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Test your basic knowledge |
DSST Technical Writing
Start Test
Study First
Subjects
:
dsst
,
writing-skills
Instructions:
Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
If you are not ready to take this test, you can
study here
.
Match each statement with the correct term.
Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.
This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Data organized visually for easy comparison
The functional resume format
Formal Internal Proposal
Tables
Relative pronouns
2. Margins ________ on the left are easier to read; fully ______ is appropriate for multiple columns.
Bar graphs
Usability testing
High Technical
Justification
3. Describes the physical appearance of an object or area beginning at one point and ending at another; useful for product or mechanism descriptions
Spatial pattern
Usability testing
Lists
Tone
4. Appear on the top of every page in a document to indicate the page number and document title.
Headers
The functional resume format
Expanded Definition
Pictograms
5. Defining through __________ involves comparing two seemingly different objects that share a common characteristic.
Gantt charts
Thumbnails
Analogy
Line Graphs
6. They are different from Memos - since they correspond to people outside of the organization instead of inside.
Background
Letters
Chunking
Schematic diagrams
7. External proposal that may be short or long depending on the size of the potential sale
Sales Proposal
Table of Contents
Contractions
Letters
8. Included before full report; summarized version of report
Appendix
Emphatic pattern
Informative Abstract
Sequential pattern
9. External proposal written and submitted without request
Precise
Parallel sentences
Subordination
Unsolicited proposal
10. This document contains: Name and contact information - Job Objective - Qualifications and Summary - Education and Work Experience - Awards - Skills and Activities - References
Service Manuals
Process Description
Resume
Routine Internal Proposal
11. Used for writing step-by-step instructions.
Use Manuals
Sequential pattern
Thumbnails
Laboratory Reports
12. Reduces costs by minimizing customer calls and the need to release document updates. Product sales and customer satisfaction also benefitsfrom this - although this enhances product safety - it does not eliminate a firm's legal responsibilities.
Diagrams
Etymology
Informative Abstract
Usability testing
13. Left ____________ improves the flow of a document.
The functional resume format
Captions
Passive voice and helping verbs
Justification
14. Indicate organizational structure and help readers find information; type size or font should differ from main text.
Non Technical
Orphan
Training Manuals
Headings
15. Show how the phases of a project relate to each other
Glossary
Conclusion
Headings
Gantt charts
16. Begins with either the cause of the effect; useful in reports discussing problems and solutions
Audience Analysis Questions
Cause and Effect
Progress Reports
Analogy
17. ______ ______ ______ is as follows: Introduction: background information and purpose statement - Body: Review of options being considered based on criteria like costs and staff - Conclusion: Interpretations of findings - Recommendation: Author's opin
The functional resume format
Tables
Laboratory Reports
Feasibility Report Structure
18. Detailed - usually multipage commercial document containing descriptions of product/servive/project for marketing purposes.
Passive voice and helping verbs
Feasibility Report Structure
Headers and footers
Brochure
19. Rules and guidelines provided to people who know how to perform a task - These ensure safety within a group. For example - guide on how to exit a building during a fire. Policemen have ________ they do after at a crime scene.
Relative pronouns
Memorandum Structure
Plan of work
Procedures
20. Show real or imaginary objects; highlight specific parts; use exploded view to show how parts fit together.
Progress Reports
Drawings
Incident or trouble reports
Captions
21. Using '______________' to link the two sentences best contrasts the information.
Procedures
Headers
Although
Precise
22. What is the background of the audience? Global? - What is the reader's experience - What is the attitude of the audience on subject? - What are the needs/interests/expectations of the audience? - Will multiple audiences/skill levels read this?
