Developer Documentation

• For Google’s Angular web development framework: Introduction to Animations, Transitions and Triggers, and Complex Animation Sequences.

Online Articles

• “The Curious Case of Dr. X and the Burlingame Green Building Ordinance“
• “Understanding Complexity at a Glance: Hand Drawings as Tools for Technical Communication“
• “New Orleans Post-Katrina: Making It Right?“
• “Building It: An Unheard-Of Housing Strategy“

Manuals – Mechanical

• Material Hoist Operations Manual – This manual received an Award of Excellence from the Touchstone Competition, sponsored by the Berkeley chapter of the Society for Technical Communication (STC). A subsequent video made from this manual (in a single day by Brett Millar, SolarCity Operations Multimedia Content Manager) won Best In Show at the STC International Competition last year. Best viewed in Adobe Acrobat.
• Loring Smart Roast Pre-Installation Guide, Installation and Assembly Guide, and Operations Quick Start Guide – Manuals for industrial-sized coffee roasting equipment. CAD files supplied by client engineering.
• ZS Peak Installation Manual – This manual won an Award of Distinguished from the STC International Competition. Graphics were produced using Solidworks Composer.
• Home Run Clip Product Instruction Sheet.
• ZS Span Installation Manual – This manual won an Award of Excellence from the Touchstone Competition, sponsored by the Berkeley chapter of the Society for Technical Communication (STC). A complex product to document, with detailed engineering rules. Graphics were produced from 3D PDF exports out of SolidWorks assembly files, then manipulated and enhanced in Photoshop and Illustrator. This English-language manual was eventually translated into German.
• ZS Tile Quick Start – This manual was a “quick and dirty” guide produced in 3 weeks, using a combination of SolidWorks assembly PDF exports, and hand-drawn images created in Illustrator.
• ZS Span Grounding – Created to address concerns of regulatory reviewers and local building departments.

API Manuals

• B2B Cable Provisioning – This manual was written for Excite@Home Networks, who is sadly no longer with us.
• nina_draft2 – From VocalPoint Technologies, also no longer with us.

Slide Shows

• 3D Graphics and FrameMaker Case Study – Work process for creating mechanical installation manuals. Presented at Society for Technical Communication in early 2013.
• Drive and Innovation – Summary of Daniel Pink’s book on what really motivates people to create and innovate. Hint: rewards should be intrinsic, not carrots and sticks.
• Growing Your Tech Pubs Group – How does a lone writer prove that there’s enough work for another person? How do tech pubs managers allocate staff and figure out how long something will take? Presented at North Bay Communicators in 2014.
• Work Instructions for Cutting Tile Jigs – This is a detailed illustrated guide to making a special-needs part for solar installation using one of Zep’s tile roof mounting solutions.
• Managing Translation Agencies – Summary of John Yunker’s book “The Savvy Client’s Guide to Managing Translation Agencies”, which helped me look like the expert I wasn’t.

White Papers

• Product Lifecycle Forecasting Method for Short-Lived Products – Written for Hewlett-Packard’s Strategic Planning and Modeling Group.
• Inventory-Driven Costs – The holding costs of inventory can be significant with rapidly devaluing, short-lived consumer products. Written for Hewlett-Packard.

Blogs

• The Architect’s Take – News and discussions from an architect’s viewpoint. Over 40 full-length features, including interviews with landscape architects Arterra LLP, blind architect Chris Downey, Min|Day (an architectural firm that used 3D Voronoi tessellations and Rhino to create a marvelous Zen-like “Stones Table”), and a critique of Make It Right!, a New Orleans post-Katrina rebuilding effort.
• Green Compliance Plus –  Green building and California energy compliance. Over 60 full-length features, including how to build a living roof, an assessment of LEED for Homes, and an energy modeling case study.
• Art Before Science Blog – Illustrated entries about workplace situations that seem to call for truth mixed with satire.

Online Reviews

• Gilded Serpent, an online bellydance magazine. See my Book Review and Bellydancing With Fire article.

Brochures, Flyers and Layouts done in InDesign:

• Flyers for The Architect’s Take blog. Shown here are the entries and pull quotes for our interviews with architect Anne Fougeron, FAIA, and architectural photographer Claudio Santini.
• Brochure for Green Compliance Plus, a Title 24 energy consulting service offered by Mark English Architects.