More Resources for the Technical Writer

The resources below used to be on a CD that I gave to course delegates. You can download them below.

Note: To download these resources, use Right-click > Save Link As.

MS Word Macros: I have used these for nearly 20 years. They are great time-savers.

Keywords: In a Manual of, say, 15 pages or more, the most useful thing you can do for your readers is to make an Index-at-the-back. This is your Search Engine for the manual. My clients tell me this is one of my most useful aids for their technical writers, because it saves the End User a lot of hunting through the pages to find the information they want. See page 105 in the Technical Writing Course Manual (download it from the Home Page).

1. To tag keywords in an instant, you need this first essential Macro, so that the words then appear in the Index-at-the-back:
      >> INSTRUCTIONS About the MarkTextForIndex Macro.txt and
   
      >> Macro: MarkTextForIndexEntry. See page 105 in the Manual.
   
   
2. Another helpful macro allows you to enter Today’s Date on correspondence in an instant by typing Ctrl+D: >> Macro: Insert Date in MS Word.txt
   
   
3. Learn your Keyboard Shortcuts and SAVE TIME.zip  – a collection of keyboard shortcuts for different versions of MS Word. See page 125 in the Manual.
   
   
4. Punctuation Primer for Philip Tory’s Writing Course (pdf)
   
   
5. Philip Tory’s Tips for Technical Writers – Page Numbering (pdf)
   
   
6. Philip Tory’s Tips for Technical Writers – Do Not Assume (pdf)
   
   
7. Philip Tory’s Equipment Photography Tips for Technical Writers (pdf)
   
   
8. How to Add Comments to a PDF document in Adobe Reader XI (pdf)
   
   
9. And finally – have a bit of fun with this lovely example of Gobbledegook:
   “Not Plain English” – The Turbo Encabulator. (video – YouTube link)