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Category: Software, Technical Writing.
Last week I had the opportunity to visit a technical communication class at Brigham Young University and give a presentation on technical communication in the real world. The presentation went quite well; I enjoyed talking with the students, and I really enjoyed the subject. <grin>
It hasn’t been that many years since I was in their shoes, and it was fun to realize how far I’ve come and how much I really do know about the field, the tools, and the job market.
I did the presentation itself using a new tool: Google Presentations. I created my slide deck using PowerPoint, but I uploaded it to my Google account and ran the presentation live from there in Firefox. I used F11 to make the presentation go full-screen, and I was quite pleased, in the end, with how it worked. All I needed to know was that the computer I’d be using had a projector and an Internet connection. My file was safely stored in my Google Docs account, so I wasn’t worried about bringing a flash drive or anything, nor was I worried about downloading restrictions that might be in place on the computer I’d be using. I also didn’t have to worry about the software set–or even the OS on the computer; everybody with an Internet connection has a browser.
Google Presentations, for its part, did a good job presenting my slide deck. The interface was pretty easy, and I was able to get a full-screen version, which is what I really wanted. I tried doing some edits in the Presentations editor, and decided to continue editing in PowerPoint. I think that is how I would do the process again, if I had to, because I found that Google Presentations wasn’t as powerful for authoring as PowerPoint, which may be due to the fact that I’m so much more comfortable with PowerPoint.
The presentation went well. Several students made positive comments after the class to the professor, and I’m already planning on doing it again next semester.
On a related note, I’ve been asked by the professor to be part of a BYU Technical Communications Internship Professional Advisory Committee. Basically we are going to help find ways to provide technical communication students with opportunities for professional internships that will better prepare them for a technical communications career. Sounds like fun. Count me in!
October 27th, 2007 at 11:09 pm
Congrats on your BYU presentation. I think more English majors need to be aware of the tech comm field.
I’m glad to hear your experience with Google Presentations was positive.
I’m also interested in learning details about the internship program. So if I wanted to hire an intern (or get one hired where I work), what’s the process?
November 8th, 2007 at 10:03 am
Were you working with Dr. Zimmerman or somebody else?
November 8th, 2007 at 10:36 am
The class was Danette Paul’s Eng 415 class. Dr. Zimmerman attended the presentation, however. Then the three of us went to lunch at the Skyroom. It was a fun experience.
Hope all is well with you. I love reading your blog.