anapiaday

[anapiaday]

Learning more about AWS is important for more and more technical writers. These are also interesting documentation examples. (Yes, this link is from my employer, but this is not an authorized post on their behalf.)

[anapiaday]

I think this is worth coming to Seattle for (April 18, $20 USD).

[anapiaday]

Free Advanced Alexa Skills Kit Course

(I am definitely plugging my employer here. But I think it’s for a good reason, and not just because I work there!)

If you haven’t heard of Alexa yet, take a look around. She’s worth knowing about. 

https://acloud.guru/learn/aws-advanced-alexa-skills-kit-free

[anapiaday]

Cognitive Build Faire Seattle, March 24-26

I’ve enjoyed Galvanize events since long before I actually moved to Seattle. The Cognitive Build Faire Seattle is a weekend event (March 24 on Friday evening through Sunday, March 26) where you will learn a lot about machine learning, data science, AI, natural language processing, and all that amazing type of stuff. And even better, there’s currently a free code for it (but limited availability).  Notice from one of my data science groups: With the announcement of Cognitive Builder Faire Seattle, our Meetup group is also giving away tickets for FREE until the end of the month to those who use the code 'GalvanizeVIP'! Code will apply to the first 150 who use it, so act soon (they're going REALLY fast)! Follow this link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/seattle-cognitive-builder-faire-tickets-31878733149?aff=daml 

[anapiaday]

I asked about this, and if you feel with any language used to develop mobile apps or networked services, such as Objective-C, Java, JavaScript and its various frameworks, or Python, this is a good workshop for you! Yes, it’s free! (Disclaimer: I work for one of the sponsors.)

[anapiaday]

Udacity Machine Learning Nanodegree

Machine learning keeps getting talked about, for good reason. It’s a major force behind all sorts of contemporary innovation, from self-driving cars to Alexa. I absolutely feel like I have to know more. So although it’s a significant challenge in terms of time and effort, I’m diving into this program from Udacity. What I’ve found so far is that the short video format is addictive. I have to see just another video. Coding can be addictive; it’s easy to start something and look up hours later.  Take a look and see what you think: https://www.udacity.com/course/machine-learning-engineer-nanodegree--nd009 Note you can get a seven day trial before committing to the first month. 

[anapiaday]

Finding interesting conferences related to documentation and technology

This year, I have been to DataPalooza, WriteTheDocs, Vancouver Python Day, SeattleCodeCamp, and PyDX. Writers UA, DevFest16 (at Google Seattle), and LavaCon are coming up this month. I might go to SeaGL in November too. To find out about various events, take a look at http://www.lanyrd.com, keep up with Meetup.com groups, follow interesting people on Twitter, and just keep your ear to the ground. Consider incorporating a conference into your vacation.

[anapiaday]

Docker tutorial an excellent example of developer documentation

Thanks to a poster on TECHWR-L, I learned about this Docker tutorial as an example of an excellent doc. Take a look. https://docs.docker.com/engine/getstarted/

[anapiaday]

Some comp passes available for LavaCon Las Vegas (October 25-28, 2016)

Jack Molisani puts on great conferences every year, and sometimes twice per year. I’m always impressed by the high quality of the venues and speakers, not to mention food and entertainment. So I recommend, if you are involved with technical documentation, to attend LavaCon. Jack is offering some complimentary passes, if you meet certain criteria. From Jack: The LavaCon Conference is a gathering place for content strategists, documentation managers, and other content professionals. The next LavaCon is October 25-28, 2017 in Las Vegas, NV: http://lavacon.org LavaCon exhibitors receive discounted conference passes to give to customers, potential customers, etc. A few exhibitors still have passes available, so they are offering them to qualified candidates. To qualify for a free pass, you must: * Currently lead a content development team * Be actively evaluating tool, translation, outsource, or DITA consulting vendors * Have budget approved (or are building a business case to get budget approved) for a content initiative * Be willing to meet with the vendor(s) who sponsored you and discuss how they might be able to assist your organization To be considered, email Jack@lavacon.org short summary of how you meet the above requirements, and he will hook you up with the vendor(s) who can sponsor your conference admission.

[anapiaday]

Great presentation by Sarah Maddox. 

[anapiaday]

Write the Docs Portland returning in 2016

https://ti.to/writethedocs/write-the-docs-na-2016

This really is a terrific conference for technical writers interested in developer documentation. The price is very reasonable compared to many conferences, but there are ways to reduce it further.

1) Get an Early Bird ticket (a few are left).

2) Submit a conference proposal and get a discount on your ticket.

3) Volunteer and get in for free. 

Portland has become quite expensive for accommodation in the past few years. I remember some terrific downtown deals 5 years ago or more, but that no longer happens. So consider the following:

1) AirBnB - make sure to look at transit options to the Crystal Ballroom before you book.

2) Use Hotwire or bid on Priceline and get a hotel by the airport near the MAX train. I am not crazy about the commute for this one, but if you want a nice hotel at a cheap price, this can be a good deal. I stayed at Aloft (for a different conference) one night, and it’s a great hotel.

3) Stay in a hostel. There are the HI hostels, and some on AirBnB. But book well in advance, as the spots are often full. 

4) Post on Twitter on the #WriteTheDocs hashtag and see if you can line up roommates or couchsurfing. 

[anapiaday]

Like my conference proposal on “Let’s treat docs as code” for LavaCon Dublin 2016

The proposal selection process is sort of like American Idol. If you click Like for my proposal, it has a better chance of being accepted. I’d love it if you do that. Thank you! http://lavacon.org/2016/dublin/#item_1498083

[anapiaday]

Brief definitions of 15 top programming languages

Technically, HTML and CSS are markup languages, not programming languages, but nowadays you can do stuff that looks quite programmatic, so the distinction is likely moot. This is a good introduction if you want to understand what people are talking about when they throw around language names. http://mashable.com/2015/12/05/learning-to-code/#k2ol9SbaGkq7

[anapiaday]

CodeCademy course for Git

Anyone who is serious about API documentation will have to learn source control systems, because all modern software development is done with such a system, and API documentation writers most often have at least some of their work embedded in the code. Git is what is used on Github and in innumerable companies. So I suggest to learn how it works. https://www.codecademy.com/learn/learn-git I have played with git some, but I am in an SVN company myself and that is what I wrestle with on an hourly basis. But most of the general principles are the same. You have to learn how to make changes to the code while working with a handful or hundreds of people who are also making code changes, deal with any conflicts that arise, all while keeping the product in a releasable state at all times. Not to mention, you might want to make a version of the product that leaves some some code while including other code, and so forth.

[anapiaday]

Learning to manage an open-source contribution workflow

Thanks to the Write the Docs slack channel, I found out about this great workshop for making contributions to Python and Django (including documentation contributions). You can work through it yourself, give the workshop to interested parties, make your own modifications, and so on. That’s the beauty of open-source, freely available materials, and I am grateful to all the contributors. This looks like it will be a great introduction to a bunch of useful concepts, so I suggest giving it a try. https://dont-be-afraid-to-commit.readthedocs.org/en/latest/index.html

[anapiaday]

Want an API docs project to work on?

You may be able to find an open-source project here:

http://up-for-grabs.net/

(This, and some other posts, was inspired by the Write the Docs Slack channel.)

[anapiaday]

DevDocs - great API documentation browser

I’m not going to try to explain this in the next 30 seconds, so just take a look. I love it. http://devdocs.io/