Professional Writing instructors at Purdue and elsewhere have included teaching resources useful for OSDDP activities.
Handouts and Activities
In this section, you can find handouts and activities that instructors have used in teaching OSDDP-related coursework.
3 Sample Deliverables plus a few teaching suggestions
Project 2 Examples
Sample Documents for Project Planning and (a few) Teaching Guidelines
Note: These sample documents are intended to complement a project
assigned in Technical Writing (ENGL 421). The assignment (provided
by Meredith Zoetewey) requires students to create three deliverables:
a documentation proposal (or plan), a task list, and a set of storyboards.
Simple examples of these three genres are below. The Teaching Guidelines
section describes how I used these samples, mentions some challenges
I encountered, and offers some suggestions for other instructors.
We propose to write documentation for three features
of the OSDDP's login function:
(1) getting a user account
(2) troubleshooting any problems new users may experience with their accounts
(3) editing an existing user account.
We will also include a brief section discussing
how to find out information about other users.
Audience:
Because the primary audience for our proposed documentation
consists of people without user accounts, they are probably by definition
new to the OSDDP site. However, there may be a secondary audience
of more experienced users (for example, other professional writing
instructors or returning students) who have forgotten their passwords,
want to edit their profile, or want to look up other users.
Justification
Although the process of creating a user account is fairly straightforward, new users may find such directions to be reassuring. In addition, some links and buttons are small or difficult to locate, such as the "Create New Account" link.
Relationship to other documentation
So far, we have found no documentation of this
topic on the OSDDP site; however, there may be guidelines in Drupal.
Personnel
Maria M., a junior in mechanical engineering, wrote
documentation during her internship with Honda last summer. Since
she has used WebCT for several classes in the past, she is familiar
with the process of logging into a protected content management site.
Since she has previously written documentation, she will outline the
first draft and make final edits.
Robert R., a senior in computer science, has extensive
programming experience. Since he is also an amateur photgrapher and
has access to screen capture software, he will take screen shots for
the storyboards and insert them into Maria's initial draft. He will
also draft the section on password reminders since he has already
forgotten his OSDDP password twice.
Schedule
Monday afternoon: outline initial draft and rough
out major sections (Maria).
Tuesday morning: review first draft for missing content and complete
first draft (Robert)
Tuesday afternoon: ask class to test a second version of documentation
Wednesday morning: revise based on test results, do a final edit,
proofread, (Maria) and upload (Robert)
Budget and Resources
This project requires use of a computer with word processing, web authoring, and presentation software. Access to screen shot software will be helpful, but it is not essential since screen captures may also be used.
Potential Problems
We expect that other students will be creating similar
documentation in the days ahead. While this is to be expected, we
will address it by keeping an eye on the OSDDP for new postings.
Students should read about project management and proposals.
The project itself and the deliverables should be introduced.
Possible Challenges & Teaching Suggestions
#1: Students may be confused about the relationship between the project management documents and the actual documentation: "Are we task listing and storyboarding project 2 or project 3?"
Tip: In general, students should plan to create task lists and storyboards for project 3. However, some student groups will choose complicated projects, and may therefore need to create a task list for project 2 in order to plan their planning.
#2: My students recommended introducing the course project and its deliverables ("You'll be creating a proposal, a task list, and storyboards") before introducing students to the OSDDP.
#3 Be sure that students aren't confusing documents (various types
of written texts) with documentation (instructions and descriptions).
Creating an article about the OSDDP and Pedagogy for Kairos
The main goal of our project was to create a web text for Kairos, the online journal, about the OSDDP, pedagogy, and online writing spaces. Kairos asked for research pertaining to the intersection of online writing spaces, rhetorical theory, and the composition classroom. The intersection that we speak of will discuss the theory that generally affects the teaching of composition. To achieve our main goal we wanted to ecourage access for various audiences to be aware and to view Purdue University's Open Source Development and Documentation Program and to eliminate the previous notion that writing in online spaces goes unrevised, remains unread, and reaches very few audiences.
