For today, you have one activity to complete: Add a comment to this post that introduces yourself to me and the class, and answers the following questions:
- Give us some basic facts about yourself—who are you, what’s your major/minor, what do you want to be when you grow up, where are you from, etc.
- What experience do you have with technical writing? You might talk about reading or writing or collaborating on documents.
- Tell us something cool, neat, or interesting about you or your past. Give us something memorable to help get to know you.
Before you post, a couple of warnings: (1) Your classmates will see what you write, so don’t include anything intended just for me. (2) This website is public, so use your first name (or a pseudonym) only. Also, please be sure to use your vt.edu email address every time you post to the class website. Once I “approve” your first comment on the site, you will be able to post comments for the rest of the semester without waiting for me to approve them.
Hello, my name is Charlie. I am a Junior here at VT working towards my Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering. I am a Virginia native and grew up just about 2 hours west of Blacksburg. I have a little experience in technical writing I gained while working on my Eagle Scout project and as a radio frequency engineering intern, where I would have to make official reports to document each object I built and tested. After graduation I plan on going back to my hometown of Lynchburg, VA and working for an engineering firm called AMTI. I like to spend my free time working on various building projects and fishing on the coast of Virginia.
My name is Jerry and I am a Civil/Environmental Engineering major. I hope to get a job in this field as well. I utilized technical writing in my internship at railroad part production facility where I assisted in the creation of assembly processes as well as quality assurance processes. I enjoy hiking, fishing and other outdoor activities
I am a Sociology major and this is my last semester here at Tech. I plan on taking the Foreign Service exam this spring and I hope to work in an embassy some day. I am originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada and moved to the United States when I was 3. I mostly have experienced technical writing by reading instructions that come with the electronics that I buy. This past summer I lived in China and studied Chinese language and culture, and I can speak and read Simplified Chinese at a beginning level.
I’m a Computer Science major. Eventually I want to be a programmer, but I’m not sure what I want to specialize in.
The only technical writing experience I have, aside from reading, is commenting code.
I like to knit and I have a vague idea of how to crochet.
My name is Kevin Huynh and I hail from Northern Virginia like a lot of other people here. Currently a food science major and I really would like to work in the coffee industry.
I don’t have too much experience with technical writing. I’ve only ever worked in retail businesses so all we had to write were formal letters explain situations not so much specific information getting across to someone. The many projects that I’ve done in school may count as some technical writing or lab reports but other then that I don’t have much.
An interesting thing about me was when I worked at Mayorga Coffee at National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Maryland. The owner came in and asked for a small latte, I guess to test out how the store was doing. The owner told my boss, not me directly that the latte I made him was one of the best he’s had. I enjoy making latte art for all the customers that come by and enjoy being a barista very much.
My name is Luke Marsh, and I am a third year Computer Science Major. I’m from Charlottesville, Virginia. Like my dad, I want to make games in the future. I’ve always had a passion for video games, and my creativity has always been one of my best qualities. Last summer, I worked as an intern with my dad’s new company, Zojoi. While on the job, I worked on the Design Document for their current game, Shadowgate. I didn’t do a whole heck of a lot, but I did have to completely rework a whole section of the document. As far as interesting things about me go, I used to do a lot of theater in high school. Not only was a various leads in multiple plays (Gaston in Beauty and the Beast, Firmin in Phantom of the Opera, etc.), I also won State Competition with my costar Jeremy Weiss after only a few weeks of preparation.
That’s pretty awesome! I did a lot of theater in highschool too, and now I’m in CS! What’s been your favorite roll? I wish my dad did something like that, both of my parents are psychotherapists…
I am a computer science major, planning on becoming a researcher in artificial intelligence from a very small farming community from northern Piedmont Virginia. Both of my parents are psychotherapists, which leads to a very… unique… upbringing. As a child I spent countless hours playing with Legos, so I would count that as a wealth of experience with that particular brand of technical writing. Furthermore, last year in public speaking (a required course for computer science majors), we had to present a “project update,” giving the technical details of some project we had been working on. As my graduation gift, my father and I traveled to Ireland and ended up having tea in a purportedly haunted castle with a mystery/thriller author.
Hi,
I’m James, a junior Computer Engineering. I hope to use my degree to pursue a career in robotics eventually (although I tend to prefer the programming side of CpE). I’m from Ashburn, Virginia.
