Functions of Technical Writing 1. To provide necessary information 2. To serve as a basis for management discussion 3. To give instructions 4.

To discuss techniques 5. To analyze problem areas 6. To identify systems requirements 7. to develop and promote a product 8. to report achievements 9. To provide public relation 10. To provide services 11. To provide reports to the stockholders of companies 12. To obtain business transactions through proposals Properties of Technical Writings Accuracy Brevity Confidence Dignity Facility Emphasis Honesty Illustration Judgment Knowledge Logic Mechanical neatness Normal procedure Objectivity Planning Qualification Revision Straight sentences Thoroughness Unity View point Word choice Zest Proposals for self-improvement for students of technical writing 1. necessary writing skills 2. Necessary mental skills 3. Proper attitude toward problem solving End products of Technical Writing 1. Abstract 2. Articles for a technical paper 3. Brochure 4. Business letter 5. Contract 6. Feasibility report

7. Graphic aids 8. Instructional manual 9. Laboratory report 10. Memorandum 11. Monograph 12. Policy 13. Printed action memo 14. Progress report 15. Proposal 16. Specification 17. Survey report

TYPES OF TECHNICAL REPORTS

Information in an organization can be transmitted both formally and informally. Periodic reports provide formal feedback on the operating system of the company. Information is the raw material for the managerial decision-making process. According to Forrester Management is the process of converting information into action.

Authorities have advanced many classification of reports. Among the bases of reports classification are the following: Subject Matter Time-interval Function Formality Length and Format

This type of classification is based on subject fields such as accounting, business, medicine, economics, marketing, engineering and the like.

-interval Report

Reports may be classified by the frequency of their occurrence. Those that are regularly written are reports that occur daily, weekly, monthly or annually. They are routine weekly and monthly reports made by the salesman, periodic reports of progress in big corporation and the corporations annual report of operations. There are other types of reports which are not regularly written.

Reports may be classified by what they do. There are informational and analytical reports. Informational reports present facts bearing the subject. They do not analyze the facts. The reader, not the writer analyze the data. Analytical reports analyze the facts and information gathered for the readers to understand the report easily.

Reports may be written both for formal and informal purposes. Formal reports are those that are dressed up and are appropriately worded to fit the requirements of a very formal occasion. Formal reports contain reports contain prefatory and supplemental parts aside from the text. Informal reports fit the requirements of an informal situation. They contain only basic parts of a report.

Booklets - These are reports of book length. They contain covers, title pages, sometimes table of contents, and sometimes cover letters or letters of transmittal, depending on their purpose, readers and length. [Shape] o Bulletins o - These include information of more permanent value than memoranda. Sometimes they are not labeled as bulletins. When they are labeled, they have a top form heading similar to that of the memorandum report.

Classification of Reports according to reader-writer relationship INTERNAL REPORTS a.Refer to the reports needed within employer-employee relationship. b.Moves vertically upward or downward b.1. non executive/sub executive to top management b.2. executive to employees c. They move horizontally from one department to another or from one employee to another in the same department. Staff report Is a kind of internal report prepared by the member of the staff for another staff member. staff reports includes the ff: Product analysis progress reports Statistical analysis improvements reports Attitude surveys research reports Process analysis analytical reports Justification reports employee appraisals Readership surveys recommendation reports Audit reports committee reports Procedural statement accounting reports Policy statements reports on interviews Management newsletter examination reports Sales reports advertising reports Marketing surveys periodic reports Employee bulletin EXTERNAL REPORTS Concerned with the relationship of the company and the public Prepared for readers outside the company to inform publics about the company it includes: Annual reports credit reports Progress reports personnel reports Periodic reports Information reports Holders to the public brochures News releases public relation reports Articles in magazines Audit reports It is a formal opinion issued by either an internal or external auditor as a result of an audit or an evaluation performed on a legal entity.

Reports may be long or short, depending on the number of pages they contain. Generally reports which contain from one to ten pages are considered short reports while those which contain more than ten pages are considered long reports.

The physical format of the report varies with the expected outcomes, the use, and the formality of the situation. The types of reports according to format are the following: Fill in the blanks The memorandum report The letter report Bulletins Booklets

Fill in the blanks - This is the type of reports where results are predetermined by the designer. [Shape] o The memorandum report o - This report contains the TO, FROM, SUBJECT format entries. [Shape] o The Letter Report o - This is a little more formal than the memorandum. It has a business letter formal

 It is essential tool when reporting financial information to users ,particular in business

B. Formal Letter Reports are written when the correspondents hardly know each other. They are rare, but most often they are simple, dignified business letter that convey business technical information from one company to another.

Short Report

Bulletins

* Consist of ten pages or less. * They are generally information reports of temporary or current interest and presented with pages informally stapled together. * A typical informal report has no cover page, letter of transmittal, title page, table of contents and no list of illustrations.

Long Formal Report

* Used for both internal and external communications. * It present information of more permanent value than memoranda and are distributed to a sufficient number of readers to warrant their reproduction in quantity. * Commonly used to inform their readers about personnel changes and policies.