Our project focused on the Open Source Development and Documentation Program or OSDDP that allows users to submit their research individually or as a team and at the same time allows others to access the website and revise and comment on the documentation work. In our project two classes were divided up into ten teams. The OSDDP team worked on formulating the purposes and goals of the OSDDP writing space. They informed how the website compares and contrasts to other open source technology. The business, technical, and professional writing team continued to talk about the OSDDP and how it helped to prepare students for other classes and the future work place. The team also spoke of the adaptability of technology and how an online writing space like OSDDP can be considered as an online textbook. The examples team provided some specific written examples from the OSDDP writing space and discussed how they have been or could be continuously revised in an online environment. They also included strategies for how to review our own web text project during its construction phase. The interview team interviewed various users and creators of OSDDP. The team also shared their own views, ideas, and arguments on the content of the interview. The research team designed questionnaires and compiled their results into a table. The learning communities and service learning team talked about the OSDDP serving as a learning community and service learning opportunity for users in related areas of study. They demonstrated how the open source community and the OSDDP relate by way of bringing the student and client base closer together. The technical team created a template that was well designed and appropriate for the text that we created. They helped assist all teams in the arrangement of their text for the overall web text document. The project management team oversaw the entire operation of the project. They set up time constraints, composed weekly status reports, and made sure every team was on task. The conclusions team did extensive research on all topics for the various teams at the same time developed a works cited and credits page and explained the class's purpose of undertaking this project. The theory team completed the introductory work and coordinated with the project management team. The team also focused on how the project affected the instructor and the students and what theory exists behind it.
Everyone has productively worked together on this project, collaborated on ideas, and worked well with the project management team. With this project we were able to get a glimpse of working on real life issues in a team atmosphere. The teams have all worked at a good pace and have interacted with one another in a helpful manner. We all shared the progress we made and gave revisions for one another's topic. It was like our own little OSDDP page since we were able to put our own work on a common disk drive and allowed other teams to revise and make suggestions, serving as a great resource and helping hand.
overview
This project asks you to write a portfolio of documents about the OSDDP for a real client, Kairos online peer reviewed journal. You will work as a member of a team to create documents that meet the needs of your client. You will use the Open Source Development and Documentation website to explore and discuss possible topics.
Each team will be responsible for a single area of research and/or production. Teams will produce a portfolio deliverables, provide technical support and design, organize and manage the project.
The client that we will be working for is Kairos, an online journal. The specific documents we will create respond to the requests of the journal found on their website.
purpose of this project
• formulate and examine a critical research question that relates to Open Source and the OSDDP
• practice developing the types of documents you will produce on the job
• practice finding resources that already exist (library research) and/or gathering and analyzing new information (field work)
• collaborate with a team to manage and produce a critical project
portfolio deliverables
Your options are open based on the topic you choose, who your intended audience is and what the purpose is for your research.
Some options are:
• Recommendation report
• Proposal
• Documentation
• Marketing materials
• Case study of open source community
• Client sheets – letters to clients, forms to keep track of,
• Interview questions/ research questions
• Audience Analysis
related readings
Open Source and Academia
Journals to look at for articles (these can be found in full text through Purdue library online, e-journals):
• Technical Communication Quarterly (TCQ)
• Journal of Business and Technical Communication (JBTC)
• College Composition and Communication (CCC)
• College English
You can also look at Kairos for other related materials.
Also look for books that you can use to relate to your project.
a professional business portfolio:
• fully achieves the purpose of the assignment: to explore and generate a critical research question and design a portfolio of documents that respond to that question
• demonstrates a thorough understanding of the writing context
• conforms to all conventions of formatting and design
• works well in both print and digital form
• is free of all typographical and grammatical errors
calendar
week 1: portfolio introduction
• introduce Critical Research Questions you will use to analyse open source in the workplace
• introduce portfolio and possible documents
• discuss Adaptive Project Management
week 2: establish the project
• begin adaptive project management plan and establish critical research question
week 3: reports
• discuss the function of reports and how to adapt the genres to your projects needs
• design a report that clearly articulates your research question
week 4: deliverables
• create the documents needed for the portfolio
week 5: revisions
• workshop revisions of the portfolio documents
week 6: dreamweaver and fireworks workshops
week 7: complete and present the portfolio
• presentations of your digital portfolio
Developing web content and marketing materials for bryght.com
Project 3 with bryght.com
In this project, class groups will be working with the people at bryght.com to develop sales, promotional, and website content. I'd like about six groups, and hopefully your interests will allow that number of groups. I hope this project allows you to employ and enhance skills you will need in the job market and in your future jobs. This project is 40% of the final grade, and will have many components.
