Who Values Biography Who we are New Jersey based J-Tech Communications Service is an independent business whose objective is to provide high quality technical publications for industry. The company consists of a husband and wife team with skills in technical writing and illustrating, industrial product design, manufacturing, finance, education, and management. Our goal is to produce easy-to-use documents. Our mission is to share our enthusiasm for gathering, analyzing, organizing, and presenting technical ideas. Top Our Writing Values Most readers have the same objectives: to quickly find specific information and to learn new procedures, processes, or applications with a minimum amount of stress. Documents that address these needs are easy-to-use. They reward the reader with a maximum amount of information for his or her effort. Key strategies for easy-to-use documents: Make the document appealing Use a logical structure Write concise prose Include visuals Appeal Good looking, well written documents attract greater interest and carry more authority than carelessly assembled documents. Include white space between blocks of text. Readers appreciate an open space between ideas to rest their eyes. Use fonts that are compact and conventional. Unusual fonts will distract and slow the reader. Choose concrete nouns over abstract nouns. They create images that enhance reader understanding. Use action verbs that produce motion to stimulate reader interest. Vary sentence structure and paragraph length to interest readers. Check spelling and grammar, ensure data is correct. Accuracy builds reader trust, which is the goal of all writing. Structure Predictable document structure helps readers quickly find and understand information. Assign descriptive, consistent headings and subheadings. The reader can use the resulting Table of Contents as an index. Use indicative sentences to give background information. Use imperative sentences to describe procedures. Construct sentences using subject-verb-object order. Make subjects and verbs agree in number. Make nouns and their pronouns agree in number. Use parallel phrasing for series and lists. Prose Writing that emphasizes the subject, rather than the author, is concise and conveys the message to the reader quickly. Keep focused on the reader and the purpose of the document. Eliminate information the reader already knows. Avoid irrelevant or excessive details. Follow claims with supporting data. Use active voice to increase clarity and reduce word count. Remove redundant words. Eliminate wordy phrases. Avoid jargon, unfamiliar, and overused words. Select words for their precise meaning. Visuals When information is presented in graphic form, concepts take physical shape and relationships are easier to see and remember. Use illustrations and photographs to show what something looks like and the position of component parts. Use schematic diagrams to show interconnection and function of component parts. Use block diagrams to represent the relationship of parts or phases. Use flow charts to symbolize successive steps in a procedure or system. Use graphs to show quantities and trends. Use pie charts to show proportions and percentages. Use bar charts to make comparisons between quantities. Use tables to present large quantities of data. Top   Biography Joseph J. Wisniewski, the principal of J-Tech Communications Service, develops, writes, and illustrates technical documents for original equipment manufacturers and designers. He has worked for 22 years in the manufacturing industry. For eight years, Joseph served as Director of Research and Development for a leading material handling firm where he was responsible for product design, documentation, and development. During that time, he noted the shortage of skilled technical writers with engineering and communications skills. In 1999, he started his own firm to provide this service to industry. Recent projects include: A series of installation, operation, and maintenance manuals for a family of automated storage devices. An installer training and certification program. A design specification for a new automated storage device. A safety standard for horizontal carousels and related equipment. A roll-out plan for implementing Pro/ENGINEER. An internal web site to establish and communicate Pro/ENGINEER standards to system users. Joseph has a Bachelor's degree in engineering from New Jersey Institute of Technology. In addition to the standard engineering curriculum, he studied technical writing and communication under Dr. Herman A. Estrin. Joseph has completed the Dale Carnegie Course in effective speaking and human relations and served as a graduate assistant. He was a member of the New Jersey Institute of Technology Industrial Liaison Committee. He administrated the employee training program at White Storage and Retrieval Systems Inc. Joseph is a member of the Society for Technical Communication. Ronda L. Wisniewski, Technical Editor, handles proofreading and editing. She also assists with writing, drawing, and desktop publishing. Ronda holds a Bachelor's degree in education from William Paterson University and a Degree of Distinction from the Institute of Financial Education. For eight years she worked as a teacher. During that time, she designed original educational materials and wrote scripts for student programs and performances. She also assisted in the evaluation and selection of textbooks and supplementary materials. Ten years in business and finance honed her skills in business administration. Among other achievements, she created a departmental computer library of forms and correspondence. She was involved in the development, implementation, and evaluation of methods and procedures. In addition, for six years she was a member of the Society of Craft Designers. Her original craft designs and instructions have appeared in nationally published magazines. Her fascination with words and language extends to her spare time. She scrawls interminable letters, creates her own cards, writes poetry and prose, and keeps in practice with other languages (French, Spanish, and American Sign Language).