector. This project was provided to a third-party vendor named VisionWeb. The software catalogs and indexes documentation, has form-filling capabilities, analytics tools, and more.
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The documentation was produced in structured FrameMaker (XML) under the ImageDirector brand. It contained thousands of pages of documentation formatted in topics. The client was only interested in the document management system, so conditional text and version parameters were built in the ImageDirector documentation to generate only the administrative content in the design authorized by VisionWeb. This allowed us to publish ImageDirector versions and Uprise versions, each presenting different content.
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Tools used: FrameMaker, Adobe Photoshop (screen capture), and a virtual software testing environment.
Service Location Management User Guide
(Topic-Based PDF)
This documentation is a customer user guide for an application called Service Location Management. The application is part of a utility service software suite named Meridian.
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The documentation covers all user functionality of the application.
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This work was produced in Confluence and in topic-based format. Topics were compiled into a PDF format, providing the final structure and design.
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Tools used: Confluence, SnagIt (screen capture), GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP), virtual software testing environment.