Project Deliverables (with grade percentage and due dates):
Response and Brainstorming Memo: Ideas for bryght.com from your experience in classes or work, what you'd like to work on in a group, and question/comments about Project 3 -- Due October 28th, 2004 (1% of grade) -- Grade criteria:
Blog with Bryght: Create an issue under our class' Project to blog with the developers at bryght.com. Discuss your project plans with the guys at bryght.com (2%) -- Begin on Nov. 2
First post: Introduction of group members and skills with preliminary questions
Subsequent Posts: keep blogging until you have decided on a project
Grade is judged on participation and the instructor's observation of blog
Blog Summary Memo: A 1-page memo from your group to me summarizing the blog and what you decided to create Due Nov. 9 at beginning of class -- (2%) Grade criteria
Memo format
Quality of writing
Quality of information in summary
Draft Proposal: This will be a more formal memo of 1 to 2 pages on what your group will be developing for bryght.com, including an overview of and background on the project, analysis of the problem or need, a plan for project completion and group involvement. This proposal functions as a rought draft for the subsequent assignment listed next. Due. Nov. 11 -- (3%) Grade criteria:
Necessary Sections: overview and background; analysis of problem or need; plan for project completion and group involvement
Quality of writing
Memo format
Proposal and Project Management Report: This document will be 5-8 pages in length. This is more formal than a memo. As for formatting, the first page can be as simple as a title with names and dates and then the paper.You can use an executive summary if you like, or even a table of contents. This report will include further development of the proposal into a longer document. The plan for project completion and group involvement section of the proposal should be developed into the time management and team work structure sections. Additional sections include expected results and benefits, revision expectations, as well as an appendices with biographies of group members, a Gantt chart, and relevant resources on a works cited page. Due Nov. 16th -- (7%) Grade criteria
Necessary Sections: title with names and date (does not have to be on seperate page); overview and background; analysis of problem or need; time management; team work structure, expected results and benefits; revision expectations; appendices biographies; appendices Gannt chart; appendices works cited page
Quality of writing
Proper format (title and names; talking heads; necessary sections; no memo format) and length (5-8 pages single-spaced)
Link to possible format: http://www.isr.umd.edu/Labs/CACSE/chemsense/
Link to Proposal page: Content and Organization
Link to content example: Biomedical Engineering Design Project
bryght.com Deliverable with Revision: The class is producing content for bryght.com. Each specific group will develop content from interaction with and input from Boris and Roland and others at bryght.com. I'll be here to help, but the show is yours.
Initial Deliverable Ideas
Excerpt of email from Boris Mann at bryght.com in regards to what I think our class can produce: Desires for content: yes, the website is the likely primary target of the produced content. You mentioned:
-3 S.P.I.N. (Situation, Problem, Implication, Needs Payoff ) model (2x small business, 1 non-profit): Small Business: most SMBs want a web presence but they aren't sure where to get one or where to start or if they can afford it (this would focus on the self-updating, dynamic features of Drupal that result in high search engine rankings); Intranet / Competitive Intel: a team wants a secure online space to share information, gather information on the web about different topics; Online Community: an organization (e.g. SCUBA Enthusiasts, School Board, Non-profit) want an online place to organize events, provide a place for their members to communicate, and have a central place to put information LINK to article on S.P.I.N. models
- marketing: potentials here would be marketing to end users (which is
a bit like SPIN, but more broad-based) as well as marketing to
resellers (why become a Bryght reseller? as a designer? as a developer?
as a consultant?)
- sales: features, benefits, competitive overview (21publish, Square
Space)
- IT/aviation team: the intranet/competitive intel SPIN would work
here; I can't think of anything off-hand that would be more technical
Finalized Deliverables as of Nov. 18, 2004
Aviation Online Community: For this project, our group is going to produce an
online community for bryght.com dealing with aviation reporting and safety.
This online community will allow users to anonymously report any incidents
they observe or partake in, and search for others' reports as well. Users
will eventually be able to search for reports by location, date, severity, and
several other variables. We will divide the community up by the various
fields of aviation, such as maintenance personnel, pilot, and Air Traffic
Controllers. In order to create this site and the tools on it, we will work
with the bryght.com team, and using Drupal, post content on their site under a
sub domain of our choosing.
