Technical editing involves reviewing text written on a technical
topic, and identifying usage errors and ensuring adherence to a style guide.
Technical editing may include the correction of grammatical mistakes,
misspellings, mistyping, incorrect punctuation, inconsistencies in usages,
poorly structured sentences, wrong scientific terms, wrong units and dimensions,
inconsistency in significant figures, technical ambivalence, technical
disambiguation, correction of statements conflicting with general scientific
knowledge, correction of synopsis, content, index, headings and subheadings,
correcting data and chart presentation in a research paper or report, and
correcting errors in citations.
In large companies, experienced writers are dedicated to the
technical editing function. In organizations that cannot afford dedicated
editors, experienced writers typically peer-edit text produced by their less
experienced colleagues.
It helps if the technical editor is familiar with the subject
being edited, but that is not always essential. The "technical"
knowledge that an editor gains over time while working on a particular product
or technology does give the editor an edge over another who has just started
editing content related to that product or technology. But essential general
skills are attention to detail, the ability to sustain focus while working
through lengthy pieces of text on complex topics, tact in dealing with writers,
and excellent communication skills.
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