Technical Editing: The Practical Guide For Editors And Writers (Hewlett-Packard Press) (Paperback)

by Judith Tarutz (Author) "In this chapter, you'll see technical editing from several perspectives..." (more)
Key Phrases: literary edit, developmental edit, editorial skill set, United States, Information Systems, The Elements of Style (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Direct from the trenches, here's the practical guidance technical editors can use to apply editing principles under absurdly tight deadlines and constantly changing product specs, tips and tricks for editing common constructs in technical writing, and when to bend the rules to avoid technical ambiguity.

About the Author

Judith A. Tarutz, a former Senior Technical Editor at Hewlett-Packard, is a co-founder of Ibis Communications Inc. in Lynnfield, MA. She also teaches a graduate-level course in software technical editing.

Product Details

• Paperback: 480 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books (July 20, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0201563568
• ISBN-13: 978-0201563566
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #323,749 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highest praise for this book, January 5, 2000

By	(LM) New Tech Writer (Upstate New York, USA) - See all my reviews

As a newbie tech writer, I picked up this book with interest. This book was much more practical than other industry books on theory. All of the information is applicable to everyday situations as both a writer and editor. I am wholeheartedly recommending this book to my colleagues, and to anyone who would appreciate an insider's view of the technical documentation process. This is probably the most helpful book I have read on the process, textbooks and style guides included. After the author's challenge to readers to find and report any errors, I turned a skeptical (and trained) eye to each sentence...and found no errors. I hope that there are similar books on the market. A must have for every tech writer's book collection (and we know we all hoard great TW books!). The author lends real-world experience on almost every page and shows that she knows her field well. Personally, I found this book a great relief from the theoretical texts on TW that I have been reading for the past year.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How to justify a Technical Editor on your staff, January 12, 2001

By	Halo (THE valley) - See all my reviews

This book is particularly useful in defining the role of your Technical Editor, but what I found useful was the way the author addressed the need for a technical editor. In many technical writing and documentation groups, a technical editor is not in place because they use peer edits instead. Peer edits are not as effective as a technical editor! This book addresses quantitative results of having or not having a technical editor and how to "sell" your management on adding a technical editor to your team.

I would recommend this book to writers, so that they may better understand the role of their editor. I would recommend this book to editors, so that they may better understand how to work with writers effectively. And I would recommend this book to any documentation manager or communications manager who is considering hiring a technical editor or trying to gain management approval for hiring a technical editor.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A survival guide for the real world of technical editing., August 21, 1996

By A Customer

The subtitle says it all. This book gives practical advice and guidelines for both editors and writers who must edit or deal with editors. Tarutz provides a heavy dose of "real world" information, including working with impossible schedules, difficult writers, and projects from hell. This book is NOT a guide to marking up manuscripts, nor is it a style and usage manual. It IS an excellent guide to the profession of technical editing.