-Submitted by Scott Wasulko and Charles Terry
Computer Group: We are creating a survey that users can fill out so bryght.com
can get more information about what people think of the features of Drupal /
Bryght sites. The survey will contain a mixture of open-ended questions and
questions ýwith a set group of answers. Within this survey, we are making a
question where the customer can declare what kind of user they are (End users,
resellers, or mass deployment) so that bryght.com can see their customer base
and try to accommodate this base as much as possible. The survey will contain
approximately 15 to 20 questions.
-Submitted by Jason Fish and Rob McKee
Marketing Group: We are going to create a brochure and a T-shirt for Bryght. We think that these will be great tools for them to market with. The brochure will be targeted to Bryght's resellers and will contain information about Bryght, the benefits of Bryght's software, and why the reseller should purchase from Bryght. The T-shirt will be a promotional tool for Bryght employees to hand out to generate positive word of mouth. The T-shirt will consist of the website and a catchy slogan.
-Submitted by Matt Flittner, Nick Hamilton, Erica Miller, and Meredith Pieplow
Non-Profit Group: Our objective is to show cities and non-profit organizations what bryght.com can do for them. We will describe how they can apply our SPIN model by allowing bryght.com to build this project in their communities. The website will have two major benefits for these organizations. It will allow those interested in volunteering for or donating to their organization to contact them and allow for communication between similar organizations. Both of these benefits will lead to increased financial support for the organizations. This project will encourage teamwork between local organizations, which we believe will increase the ability of these organizations to serve their community.
- Submitted by Micere Oden and Andrea Thies
Small Business Group: Our deliverable will be a summary on what small businesses are looking for in a website service. We are going to distribute surveys to local small businesses and research additional information online. We will then compile the data into a summarized report including charts of relevant findings. After completing the project we will then post our deliverable on the OSDDP site.
-Submitted by Ashley Engstrom, Nick Cutler, and Josh Kast
Sports Online Community Group: Our group is producing an online community for bodybuilding and fitness enthusiasts. Within this community we plan on providing necessary information on training, nutrition, and supplements. There will also be a section devoted to discussion forum where the users can communicate their own personal workout experiences and questions. In addition to beneficial information and an interaction forum, the users will also have access to an events calendar where we will cover all of the major bodybuilding news. We will need to research the latest in sports nutrition, training, and news around the bodybuilding world to produce our deliverable. We will also need to find pictures of these current events to post.
-Submitted by Wesley Mailloux, Daniel Kim, and Doug Kleis
Uniting Investors: S.P.I.N. Online Communities: The goal of this deliverable is to provide an online community for people who have interest in the investing their money. Our group will provide the information necessary in making investment decisions. This information is composed of service fees, commissions, customer service ratings, and what type of investments can be made. The production in our deliverable consists of gathering necessary information on investment firms and simplifying it for the common man. Any information that we find is pertinent to helping people invest will be added to the site.
