My writing colleagues and I recently presented on our favorite help systems from companies like Lego, Spotify, Google, and WordPress. Here are some things we found, and some implications for writers of help content.
Author: Richard Rabil, Jr.
By day I work as a technical writer. I write essays and fiction in my spare time.
A Modest Proposal: Let J.K. Rowling Write Whatever She Wants
Some critics have called for JK Rowling to stop writing Harry Potter stories. What the what? Why can't she do whatever the heck she wants?
My Essay on Free Will, Hacking, and Transcendent Narrative
Best-selling author Yuval Harari recently claimed that free will is a myth, humans are more hackable than ever before, and religion has no place in addressing the scientific and technological challenges of the future. Here's why he's wrong.
Evil Has Every Advantage But One
A famous poet and an English critic read 'The Lord of the Rings' and had surprisingly similar things to say about the function of imagination.
Writing Inspiration: Medieval Music and Playlists
In my spare time I write fiction, and I like to listen to medieval and/or fantasy-inspired ambient music while doing so. Here are a few songs and playlists that get me going.
Repeating History
Oh, look. A former Google and Uber engineer who said that studying the past is for the birds and the future is all that matters.
From ‘Cryptonomicon’: The Importance of Time-Tested Moral Frameworks
Historian Yuval Noah Harari does not believe religion has anything relevant to say about the technological challenges of the future. His argument reminds me of a passage from an award-winning novel that suggests otherwise.