White space
Sentence outlines
Table of Contents
Audience Analysis Questions
23. Show trends and changes over time - cost - size - rates - and other variables.
Routine Internal Proposal
Negative definitions
Line Graphs
Glossary
24. Use comparison to define - but they are less likely to be used for terms with multiple meanings.
Negative definitions
Brochure
Usability testing
Chronological pattern
25. Audience consists of people with some technical knowledge but less than experts; data needs some explanation e.g.: a physician giving a report to a first-year medical student regarding a patient's lab results and symptoms
Cause and Effect
Semi Technical
Spatial pattern
Captions
26. Written in short proposal format; used frequently in organizations for minor spending requests.
Routine Internal Proposal
Service Manuals
Appendix
Comparison
27. Written for repair technicians; contain troubleshooting charts for diagnosing problems
First-level and second-level
White space
Service Manuals
Parenthetical definition
28. This supplements or clarifies information in the text body. It is in the back and there may be more than one per topic. For example: experiment details - complicated formulas - interview questions and answers - long quotes - maps - photos - tests - v
Appendix
Non Technical
Precise
Visuals
29. The extent to which data has been verified to be accurate
Data Validity
Lists
Claim Letters
Chunking
30. Single words or short lines carried over to the top of a column or page
Deliverable
Color
Pictograms
Widows
31. Used when requesting large amounts of money
Chunking
Formal Internal Proposal
Schematic diagrams
Justification
32. Explaining what the term does not mean.
Non Technical
Negation
Spatial pattern
Operation
33. The _______ is the left-hand column of a table - and it lists the items being compared.
Closing Summary
Manuals
Schematic diagrams
Stub
34. Written to express disappointment with a product or service and to request a refund - replacement - or an apology
Inquiry Letters
Parenthetical Definition
Modified-block style
Claim Letters
35. Discuss history - development - and applications for the term - unless readers are only attempting to perform a task related to the term.
Tutorials
Operator's Manuals
Background
Negative definitions
36. Often include section topic - date - page number - and title of document.
Chronological pattern
Job Application Letters
Headers and footers
Parenthetical Definition
37. Written to ask about a product - service or procedure; brief - direct and clearly worded so the reader understands what is needed.
Tables
Job Application Letters
Procedures
Inquiry Letters
38. Letter format most appropriate with letterhead stationery - all letter elements are aligned to the left margin - and company letterhead is commonly used.
Modified-block style
Full-block style
Negative definitions
Usability testing
39. Used in in presenting steps - materials - and recommendations
Data Validity
Etymology
Lists
Pictograms
40. These build unity and clarity by creating a smoooth flow of ideas. Achieved by using ______ words (therefore - meanwhile etc) Repeating major points or words - summarizing information in previous paragraphs - using numbers to indicate steps.
Analogy
Training Manuals
Transitional phrases
Directives
41. Emphasizes important information; reasons or examples are arranged in decreasing or increasing order of imporance; used when making recommendations or proposals.
Sentence outlines
Routine Internal Proposal
Emphatic pattern
Stub
42. Included on the title page; summarizes in a few sentences the scope and purpose of the document.
Descriptive Abstract
Tone
The functional resume format
Cover panel
43. The page area that contains no text or graphics - and it helps draw a reader's attention to a particular page element. Improves the readability of a document for all types of readers. Although it limits the amount of information on a page - it does n
Analogy
Glossary
White space
Comparison
44. Written for unskilled individuals. The steps required to complete a task safely and efficiently - such as installing a memory card into a laptop. i.e. printed manuals - user manuals.
Usability testing
Instructions
Etymology
Emphatic pattern
45. Use these to show the meaning of a process or concept.
Visuals
Tone
Justification
Widows
46. These are sentences clarity is increased by creating lists/clauses with similar grammer. (for example - every item on a list has 'a' before it)
Headings
Process Description
Parallel sentences
Brochure
47. Consist of brief phrases that indicate a document's method of development - and they are primarily used for short documents like letters and memos.
Instructions
Laboratory Reports
Headers and footers
Topic outlines
48. Translate numbers into shapes or colors; show camprisons
Pictograms
Bar graphs
Executive Summary
Data Validity Questions
49. Are reduced images of pictures.
Full-block style
Thumbnails
Contractions
Bar graphs
50. A single line carried over the top of a column
Transitional phrases
Memorandum Structure
Widow
Analogy