Guidelines for writing Specifications

ELEC 421

Word Use in Engineering Specifications

Traditionalist: Obligation: shall Permission: may

Revisionist: Obligation: must Permission: will

Minimalist: Using the imperative (command) form of the verb with implicitly assumed subject.

6C Rule Clearly written (unambiguous) Coherent and well-organized (format) Complete (no omissions) Concise (no unnecessary words) Consistent (terminology, accuracy,

drawings, constraints and needs) Correct (both technical & grammatical)

Jargon The specialized language used by experts in a particular discipline Makes communication more efficient among knowledgeable people Define terms in the text where they are first used for the benefits of all stakeholders

Acronyms Analogous to jargon Well-recognized and accept as a part of the language SCUBA (self-contained underwater breathing apparatus) RADAR (radio detection and ranging) Use acronyms judiciously and define them when they are first mentioned

Nominalizations A technique for changing a verb into a noun by adding a suffix Avoid its usage to shorten the text for conciseness and readability Repetitive use of normalizations makes the processing of writing more difficult. Text is harder to read when verbs are nominalized repeatedly.

Noun Stacks Use of a stack of nouns as an adjective to describe another noun For ease of reading, limit noun stacks to three or fewer nouns Noun stack: Aircraft wing-body junction vortex generation Revision: vortex generation at the wing-body junction of an aircraft

Long Sentences Sentence length should be guided by the complexity of the idea being described Avoid run-on (fused) sentences (i.e., containing more than one independent clause) Use connecting words to relate shorter sentences

Unforgivable Grammatical Errors

Subject-verb agreement Fragments Run-on Sentences

Dr. Peeples’ CommentsUse present tense unless explaining some sequence of eventsClear & Precise Language. No marketing spin allowedSimple, direct, & ConciseConsistent naming of functions and components throughout the spec.

Dr. Peeples’ Comments No “hanging” illustrations (i.e., figures or tables) that are just there and never discussed, explained, or even referred to for clarityDon’t specify brand names (Fluke, HP..) unless absolutely required to use a particular brand or model numberAs complete as possible

ReminderThe specifications is written to describe the technical details of the projectFormal project proposal concentrates more on marketing aspect