[.ca] Handbook of Technical Writing (ISBN 0312352670)

There must be better technical writing resources:
Summary: If you already have an adequate writer's handbook, look elsewhere for advice about technical writing. If you are new both to writing in general and technical writing in particular, you could do worse. The publisher claims that the handbook "is specifically geared to the art of technical communication". Not so. The majority of information here pertains to all writers--for instance, the explanation of the proper use of italics and discussion of the voice, mood, and tense of verbs. Even the examples are general rather than technically-related: the entry for like/as has the example "She took to architecture as a bird takes to nest building", which it is difficult to imagine finding in a computer manual, progress report, proposal, or even correspondence. Some readers may find value in the longer entries, such as those about feasibility reports, instructions, process explanation, proposals, and various types of letters. These provide an interesting combination of introduction/recap for these topics. However, some of the longer entries are bewildering--for example, there is an entry about interviewing for a job, the presence of which is difficult to justify, particularly as the discussion is not specific to jobs in technical writing. Several entries are marked with a symbol that resembles a cross between the European recycling logo and the yin/yang symbol. There is no explanation of the meaning of this symbol... unless the reader happens across the entry for English as a second language (ESL). Ouch. Although this fifth hardcover edition has a 1997 copyright date, some examples betray the book's earlier origin. The examples of typeface quality (under the entry for word processing) shows a very early laser printer. The text discusses dot matrix, letter-quality, and laser printers-inkjet printers are not mentioned. Similarly, there is no discussion of the writing of software documentation. I was left with the feeling that revision was limited to insertion of new entries (such as the Internet item). This book is an uneasy compromise between a grammar style guide and a series of short articles on technical writing. I yield to educators to judge whether or not it is suitable for first-year university and college students. My subjective impression is that it does not represent value for money, even for that audience.

Outstanding: thorough, helpful, and easy to use:
I'm a technical writer by profession. I also taught technical writing courses for 10 years, and for most of that time I used this as a textbook. It's thorough, well organized, gives good practical guidance, and is easy to use: you can look up topics alphabetically, or in the index, or through checklists and topical outlines. The authors are careful to keep the volume up to date -- for example, their discussions of computer documentation have evolved in parallel with computers themselves. There are loads of helpful examples and illustrations (the graphics examples are generally outstanding), and discussions of everything from frequently confused words (e.g., affect vs. effect) to how to write a proposal. I've bought copies of this book for every company I've worked for, and recommend it wholeheartedly as a reference for anyone who writes in a scientific or technical setting.

Excellent resource:
I have the 5th edition of the book and it's one of the better resources I've found for technical writing and general writing. The entries are concise and to the point.

Awesome resource for generating technical documents!:
I'm not a technical writer by trade but I do spend plenty of time as a project manager writing functional and design specifications for software and web sites. This book is a true jewel, providing design, layout, and word usage for all of my documents. It's the book you've been searching for all of this time!!