Technical Writing - Essay Example

Noted above, the language is used positively because it is not wordy or produced in mass. The point is simply put as its intent is to be used by a student who needs to know where he or she is going on short notice. A minute glance is all a student should need in order to find the desired location. The visual of the map along with the explanation of the symbols is both positive and negative. Positive due to the fact that it gives a student an idea of where things are, but negative because it takes a student longer to learn what the symbols mean.

The design of the guide is overall effective, but there is a redundancy in the repeating telephone number at the bottom of each section. If you have any further questions about the Smithville College Campus guide please do not hesitate to contact me. Thank you. Part 2 The tone of the writing changes quite dramatically from the first draft to the final draft. The wordiness amped the situation, drew attention to the negativity that was performed rather than focusing on the solution at hand. Once the extra “anger and punishment” measures were reduced, the memo became a short and sweet response to the copier situation by bringing attention to the solution.

“I wish therefore to inform all concerned-those who have abused policy or will be abusing it- that their behavior cannot and will not be tolerated” is an excessively wordy sentence. Sam eliminates this by simple stating in his new draft, “In the past we have not encouraged personnel to use them for such purposes because of the costs involved.” It is clear that the informality is seen in the first draft because Sam’s tone is frustrated and bitter. He is flagging the problem, which makes it worse by making it sound informal.

However, by moving past the problem to the solution, he gains formality. He also maintains a level of power by staying out of the problem, i.e. not acting biased, in his final draft when he makes it short. By presenting the solution (they will literally pay for their actions), he improves his tactfulness. The website URL: http://www.newyorkcity.com/ is particularly effective through visual, design and language. The pictures are small, but appealing and there aren’t too many of them. The skyline of New York is seen on the very top to indicate the correct website followed by a page to add hotel information, which is inviting.

They want to make it easy for the tourists to navigate their website with links to hotels, deals, activities, restaurants, and other attractions. If the pictures do are not what the browser wants, there are links in alphabetical order at the bottom of the page to please everyone. Also, the visuals that are chosen were a design-like action because they show the hottest attractions, i.e. Broadway plays. Also, the descriptions carry no more than two-three sentences to avoid wordiness that would lose the audience.

Reference Page Picket, A. N., Laster, A. A., & Staples, K. E. (2001). Technical English: Writing, Reading, and Speaking (8th ed., pp. 45-46). New York, NY: Addison Wesley