I’ve had some experience with technical writing in the past, both in school (we did a whole section on technical writing when I was homeschooled) and in a more professional context where at my last job I was required to write technical documentation on test cases I had coded.
I grew up in the wonderful, hazy city of Houston, Texas. Also, I’m a Hokie Ambassador, in case you need to know all about the history of VT.
who are you? Will Bradshaw
what’s your major/minor? Computer science
what do you want to be when you grow up? Program or system architect
where are you from? Wilmington Delaware
What experience do you have with technical writing? Not much
Tell us something cool, neat, or interesting about you or your past? I’ve travel a lot the furthest east I’ve gone is Geza Egypt and furthest west I’ve been is Hawaii.
Give us something memorable to help get to know you?
Hello all. My name is Paul Umstott, but I prefer to go by my middle name Tay.
My major is FST (food science and technology) which I changed into last semester from HNFE. My goal for right now, is to take the Mcat and go from there.
I’m originally from southern Virginia but lived in NOVA for the past few years in Ashburn.
I do not have too much experience with technical writing, however I have done some group projects for other English and Comm classes.
One interesting fact about myself is that I was conceived in a petri dish and am one of the first 1000 in-vitro kids to be born in the United States.
I’m a Junior with a Humanities, Science, and Environment major with a minor in Geography. I’m from a rural area that has more cows than people, Rappahannock County. I’d like work somewhere in the area of environmental protection or awareness but am still deciding on what career that will actually be. I don’t really have any experience with technical writing besides following recipes while cooking or baking. I’m an officer in both the Red Cross and 4-H Clubs here at Tech. I also love Harry Potter and even have my living room decorated in a Harry Potter theme.
I grew up in Fauquier, so I know what you mean about the ratio of Cows to people… Also, I’m jealous of your Potter living room.
Hi, I’m Leah and I am a junior in the Sustainable Biomaterials program with a focusing in Packaging Systems and Design. I am from Abington, Pennsylvania, which is just North of Philadelphia. After college I would love to be part of some kind of service activity for a few years, like the Peace Corps or Teach for America. After that I want to work with a nonprofit or get a packaging job that focuses on the environmental side of packages and waste.
In the past, starting in high school, I have had to read and write technical writing assignments for class, like research and term papers. I love reading and always read the fine print, or directions on things. I have also used technical writing in projects with partners where we had to collaborate to turn in a final report.
Something interesting about me is I went to an all girls catholic high school and I love doing community service.
Hi!
I’m Tianyu Ge (Pronunciation Guide: “Tien-Yeu Goh”, or Tiano will do), currently doing Computer Science and very interested in the field of human-computer interaction (HCI). Roughly three years ago I came to here from Shanghai, China to pursue my study in Computer Science.
If you did any kind of programming before you will know that it is generally considered a good practise to comment your code – I did a lot of that; Also I composed some cheat sheet for software shortcuts and fact sheets for classes. Other than that, I’m pretty new to technical writing.
I’ve been a translator for Twitter: I helped to translate the OS X Twitter app and some technical help documents to Simplified Chinese, and am a moderator of Twitter Translation Center.
Hi everyone! My name is Curtis Einsmann, and I am a Computer Engineering student here at Virginia Tech. I am currently in my junior year. Originally, I am from Woodbridge, Va where I have lived my whole life before coming to Blacksburg. Outside of academics here at Virginia Tech, I try to stay as involved on campus as I can with my busy schedule. Much of my free time is spent at McComas Hall, where I like to work out or play basketball. I am the President of the Men’s Club Basketball Team at Virginia Tech, which is very fun because it takes my mind off of the engineering course load, and it helps me do something that I enjoy on an almost daily basis.
As far as technical writing goes, I have a very limited experience with it. Almost all of my technical writing experience comes from applying to various internships and submitting job applications. I am constantly modifying my resume on a monthly basis, and I have drafted several cover letters for different companies as well.
An interesting thing about me is that I am always willing to meet and talk to people, especially around the Virginia Tech campus. I feel as if each person here is unique, and that the variety of different people that attend this school is what makes the school so great. I look at every day as an opportunity to make more friends, and feel as if we are at the perfect place to do so.
