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Documenting APIs and SDKs
Click any link to see more about this popular workshop:
Workshop Outline
"Help wanted: Technical Writer to document SDKs.
In their dreams! In the real world, there are a lot more SDKs
that need documenting than technical writers with the ideal qualifications.
Documenting SDKs isn't easy, and it's not for everyone.
But it is a highly sought-after skill.
It's work that will earn you respect, both from other writers and from programmers.
And it's one of the best-paying gigs in our industry.
Sure, it's a tough job, but somebody's got to do it.
Why not you? Or if you're a publications manager, why not that hotshot in your department?
Er, what's an API?
An Application Programming Interface (API) is the interface
that software presents to programmers who need to build applications on top of that software.
If you can package that API with useful documentation and good sample programs,
you have a Software Development Kit (SDK) your company can sell. No documentation, no SDK!
To document an SDK, you should learn something about the programming language
it was written in, usually C or C++. But you don't need to write programs yourself.
After all, a technical writer doesn't need to understand everything
going on beneath the user interface to document a software product.
You do need to understand something of the design issues that SDK developers face.
And you need to understand the very different problems faced by the
very different programmers who will actually use the SDK, in other words: your audience.
Documenting APIs and SDKs isn't for everyone.
You should start with a good technical orientation.
And then take this two-day workshop from Gordon & Gordon!
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Who Should Attend
Workshop Objectives
At the end of this workshop, you will be able to work with software developers
to create useful documentation for a Software Development Kit.
What You Will Learn
Why Bother with SDKs?
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What People Say about this Workshop:
"I'm excited by the fact that I can now READ and UNDERSTAND the code
I spend most of the time cutting and pasting!"
"I think this course is just amazing for tech writers new to API writing!"
"We have so much trouble finding tech writers who can read header files and document APIs!
This course will be really, really good for the other two writers on my team."
"All the information was fabulous... Covered a lot of ground in only two days."
"Overall, the course was EXCELLENT. I have benefitted ENORMOUSLY
and it will help me TREMENDOUSLY in my work.
I think it has been one of the most useful courses I have taken. Thank you so very much."
"Love the exercises. I find this course is bringing everything together
that I've been trying to learn on my own so far."
"I got great info, feedback, affirmation, motivation, direction
to go back and get the right job done."
"I feel able to analyze header files in an intelligent-enough way to produce skeletal documentation.
A definite improvement!"
"I wanted to stop guessing and get informed!
Now I am much better prepared to do this work,
and have a clue where to get supporting information."
"Excellent introduction to the raison d'etre of APIs and SDKs.
The course builds a writer's confidence that they are on the right track
to developing acceptable SDK documentation."
"Solid, basic API concepts made concrete through examples.
Great presentation manner and sense of humour, depth of knowledge and experience."
"Manny is a lively, very interesting instructor."
"Lots of information, entertaining."
"The pace is good, the content is rich.
You have captured my interest and excited my learning curve."
"Fortunately, I could always work from quite complete documentation written by programmers.
I just had to reformulate, reformat, and update.
I never had to dig in the header files.
Now, I know how to work the other way around, in case I need to some day.
Today's course was really educational."
"Good tips for extracting important information from code and other sources."
"I have no programming background. Part of my job is to format the doc written by programmers.
After this training, I am going to be able to write the doc by myself."
"Manny is a very good and interesting animator."
"Even though I know some of these concepts,
having them presented in a global view is interesting and refreshing."
"A very good introduction to what it's all about."
"I certainly found the course useful.
It has catapulted the dialogue on what goes into our SDK up to management level."
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About the Presenter
With more than 25 years in the IT industry,
Manny has worked on every technology from mainframes to Web frames.
Manny lives in Montreal, where he is a Professor of Computer Science at Vanier College.
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Can't Make It to the Workshop?
Need Help Getting Started?
Gordon & Gordon don't just teach, we also do!
If you need help getting started with your API documentation,
we'd be happy to talk about coming in for a short project.
We can do planning and outlining for your documentation set,
help you hire staff and set up workflows, or anything else you might need.
Call us today to see how we can help.
Check out the workbook
Must have Bachelor's degree in Computer Science,
Master's degree in Technical Communication,
plus five year's experience in a similar position..."
What SDK Documentation Looks Like
What Programmers Really Want in an SDK
A Technical Writer's Introduction to C
What C++ Adds to C
How Java Differs from C++
The Building Blocks Programmers Play With
Documenting Software Components
Typical Diagrams that Programmers Use
Generating Reference Documentation
The Outline for a Developer's Guide
Documentation Strategies for Non-Programmers
Rave Reviews
As a programmer, his successful projects include an innovative, large-scale data warehousing project
for the Bank of Montreal, one of Canada's largest banks.
Manuel Gordon is an award-winning technical writer who specializes in documenting SDKs,
telecommunications tools, and other complex software products.
Order the Workbook!
Click here to order your copy today!
Click here to order!
This workbook includes all the materials
distributed at our 2-day workshop, including:
How to Contact Us
August 26, 2002
Entire contents
© 1999-2009
by Manuel Gordon
& Gordon Graham
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How to reach Manuel Gordon
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How to reach Gordon Graham Tel: (705) 842-2428 Eastern Email: gordon@gordonandgordon.com |