-Submitted by Shannon Blankinship, Patrick Wargo and Matt Wirt
I expect 400 words per person as well as necessary visual elements. The 400 words is simply a rought guideline and includes drafts and OSDDP posts (15% of grade). -- Due Nov. 23
Grade Criteria:
a professional bryght.com deliverable:
fully achieves the communicative purpose of the assignment: to explore an issue for bryght.com and develop relevant web content
contains a detailed and thorough presentation of the issue/topic being discussed
provides a detailed explanation of possible solutions that relate to the issue/topic analysis
provides relevant visual elements that account for the needs of the audience
demonstrates a thorough understanding of the writing context
conforms to all conventions of formatting and presentation
is free of all typographical and grammatical errors
a competent deliverable:
generally achieves the communicative purpose of the assignment: to explore an issue for bryght.com and develop relevant web content
contains an adequate presentation of the issue/topic being discussed
provides an adequate explanation of possible solutions that relate to the issue/topic analysis
provides relevant visual elements that consider the needs of the audience
demonstrates a sound understanding of the writing context
conforms to most conventions of formatting and presentation
is mostly free of all typographical and grammatical errors
an inadequate deliverable:
fails to achieve one or more of the communicative purposes of the assignment: to explore an issue for bryght.com and develop relevant web content
contains an inadequate presentation of the issue/topic being discussed
proposes solutions that do not meet the needs of the issue/topic analysis
includes relevant visual elements that do not consider the needs of the audience
has two or more sections that are significantly underdeveloped
misunderstands or does not address the writing context
does not conform to conventions of formatting and presentation or contain unwarranted departures from those conventions
contains multiple typographical and grammatical errors
Presentation: This will be 5 to 10 minute presentation to talk about your bryght.com deliverable. Part of the presentation will include the content on bryght.com, as well as a PowerPoint presentation about the process of creating the deliverable for bryght.com. Due last week of class. The three 2-person groups will go on Tuesday, December 7th. The other four groups will go on Thursday, December 9th. (8%) Basic grade criteria:
3-4 slides per group member, and equal speaking time
be sure to include hyperlink to appropriate site or OSDDP page so class can look at it deliverable throughout the presentation
use at least 3 visuals to enhance the information being provided, and include a screen shot
consider the audience and presentation conditions when designing the background and/or color scheme
provide enough text to keep the audience focused on the information being presented
grade evaluation will be the same as Project 2 Presentation with the above revised or added
Group and Project Evaluation Memo: Evaluate your other group members and Project 3. Due Dec. 9 -- (2%) Grade criteria:
Memo format
Evaluation of Partners
Evaluation of Project
Giving a PowerPoint Presentation
Giving Power Point Presentations
Content for presentations
Whatever organizational pattern you use, your speech needs to be well-marked for the user and follow a general format:
Introduction forecast
Discuss the purpose / goal of talk
Provide an overview slide including all main points you plan to address
Use these points as main headings for slides during your presentation
Main points
Include within each main point:
Explicit statement of each point
Details about point
Summary of main point (if point requires more than one slide)
Make a transition to the next point
Wrap up
Summarize all main points
State what you have intended to accomplish with your talk
Indicate what action you want the audience to take
Ask for questions
Visuals for presentations
Font size
Use a much larger font size for headings to clearly differentiate the main point from the explanation (or use a different color for headings)
Use the largest font size that consistently allows you to include all the text you wish on each slide
Font type
Use a sans serif font such as Helvetica for headings and for sparse text
Use a serif font such as Times New Roman for the body of the slide if you have wordy slides
Avoid using all capital letters for headings in most cases
Color
Make a strong contrast between background and text
Use a dark text with a light background and a light text with a dark background
Make the background match the room color (light in a bright room, dark in a dark room so that the words stand out)
Visual sets
Visual sets are any repetitious aspect to your slides
Visual sets help orient your listeners to your talk so include as many as possible
Visual sets include:
using consistent placement of headings
using consistent color scheme and font
using the same PowerPoint template for entire presentation
using same effects for all slides (e.g.., fade to black for transition, points fly in from left, etc..)
Readability
Include one main point per slide
Limit six words per line
Limit six lines per slide
Use as little text as possible on each slide
Use a conservative template appropriate for your audience
PowerPoint Presentations: A Quick reference Guide
PowerPoint Presentations
A Quick Reference Guide
PowerPoint is a complete presentation graphics package that can help you to produce a professional-looking presentation. PowerPoint offers word processing, outlining, drawing, graphing, and presentation management tools. When you create a presentation using PowerPoint, the presentation is usually made up of a series of slides that appear on your computer screen. These slides can also be presented as overhead transparencies or 35mm slides. In addition to designing slides, you can also use PowerPoint to create audience handouts, outlines, and speaker’s notes.
PowerPoint’s Main Menu Bar
The main menu bar in PowerPoint is similar to other menus in Windows applications. The following description is not a comprehensive list; rather, it is intended to quickly help you locate features you are likely to use when constructing your own presentation.
