Although many dimensions of multimedia are already familiar to technical communicators and educators, producing documents with this technology requires a complete reconceptualization of the communication process. One major obstacle to developing a multimedia rhetoric is the power that print technology holds over people's ideas concerning formal or…

Builds on arguments in risk communication that the predominant linear risk-communication models are problematic for their failure to consider audience and additional contextual issues. Argues that "risk" is socially constructed. Argues for an approach that involves the public in fundamental ways at the earliest stages of the…

A two-phase ethnographic study conducted over the course of two semesters examined a project to create a web site on the Internet. Subjects were enrolled in either a "Features Writing for Business and Industry" course or an "Advanced Technical Writing" course at an open-admissions university offering a major in Professional…

Finds that current pedagogical emphases on audience analysis and adaptation in the field of technical writing are based largely on classical conceptions of audience and society. Traces the influences of rhetoricians who challenge the classical model as inadequate or inappropriate for contemporary rhetorical situations. (SKC)

Based on the theme of issues, questions, and controversies in program development and review, this proceedings presents papers delivered at the annual meeting of the Council for Programs in Technical and Scientific Communication (CPTSC). Papers in the proceedings are divided into four sections: Benchmarks for Quality: Developing Criteria for…

With the advent of the process approach to teaching writing, the use of products or models in the composition classroom has declined, replaced by heuristic exploration of the rhetorical situation, with special emphasis on audience analysis. Some researchers have emphasized the difference between internal audiences and audiences external to the…

Faithfully following a fixed set of procedures has long been standard practice in writing resumes. This process produces a passable document with a minimum of effort expended. There are, however, advantages to be gained from taking a conceptual approach to resume preparation. First, it can help provide a framework for these procedures, giving the…