How often have you received an e-mail message or read instructions and then found yourself reading the document over at least three times to understand it? Or have you recently looked at something you wrote and wondered how to improve it?

This guide is intended to help you write clear and readable documents. You may be writing instructions on how to install a computer application, a report on your experiences with a specific software package, or even a short e-mail to explain why the server went down. In any case, clear sentences and a logical order will help the reader to understand your writing and use it for whatever the intended purpose. Spelling, grammar and style are important because whenever you draw attention to how you've said something, instead of what you've said, your communication suffers.

Not everybody is a "born writer," but you can certainly learn the skills. That is why we have developed this document: to present basic concepts of good document design and practical rules of thumb. This document is designed to present the required information as a personal reference or for classroom instruction. Each topic has examples and exercises to practice the concepts and practical standards.

In the following chapters you will see suggestions on how to organize the content of your document and tips on how to write readable sentences. We'll encourage you to use some tables and graphics and remind you of the grammar lessons you've had in school. A checklist at the end summarizes the many things to think about before, during, and after writing your text. If you want to know more about clear document design after reading this document, the books and web sites in the reference list will provide good starting points.