File – for performing functions on the presentation as a whole (new, open, close, save, save as, print, exit)
Edit – for editing within a presentation or slide (cut, paste, copy, duplicate slide, delete slide, find, replace, search, object linking)
View – for selecting the view you need for the particular work you are doing at any point during the creation of your presentation (slide, outline, slide sorter, notes pages, slide show, master views, revealing toolbars/rulers/guides, zoom view)
Insert – for inserting special information (new slide, date, time, page number, other slides from other presentations, clip art, pictures, tables, charts, objects)
Format – for formatting text and/or slide features (background, color, design, template, colors, alignment, bullets)
Tools – for customizing your presentation (selecting transitions from slide to slide, building slides point by point, hiding certain slides for selected audiences, customizing the toolbar displays, spell checking)
Draw – for manipulating your drawings, clip art, and graphic (group and ungroup figures; flip, rotate and scale figures)
Window – for rearranging the working area of the application (split screen with another application/drawing/object)
Help – for accessing Help options
Starting a PowerPoint Presentation
Open Power Point on your computer. A window will appear.
Select the new presentation option that you wish to use: Auto Content Wizard, Template, or Blank Presentation, and then click OK.
The Auto Content Wizard suggests the content and outline of a presentation based on the type of presentation you are creating.
The Template option takes you directly to the template subdirectory of PowerPoint. From there you can select a pre-designed template.
The Blank Presentation option offers a blank slide template that has no style or design enhancements. This option gives you the maximum degree of flexibility.
Adding a New Slide
Click Insert and New Slide. A New Slide box will appear.
Choose an AutoLayout.
Click OK
Viewing Your Presentation
PowerPoint offers several ways to view your presentation. Buttons at the bottom left of the screen allow you to switch between the 4 editing views and the slide show view. As you create a presentation, you can switch among the four views to suit your needs.
Slide – displays individual slides in full slide view. This option enables you to see the slide in complete detail and is usually the best view for creating special effects and applying the editing tools.
Outline – displays all slides in the presentation in their basic text form. This option gives you an overview of the contents of the presentation and enables you to edit text and content easily.
Slide Sorter – displays a miniature version of every slide in the presentation in proper order. This option gives you an overview of the look and flow of the presentation and the option to rearrange the order of slides.
Notes Page – displays a miniature version of an individual slide at the top of the screen and speaker’s notes below the slide. This option enables you to review your notes while viewing the slide and may also be used as a handout option.
Slide Show – displays slides full screen. This option is used during an actual presentation.
To view a slide show:
Click the Slide Show menu and highlight View Show.
Click the left mouse button once to rotate the slides.
When the show is finished, you will automatically return to PowerPoint. You can hit the Esc key to end the show early.
White Paper PowerPoint Presentation Evaluation
To:
From:
Re: OSDDP White Paper PowerPoint Evaluation
Date:
Is there an organizational principle to the PowerPoint? State the main points.
Who is the audience? Are the presentationís background, color scheme, text, and overall design appropriate?
Were the visuals used to enhance the information being provided? If screen shots of Open Source or other software are used, are they referred to in the PowerPoint?
Were the visuals used to enhance the information being provided? If screen shots of Open Source or other software are used, are they referred to in the PowerPoint?
Does the PowerPoint inform the audience regarding the Open Source topic at hand?
Were the visuals used to enhance the information being provided? If screen shots of Open Source or other software are used, are they referred to in the PowerPoint?
Is the presentation consistent and conservative? Are there areas of the PowerPoint where the effects used are inconsistent or too extreme?
Are there any grammatical or mechanical errors?
What is the single item that needs the most work? What can be done to solve the problem?
Open Source and Creative Commons Course Readings
In this section, you will find readings used by instrustors to help their students understand the concepts of open source and Creative Commons licensing.
OSDDP Coursework Policies
In this section, you will find policies used by instructors to guide their students' coursework.
Overarching Course Policies and Coursework
In this section, you will find information on the courses that integrate OSDDP. The materials in this section are provided to help you understand where the OSDDP fits into overall course goals and timelines.
Suggestions for Teaching with OSDDP
Engaging Students in Open Source Documentation Projects
Most students have very limited knowledge of open source programs prior to taking the professional writing class at Purdue University. Therefore, the foremost challenge is to help the students understand the concept of open source programs and cultivate in them some enthusiasm towards open source programs. A suggested pedagogical move is to introduce some open source software programs to the students and assign them a few interesting readings (see the next two sections). The point is to allow the students to put their hands on some alternatives to proprietary software programs that they are already very familiar with. The next step in engaging the students is to direct the students' attention to some great benefits that open source programs will bring to the society and encourage the students to take concrete actions to promote open source programs. One of the actions is to work on various documents on open source programs.
