DOCUMENTATION
Visuals
CLASS RULE: Create your own visuals. That means draw and scan, photograph, use a drawing program (but not its clip art or other visuals created by other people), or using PrtScr to take your own screenshots. If you are not an artist (most of us are not), consider your visuals as placeholders for the company artist's work-to-come. If you take photographs of people, they must be 18 years old and sign a model's release. If the picture is of children, you need their parents' written consent. Yes, you submit copies of these to me when you submit your assignment.
WARNING Violation of this rule may result in a zero of the assignment. Make sure to check your syllabus for that information or ask your instructor.
For any visuals you need, you may create them in the following ways:
1. For charts and graphs, use a spreadsheet program like Microsoft Excel. Insert your data and proceed to make your own charts and graphs. Make sure to adjust the colors and information displays so that the design is appropriate for your audience. Do not accept the default colors or information display arrangement. Fix file properties to establish your copyright. To transfer your visual from your spreadsheet program to another program like Microsoft Word, use the Copy and Paste commands. If you need your visual to be .gif files (mostly this will not be necessary), paste them into drawing program to save them as pictures. If you need assistance with this, contact me. I have a good drawing program and can help you with this step if you need the assist.
2. For screen shots needed to supplement computer operating instructions, take your own screen shots and follow the program's rules for displaying your screen shots. Microsoft's rules are located online at http://www.microsoft.com/About/Legal/EN/US/IntellectualProperty/Permissions/Default.aspx For other software companies, you may have to dig around their website to locate their rules.
3. For parts lists and labeled objects, you may take any of these approaches:
(i) use a digital camera to take pictures and use a picture or word program to apply labels (electronic option)
(ii) use a digital camera to take pictures, print the pictures, draw on the labels by hand, and scan the result (paper option)
(iii) sketch the parts on a piece of white paper, scan them into JPG files, and then size then with a picture program
Note. If you feel that you are not "good enough" to draw something, think of your sketch as a placeholder for the final artwork that will be done by the company's art department. Go ahead and sketch what needs to be sketched rather than risk a zero on your assignment.
In addition to creating your visual and designing the page on which it will appear, you may also be required to follow APA guidelines for presenting visuals. This four-page APA Visuals Handout describes and illustrates the necessary details:
Download this handout to save it to your computer
WARNING Violation of this rule may result in a zero of the assignment. Make sure to check your syllabus for that information or ask your instructor.
For any visuals you need, you may create them in the following ways:
1. For charts and graphs, use a spreadsheet program like Microsoft Excel. Insert your data and proceed to make your own charts and graphs. Make sure to adjust the colors and information displays so that the design is appropriate for your audience. Do not accept the default colors or information display arrangement. Fix file properties to establish your copyright. To transfer your visual from your spreadsheet program to another program like Microsoft Word, use the Copy and Paste commands. If you need your visual to be .gif files (mostly this will not be necessary), paste them into drawing program to save them as pictures. If you need assistance with this, contact me. I have a good drawing program and can help you with this step if you need the assist.
2. For screen shots needed to supplement computer operating instructions, take your own screen shots and follow the program's rules for displaying your screen shots. Microsoft's rules are located online at http://www.microsoft.com/About/Legal/EN/US/IntellectualProperty/Permissions/Default.aspx For other software companies, you may have to dig around their website to locate their rules.
3. For parts lists and labeled objects, you may take any of these approaches:
(i) use a digital camera to take pictures and use a picture or word program to apply labels (electronic option)
(ii) use a digital camera to take pictures, print the pictures, draw on the labels by hand, and scan the result (paper option)
(iii) sketch the parts on a piece of white paper, scan them into JPG files, and then size then with a picture program
Note. If you feel that you are not "good enough" to draw something, think of your sketch as a placeholder for the final artwork that will be done by the company's art department. Go ahead and sketch what needs to be sketched rather than risk a zero on your assignment.
In addition to creating your visual and designing the page on which it will appear, you may also be required to follow APA guidelines for presenting visuals. This four-page APA Visuals Handout describes and illustrates the necessary details:
Download this handout to save it to your computer
For Discussion
Question: Why would you, Dr. Rodgers, have this terribly unfair rule that we must create our own visuals? I am no artist!
Answer: You have to learn sometime how to correctly and legally use the Internet as a non-student. You cannot lean on the educational exclusion law to justify a lack of judgment and competence in your field of communications, technical writing, or technical editing. I require that you follow the same laws that everyone outside of education must follow. If you do not learn the correct methods now, when will you learn to protect yourself and your company while are on the job? Companies may expect you to know copyright and trademark laws when you are hired.
Copyright 2012 Updated June 7, 2014
Ida L. Rodgers, See Creative Commons terms on Course Style Guide Home page.
Answer: You have to learn sometime how to correctly and legally use the Internet as a non-student. You cannot lean on the educational exclusion law to justify a lack of judgment and competence in your field of communications, technical writing, or technical editing. I require that you follow the same laws that everyone outside of education must follow. If you do not learn the correct methods now, when will you learn to protect yourself and your company while are on the job? Companies may expect you to know copyright and trademark laws when you are hired.
Copyright 2012 Updated June 7, 2014
Ida L. Rodgers, See Creative Commons terms on Course Style Guide Home page.