* Report in full dress, to suit the requirements of a formal situation * Includes preparatory parts, the text and the supplemental parts (the parts include the cover page, title page, letter of transmittal, table of contents, list of figures, abstract, headings, quotations and listings, equation and formula.

recommendation report -primary function is to persuade the reader to take a certain course of action. it should have the following parts;statement of the problem,recommendations and advantage and conclusion guides to follow in writing -follow closely the specific instructions given to you to write a recommendation report -analyze problem -take the appropriate causes of action -provide the appropriate recommendations in voluntering recommendations,observe

Memorandum Report

* Least formal of all reports. * It should not be confused with the simple memorandum ( Simple Memorandum is highly informal paper of not more than one or two pages written to remind oneself or others of such thing as a scheduled committee meeting or the chief points of a conference. * Memorandum Report is not the same thing; it is a full-bodied report that can be as long as a letter report and can deal with the same subjects. * It contains the following:

a) To, From, Subject, Dateline b) The Printed Letterhead this is sometimes omitted at the top of the page and there is an identification line or label indicating the department responsible for the report. c) Complimentary Close or Signature this may not be required but memoranda are signed or initialed either at the end or beside the name or the FROM line.

-your recommendations are appropriate and that you have clearly established that your recommendation are appropriate -your supervisor will not be pleased with mere opinions -determine precisely what cause of action or what decision is best justified by evidence -organize your report making clear the logic of your recommendation to your specific reader -analyze your reader's probable respose to your recommendations -finally,prepare a good and clear introductions and recommendations and give tour basis

Letter Report

* Its physical properties of a typical business letter. * Still informal, it can vary in informality according to its purpose, the type of reader, and the subject being discussed. A. Informal Letter Reports are written when they convey information between organizations whose members know each other well or have corresponded frequently.

Giving Instruction The purpose in giving instructions is to make the reader do

a specific operation. The technical writer who is giving instruction expects the reader to act. Each step in the instruction is presented and clearly explained to the reader who should carry out to perform the operation. The technical writer should be specific about the purpose of his instruction. He should keep his purpose in mind because of guides in choosing the content and In arranging and formatting content. The common use of technical writing is instructions, explanation of how to operate of repair machinery, how to perform certain actions or what to do in certain situations. Employing Persuasion Persuasion is needed in almost every technical communication. The persuasive report presents to the readers and then asks them to act. Every time a procedure is explained, a term is defined, instructions are given, a course is analyzed and so on, the reader must be convinced that the idea presented in the communication is well-reasoned and that the recommendation given is the best action to take. The technical writer should keep in his mind that this report is designed to convince the reader of his point of view and to get them to take some action. The subject should be a controversial idea or at least a subject that has more than one side of it. Interpretation Interpretation is the art of establishing a meaningful pattern of relationship among a group of facts. It is an important step in stating a problem being investigated. It is nevertheless rigorously logical. Five elements that may enter into the statement problem are: 1. Presenting the basic problem concise form. 2. Defining unfamiliar terms. 3. Distinguishing between the primary problem and subordinate problem. 4. Distinguishing between what is known and what remains to be found out and 5. Providing background information. Here are some questions that may arise in the interpretation. 1. What is to be found out? 2. How was the evidence obtained? 3. How will the interpretation be organized? Here are the six major elements in obtaining a sound interpretation. 1. Acquiring a thorough grasp of all available information 2. Stating the problem in concise form 3. Defining unfamiliar or ambiguous terms 4. Distinguishing between primary and subordinate problem 5. Distinguishing between what is already known and what remains to be found. 6. Giving background information. ANALOGY A relationship of similarity or likeness between two or more entities.

It compares the unfamiliar to the familiar words to make the unfamiliar more understandable for the readers. In logic, analogy is the name of an inductive form of argument which asserts that if two or more entities are similar in one or more respects, then a probability exists that they will be similar in other respects. Some Common Analogy Examples * The captain is to his ship as the leader is to his tribe * A fish is to swimming as a bird is to flying * What death is to life, blindness is to vision * What sweets are to a diabetic, water is to fire * What gold is to a goldsmith, iron is to a blacksmith * What cold is to ice, heat is to fire * What dog is to a kennel, a rabbit is to a burrow * What child is to a mother, a song is to a singer * What voice is to a person, communication is to a language * The sun is to the moon as a teacher is to his pupil * What wheels are to a cart, a family is to a man * A hot cup of coffee is to winter as a cold glass of water is to summer * A rudder is to a ship as a goal is to a person * Painting is to a painter as water is to a plant * What strings are to a guitar, love is to life CLASSIFICATION It is a systematic process of dividing materials into different classes. It involves grouping similar units in a subclass which in turn falls under longer class. It is the act of locating a specimen of the different kinds of objects which possess a given characteristics. THER EFFECTIVENESS OF CLASSIFICATION DEPENDS UPON THE FOLLOWING PRINCIPLES 1. Classify consistently on a single basis which points to the fundamental distinction among the members of the class. 2. The basis of classification should further the purpose controlling it. Choose and use simple basis of classification.