Hello! My name is John, I’m a junior Computer Science major from Virginia Tech. I hope to start my own business when I’m older. My only experience doing technical writing is through my freshman year internship, when I found and documented technical errors in software. This past summer I climbed to the summit of Mt. Fuji in Japan!
Hey Everybody,
My name is Brian Batista and I’m a Civil Engineering major with a minor in Industrial Design. I am from Puerto Rico, but I grew up in Chicago, Il and Newport News, VA. I am a senior and I will graduate as long as I can pass this 18 credit hour semester I am currently enrolled in. I don’t think I’ll have a problem.
As far as my experience with technical writing goes, I have done tons of memos in my previous CEE classes as well as the lab reports that were required for the numerous labs in the Civil Engineering department.
I would say that the coolest thing about me is the fact that I have two toy Australian Shepherds who are probably the greatest dogs you could ever meet.
I’m Zihan Wang, a junior major in civil engineering. I’m an international student, from China. When I was young, I learned how to play the piano for more than eight years. At that time, my dream was to become a pianist or an architect in the future. After I went to Virginia Tech, I decided to become a civil engineer as my future career.
The first time I heard the name Technical Writing was in my fluid mechanics lab which I took last semester. For each lab report, we had to write in a professional and technical way. We didn’t get a good grade for our first lab report. Because we didn’t pay attention to some details of writing technically. I really wish that I took this class last semester.
Although I am an engineering major, that does not mean I have a boring spare time. I like to draw, and play some traditional Chinese instrument. I also like cooking, I used to cook every single meal last semester. I’m a little bit introverted, but I will become really talkative once I get familiar with the person I met.
Hey everybody, I’m Chase and I am a junior Building Construction and Real Estate double major. I was born in Chapel Hill, NC and lived most of my life in Charlottesville, VA. While working at an internship the past couple summers I was involved in lots of technical writing. I was responsible for reading and doing break-outs of the Request for Proposals dealing with projects for the Army Corp of Engineers. I was also involved in creating and writing the technical proposals for project bids. I enjoy hiking and camping in my free time.
My name is Josh Staples, and I am a civil engineering student hoping to go into the environmental or water resources line of work. I was born in Owensboro Kentucky and moved to Maryland where I currently live. My favorite hobbies include listening to music and swimming, as well as mathematics.
The only experience I have had with technical writing was in my AP english course in high school, where we spent a few weeks in the school year learning more advanced diction to use for resumes and papers.
Something interesting about myself is that my roommates and I all work at Moe’s, and one of those roommates is Luke Marsh, another student in this class. I love videogames, and my apartment has an entire bookshelf full of games. (5 shelves full)
Hi everyone! My name is Myron! I am a computer science major with a minor in math. I was born in Los Angeles, CA and move over to Richmond when I was 9. I aspire to use the skills I gain from school to be a project manager for a software engineering company.
As for my technical writing experience, I did a bit of technical writing when I was documenting some of the internal software at my internship last summer, but that is about the extent of the my professional technical writing skills. I do have a resume, but there is plenty of room for improvements! I think this will be a really useful class for the future.
I am a big fan of tea! This all started from when my parents returned back from a trip to China with a ton of loose leaf tea. I immediately was hooked. I enjoy making my own blends of tea at home with the different dried fruit and tea back at home.
My name is Marc and I’m a junior in Computer Science. I come from Northern Virginia, a metropolitan area, and I’m still not used to more rural areas like Blacksburg. From when I graduate to when I retire, I want to have worked at a large tech company, owned my own startup, work in computer security, teach, and rob a bank.
My technical writing experience comes a lot from reading manual pages, documentation, and specifications for software and interface usage. In addition, I have read a lot of technical procedures from my internship at Northrop Grumman, as well as writing some documentation for internal usage of software that I wrote while I was there. For school projects, I have also written more brief documentation in code.
I like watching movies. I like watching them so much that it has become an unhealthy form of procrastination. I’ve put off assignments to 2 hours before the due date in the morning before starting class in high school, just to watch 2 or 3 movies that night. It is a habit I am trying to grow out of.
My name is Vanessa, born in Haiti currently pursuing an electrical engineering degree at Virginia Tech, class of 2016.I do not have have any prior experience in technical writing but I am willing to learn everything I can in able to be successfully in this class and also in the work field.The most interesting thing about me is the fact that I enjoy cooking on my free time.