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English 222: Technical Writing — Document Design Unit

Document Design Unit Overview

Because people don’t generally read technical documents for fun, technical writers must learn new ways to convince people to read information. Unfortunately, most of the writing you’ve done in the past was probably just black text on a white background using an 8 1/2 x 11 inch sheet of paper with 1 inch margins. Nothing too splashy. Yet with just a carefully chosen bolded phrase, a technical writer can influence what you read first. This is the heart of document design: guiding what readers decide to read. But it takes practice to teach your eyes how to be effective document designers. Teaching you how to write in a visually effective way is thus the goal of this unit.

Document Design Unit Materials

Using Graphics Elements Effectively

Using Textual Elements Effectively

Using Charts Effectively

  • Guidelines: Chart Design Principles

Web Design