Title :
The usefulness of computerized readability tools: three case studies
Author :
Shehadeh, Carol M H ; Strother, Judith B.
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Humanities, Florida Inst. of Technol., Melbourne, FL, USA
fDate :
28 Sep-1 Oct 1994
Abstract :
A 1993 survey of 39 communicators in high-tech industries revealed low use of computerized readability formulas among professional technical and business communicators. The current research focuses on case studies of three technical writers who used a variety of computerized readability tools and kept a detailed journal of their writing and editing processes. The study offers a look at real world use of commonly available readability tools, analyzes weaknesses, and indicates ways in which these tools must improve to be truly useful to technical communicators
Keywords :
human factors; professional aspects; technical presentation; user interfaces; word processing; business communicators; case studies; communicators; computerized readability formulas; computerized readability tools; editing processes; high-tech industries; professional technical communicators; real world use; technical writers; Business communication; Communication industry; Computer aided software engineering; Computer industry; Current measurement; Hardware; Manuals; Readability metrics; Software tools; Writing;
Conference_Titel :
Professional Communication Conference, 1994. IPCC '94 Proceedings. Scaling New Heights in Technical Communication., International
Conference_Location :
Banff, Alta.
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-1936-2
DOI :
10.1109/IPCC.1994.347515