Readings on Open Source and Creative Commons
In addition to texts provided by OSDDP, teachers may want to introduce students to some outside readings on open source and Creative Commons during the first week of working with OSDDP. For example,
The Open Source Initiative -- Founded by members of the open source community intent on promoting the use of open source within the commercial world, the Open Source Initiative holds the trademark on Open Source. They provide an introduction on the home page, the official definition of Open Source, and a FAQ answering many common questions.
The Cathedral and the Bazaar -- Eric Raymond's seminal text exploring the open source development model may be a technical read at times, but it is the defining piece exploring the benefits of community development through open source licensing. This reading is especially useful to ENGL 421 classes that plan to do documentation development for open source software communities.
Examples of Open Source Software
In order to get more familiar with the concept of open source, encourage students to download and try one of the following applications. Each is easy to install and similar to comparable applications that they already use:
Mozilla Firefox -- Mozilla's stand alone browser. Its tabbed browsing and other features make it a viable, and arguably, better alternative to IE. Students trying out Firefox may also want to try some of the Mozilla Extensions.
Mozilla Thunderbird -- Mozilla's stand alone mail client, an alternative to Outlook Express.
OpenOffice -- This full office suite is the open source version of Sun Microsystems's Star Office and includes word processor, presentation, spreadsheet, database, and HTML WYSIWYG applications comparable to Microsoft Office.
More adventurous students interested in experiencing the Linux Desktop should download Knoppix, a Linux distribution which runs off of cd rom; no installation required. Students will need to obtain the latest ISO tagged EN.iso from one of the Knoppix download mirrors. Once the file has completed downloading, the ISO must be burned to the cd as an image (see the cd burner documentation for more specifics). Then, just restart their computer booting from cd. Since Knoppix does not store anything on the user's computer, students can feel free to try out applications without fear of causing problems with their machine.
Encouraging Research on Open Source Documentation
When technical writing students are involved in open source documentation projects such as reference manuals or how to guides, consider allocating a couple of weeks for outside research. You may need to take a few minutes early on to clarify the difference between "documents" and "documentation" and to describe some common forms of documentation. Use this time to better prepare them to create their first documentation drafts. Assign readings in their text concerning documentation construction, usability, argument, citation styles, working in project groups, etc. Have them draw up documentation plans and create tasks lists. Outside of class, have each group conduct research by
Reviewing any existing documentation for the open source application they are working with.
Looking at discussions about the application. Open source communities typically have public mailing lists and forums. Their discussions will contain support requests which may indicate documentation needs, comments about the applications' usability, and specific requests for documentation.
Finding outside reviews or application community sites. For example, students working with developing Drupal end user documentation should explore opensourcecms. This site not only provides the names of applications similar to Drupal, but it is also has live demos of the applications where they may discover documentation of similar features.
Reviewing sample documenation guides such as those provided by Red Hat (i.e Red Hat's Getting Started Guide) and other commercially sponsored projects which have polished, professional quality manuals and reference guides.
As they research, have them discuss what they found effective and ineffective in the other documenation they have explored. Suggest that they analyze the different styles of documentation writing they see, the ways in which some make use of graphics, etc. In other words, use this time to make students more effective at rhetorical analysis of documentation.
Small Writing Assignments
As they research open source documentation, students in both 420 and 421 might benefit from small (homework type) assignments in which they summarize their research, evaluate existing documentation, interview a user of open source software and so on.
Using the OSDDP site
Getting Started
When introducing students to the OSDDP site, have them read the project description and FAQs first. After they have a little time to explore surface levels of the site, ask them to create a user account.
Student Privacy/ Confidentiality Concerns
In order to give students some degree of anonymity when publishing online, teachers should recommend that students not use their full name in creating usernames on OSDDP and avoid using their full names in postings on the site. You may also wish to suggest that students not use the ID associated with their Purdue Career Account. Finally, when publishing final versions of documents to the OSDDP Guide, students should always be given the choice of deciding whether to include their name as an author of a text.
Assigning Class Projects to Students
Business Writing vs. Technical Writing Projects
There are currently two OSDDP projects associated with Business Writing (ENGL 420). In the first, students are asked to write a white paper on some aspect of the open source movement. In the second, students perform a feasibility study of open source software for a given client.
