Like a good carpenter or plumber, in order to do his or her job effectively, a technical writer must possess the proper set of tools. In the case of the technical writer, these tools come in the form of technical writing software. The writer lives in a computer-driven world, and the technical writer is no exception. It is essential for the tech writer to have an understanding and competency in tech writing software.
Word Processing. Most technical writing projects will be adequately handled with a fine working knowledge of basic word processing software. Microsoft Word and Corel WordPerfect are the two word processing programs the technical writer should know and love. From a word processing standpoint, no other writing software is needed.
Other Software. There are many other types of software that a technical writer could find very useful. These are mostly desktop publishing software that composes text and graphics into page layouts for print publishing. While it is not necessary to be an expert with this software, a healthy competency would certainly help the technical writer stand out from amongst the technical writing herd.
Adobe's software:
- Adobe FrameMaker--a cross-platform document authoring tool.
- Adobe Acrobat--pdf files are critical to technical writers
- Adobe PageMaker
Corel's software:
- Corel Ventura
Quark offers:
- Quark XPress--software for package design and publishing.
Microsoft software:
- Microsoft Office Publisher
Serif's software:
- Serif PagePlus
Some great directories of tech writer software and other resources are available on these Internet websites: