Discusses and illustrates how technical communicators can read and write complex documents dialogically by using a new/old strategy to help them in three activities: breaking down complex documents and data into components; solving problems by locating and describing causal components; and following and organizing sequences of components. (SR)

Discusses how too much caution can lead authors to simple verbosity or to the overgeneralization of simple concepts. (SR)

Examines the paradigm "the writer is self-contained," which underlies current writing practices in business and education. Discusses how creating a supportive climate for the writing process relates to the paradigm "every writer needs an editor." Discusses the implications of making such a change in business, industry, and education. (SR)

Discusses kinds of jargon found in technical writing, how much jargon is acceptable, and the best way to handle jargon. (SR)

Discusses how to make better indexes for online documentation. (SR)

Offers examples of what can happen when writers try to be impressive, and instead are vapid, grandiloquent, opaque, or absurd. (SR)

Notes that the new media will incorporate the old. Discusses what changes writers can expect from multimedia and how writers might thrive in a multimedia world. (SR)

Narrates a proposal writer's experience over five weeks as a member of a team writing a grant proposal on the design and implementation of a practice-oriented master's degree program on manufacturing education and training. (SR)

Notes that the divisionary effect of formal corporate models that standardize collaborative processes is particularly problematic for World Wide Web hypertexts, which require ongoing, dynamic collaborations among professionals with diverse specializations. Examines collaborative processes through theory and two Web project teams interactions: one…