3. Classification should not overlap. Be sure that each specie is distinct and separate from all others. 4. Make your classification reasonably complete. 5. Introduce subclasses as needed. PARTITION It is a analysis that divides a singular unit into its components, steps or aspects. Only singular units can be partition and plural units are classified. A partition system must have definite characteristics to be sufficient. The partition system must be sufficient. The division must be coordinate, naturally exclusive, must not overlap and must be complete.

A letter of recommendation is a letter in which the writer assesses the qualities, characteristics, and capabilities of the person being recommended in terms of that individuals ability to perform a particular task or function. Recommendation letters are almost always specifically requested to be written about someone, and are therefore addressed to a particular requestor. Letters of recommendation are typically related to employment, admissions to institutions of higher education or scholarship eligibility. A recommendation letter is a written reference designed to offer information about your character and work ethic. What goes into a reference letter? The exact structure of a reference letter will differ slightly depending on the type of reference it is, but this is a good basic outline: 1. Start using the business letter format: put the recipients name and address, if known, and address them as Dear [name]. If the recipient is currently unknown (this would be likely on an academic application, for instance), then use Dear Sir/Madam or To whom it may concern. (1st paragraph) 2. It is often helpful to introduce yourself in the first couple of lines of your letter. The recipient will not need your life history: just give a brief sentence or two explaining your position and your relationship to the candidate. Explain how you know the individual. State from where and for how long you've known him or her. Be very clear about the working relationship involved. That is, explain whether he or she was your subordinate, co-worker, student, etc.

Your next paragraph should confirm any facts which you know the candidate will be supplying along with your letter. For example, if you are writing a reference for a job applicant, some or all of these details may be appropriate: 1. The persons job title, and role within the company. 2. The persons leaving salary when they were last employed by you (or your organisation). 3. The dates which the person was employed from and until. If you are writing a reference letter for an academic course, you will need to confirm the persons academic grades. 4. In your third paragraph, you should provide your judgement upon the candidates skills and qualities. It is often appropriate to state that you would gladly re-employ them, or that their contributions to your college class were highly valued. Single out any exceptional qualities that the candidate has perhaps their drive and enthusiasm, their attention to detail, or their ability to lead. 5. Where possible, use your fourth paragraph to give a couple of concrete examples of times when the candidate excelled. (You may want to ask the candidate to tell you about any extra-curricular projects theyve been involved in, or invite them to highlight anything theyd particularly like you to include in the reference letter.) 6. Close your letter on a positive note, and if you are willing to receive further correspondence about the candidates application, make this clear. Include your contact details too. 7. As with any business letter, you should end appropriately; Yours sincerely when you are writing to a named recipient, and Yours faithfully when you do not know who will be receiving the letter. Things to avoid Make sure that you avoid:

3.

Mentioning any weaknesses the candidate has. Saying anything that could be construed as libel. Writing in an informal manner: keep the letter businesslike. Jokes, slang and casual language are not appropriate and may harm the candidates chances. Including personal information not relevant to the application. Mentioning the candidates race, political stance, religion, nationality, marital status, age or health is usually inappropriate. Spelling mistakes, sloppy writing or typos: this letter is hugely important to the candidate, and you should take care to make it look professional.
http://www.dailywritingtips.com/writing-a-reference-letter-withexamples/ http://www.boxfreeconcepts.com/reco/

1. LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION o

2. Slide 2 o Endorsement of someones qualifications, character and general conduct. o Typically related to employment, admissions to institutions of higher education or scholarship eligibility.

confirm any facts which you know the candidate will be supplying along with your letter ex. The persons job title, and role within the company. The persons leaving salary when they were last employed by you (or your organisation). The dates which the person was employed from and until. provide your judgement upon the candidates skills and qualities. o

3. Two Kinds of Recommendation Letter o general o special or personal

4. General o written usually at the request of an applicant who plans to use the letter when he looks for work o it uses the salutation To Whom It May Concern

5. Special or Personal o addressed to a definite person o requested by the firm which is interested in giving a job o

8. Slide 8 o CLOSING o o Close your letter on a positive note, and if you are willing to receive further correspondence about the candidates application, make this clear. Include your contact details too. o As with any business letter, you should end appropriately; Yours sincerely when you are writing to a named recipient, and Yours faithfully when you do not know who will be receiving the letter. 9. Slide 9 o [Picture]

6. Format o They usually contain between five to nine paragraphs. Total word count can range from 200 to 600. o OPENING o Start using the business letter format: put the recipients name and address, if known, and address them as Dear [name]. If the recipient is currently unknown then use Dear Sir/Madam or To whom it may concern.

7. Slide 7 o II. BODY o Introduce yourself in the first couple of lines of your letter.

10. THINGS TO AVOID WHEN WRITING THE LETTER o Mentioning any weaknesses the candidate has. o Saying anything that could be construed as libel. o Writing in an informal manner: keep the letter business-like. Jokes, slang and casual language are not appropriate and may harm the candidates chances. o Including personal information not relevant to the application. Mentioning the candidates race, political stance, religion, nationality, marital status, age or health is usually inappropriate. o Spelling mistakes, sloppy writing or typos: this letter is hugely important to the candidate, and you should take care to make it look professional. o