Students in Technical Writing (ENGL 421) are asked to create documentation. This goal can also be accomplished in two projects; in the first, students (working in small groups) create a documentation plan, task list, and storyboard. In the second project, students write the actual documentation. You may want to consider asking your students to switch groups at the end of the first project and to write documentation planned by another group.
Claiming Issues within in the OSDDP
Students can assign an available issue to themselves by
clicking on the issue that interests them
clicking "update issue"
using the drop-down menu underneath the "assigned" field. Note that issues can only be assigned to one user.
clicking the "Submit" button.
If students have ideas for a project not posted on the site, they can also create a new issue and then assign it to themselves. Students should, however, be encouraged to read through the currrent issues before creating a new one.
Once students have settled on a project, encourage them to:
Post the names of all students working on an issue (in the case of group projects).
Add occasional status reports and followups
Making Use of the Threaded Commenting Feature Attached to Each Issue
The threaded comment board attached to each issue can be used a central location for all discourse about an student group project:
Group members can use it as a central point of communication, discussing their work with each other on the project.
Teachers and fellow students can provide their feedback there, rather than through email or another other medium.
Encourage the group responsible for the project to respond to all feedback in order to stimulate dialogue, rather than merely using the comment board as a place for others to merely post feedback.
The project module is designed for tracking project development. Using the comments provids the means for reviewing individual participation in determining a final grade.
Opportunities for Additional Feedback
Because OSDDP is an open community where members post drafts in progress, feedback on projects no longer need be restricted to the walls of the classroom. Students and teachers as well can provide feedback on projects outside of their class. Instructors might want to make arrangements with other sections to give response as in or out of class assignments or offer to trade response themselves. Regardless, students, teachers, and any member of the OSDDP community is always welcome to provide feedback on any project.
Building the Selection of Available Issues
For additional issues to be available for future classes, teachers are encouraged to post ideas for new topics and projects to OSDDP as they think of them. As students complete projects, teachers should also allow some time for discussion of new topics among their students and have students themselves contribute to the list of available projects. This could be a good thing to schedule on the day that final OSDDP projects are due.
Projects Based on Revising Existing Texts
Since all content in the OSDDP Guide is available under a Creative Commons license, students could evaluate and revise any existing text in the OSDDP Guide. Technical writers could review and conduct usability studies of existing documentation, then create a documentation plan based on their research and analysis. Business writers could research issues covered by posted white papers, reviews, and feasibility reports, and provide updated versions which reflect the changing field of open source and open content.
Evaluating Open Source Documentation Projects
At the end of an open source documentation project, students are encouraged to evaluate the project through a retrospect upon the different steps that they have taken, such as identifying the needs for an open source document, field research on the clients, studying sample documents, drafting and revising the document, and peer reviews. The point is to help the students identify some important steps that are crucial for producing an effective professional document. They are also encouraged to invite potential clients to evaluate the usability of the document that they have produced.
Sample Documentation
ENGL 421 Students may want to look at some examples of good (and bad) documentation to help them create their own.
Note: This outline originated as a lesson plan for my 420 class in Spring 2005 and was used as notes for a discussion with Michael Salvo's 505 class in September 2005. The page "Suggestions for Teaching with OSDDP" lists additional resources.
Step 1: Introduce the Concept of Open Source (OS)
Distinguish OS from freeware/ shareware:
open source products may be modified and redistributed; the source code is available to all
some products that include open source material may have a cost (for ex. the new Mac operating systems)
open source is a philosophy as well as a product
Step 2: Some Examples (esp. for non-technical people)
Firefox web browser (I had students download and experiment with the browser)
in molecular biology, organisms and bioinformatics software (see Cambia's BiOS initiative)
Step 3: For discussion with students
Think of two concepts that you know well (for example, important people, events, or ideas in your major) and read the Wikipedia entries about them. How credible do you find the encyclopedia?
How does our class Drupal site compare to WebCT?
Do any of you use UNIX or LINUX? If so, why? (you're more likely to get a yes in 421, but I had a BCM student in 420 with an interest in Linux)
Step 4: So What-- Why Open Source?
Advantages of open source
for developing countries
for students
Reasons for the PW program's interest
critical interrogation of technology
affinities between OS commnuity and in-class workshopping
Step 5: Introduce the OSDDP
Readings within the OSDDDP (white papers, webliography)
