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Technical writing is a specialized field which not only demandsan in depth knowledge of the subject on which you are writing,but also a good command of the written language. A common maingoal is to translate tec-speak into everyday familiar jargon forthe average reader. In other words, your content needs to beunderstood.

To help keep technical translation plain and simple, here aresome tips:

- Plan ahead. Determine the main focus, i.e. what the readersneed to learn from your content. Ask yourself, what are theirexpectations from the article?

- Take care to match your content to the level of knowledge ofthe audience. Don't underestimate your audience and write downto them. But do watch the level of your tec-speak.

- Ask someone to proof read your material who represents thereading audience.

- Add a glossary if necessary for your technical terms. Orplace short explanations of the terms in brackets within thepiece.

- When possible, incorporate examples and illustrations toget your points across.

- If your data is complicated use graphs, diagrams and / or flowcharts to make it visually expressive.

- Experiment with different software to enhance yourpresentations. For example, add audio / video.

There are excellent technical writing books out there. Checkwith your local public library for some and on Amazon.com. Andbroaden the scope of your projects with good technical writingskills.

You can also head to Content Propulsion Lab. It's the place for *Do It Yourself* companies who would love the benefits of a high-end Public Relations firm but lack the budgets, at http://presssuccess.com/cpl