textual curation

I had the opportunity to listen to a very smart person talk about the nature of automated authoring. Specifically, she briefly discussed the concept of authorship as it relates to Wikipedia bots that collect, compile, and correct textual information.

I found most interesting the striking similarities between Wikipedia bots and technical communicators. The bots’ activities of surveying, filtering, compiling, and evaluating are the same activities performed by practicing technical communicators. Like the bots, the technical communicator (functioning as author) works with a range of content sources (human, digital, etc.) and decides what goes in, how it goes in, and what stays out – a textual curator.

Maybe this is just another fancy way of looking at TC’s long-standing identity crises. Like Information Architect and Content Wrangler (and any of the many different labels technical communicators wrap themselves in), Textual Curator attempts to neatly bundle the myriad of activities performed by the technical communicator. The problem, however, is that technical communication activities are not neat and clean. Like all communication processes and efforts of meaning making, technical communication is packed with murky processes, borrowed practices, cloudy theories, and wispy tethers to almost every other known discipline. The issues and problems of authorship, ownership, and value within TC will always exist, regardless of what we call the activities of the practicing technical communicator.

I can’t over-simplify the discussion I attended because the issue of authorship is complex and compelling – regardless of the context in which it is discussed. I will say that we can no more consider a bot an author of a text than we do the technical communicator who performs the same rote tasks of data collection, organization, compilation, formatting, and publication.

For me, this is an extremely interesting topic because it helps to frame discussions of identity, worth, and technology within TC. It’s also another lens through which practicing technical communicators can consider the future of their practice.

our man fish-eye rich

There was a time when I couldn't stand Louisville. Actually, it was Denny Crum who I couldn't stand. His style was too rigid and he relied too much on post play to make his teams exciting to watch. Yeah, he won, but he didn't win pretty.

I love watching Louisville now because Denny Crum is a bad memory in Kentucky. Fish-Eye Rich Pitino is a coach's coach. His teams play the lines like pool sharks. His back court is deep, fast, and smart. He coaches to his team's strengths while exploiting all of the weaknesses on the floor -- and the bench. His under-rated and exhausted Cardinals just beat an over-rated, over-performing Notre Dame team. Luke Goonygoogoo went into OT with four fouls like the stiff that he is. Fish-Eye went into OT with a whole different game plan and made Brey look like a CYO coach.

Remember back in the day when every team in the Big 10 had top-25 billing. This time of year they'd knock the snot out of each other in barn burners that rattled the rafters. In the last couple of years the action shifted a few states to the right. The Big East is now putting the absolutely best college basketball on the hardwoods that's been seen in a long time. The Big 10 and ACC need not apply. The PAC 10 -- don't even go there. No, the Big East is right where you want to be this year.

the englishes

This short post -- particularly the comments about translation -- had me recalling an article I read a few years ago (see).

We (technical communicators) have struggled with translation and localization issues for decades. What complicates the practice for many of us is the need to be aware of, or versed in, language/linguistics theory. It's not enough to fall back on our extensive skills in audience, context, and environment analysis. Too many technical communicators come to translation and localization projects with a presumption of cultural and linguistic homogeneity. We lack (generally speaking, of course) a proper exposure to the social and cultural aspects of language.

The spiraling dialectic leads us to the argument about the tech commer's tool kit -- about how much is too much. What does the fluent technical communicator need to know? Is it course work or practical experience? Or do we simply engage the experts when needed and resign ourselves to accept that we don't (nor do we have to) know everything there is to know about creating an effective and meaningful technical document.

(so)happy new year

It was another wonderful New Year's night. This year D went out at 11:15 for a bottle of sparkling grape juice. That was fun and thank goodness for WalMart. OK, let's not thank goodness for WalMart, but it was nice of them to be open on New Year's Eve. It was his idea to have us toast in the new year. I guess we're all growing up. Too soon it'll be a real magnum we're kicking back. Too soon.

My Falcons did not look impressive. It is always nice to watch the triple option. A good bowl season nonetheless.

Resolutions abound. Some more pragmatic than others. I like to keep mine to myself. The guilt is easier to deal with that way.