I am happy to announce that I am doing coursework in Mobile Apps Design and Programming at EC3C to supplement my prior CMU degree, while working full time. I love it; I had been a Domino Apps/Server Admin at one time and I hope designing mobile apps turns out to be as great a match for my skills as that was. I am still devoted to my current position at Hitachi but I am finding that my studies are enhancing the coursework I am writing for them.

-- Planned and evaluated API Doc for a stealth startup in the financial Industry-- Contributed to winning proposals for a top government contractor- Worked with 3-D CAD specialists at Wabtec Erie to develop courseware for wiring state-of-the-art hybrid locomotives. Documenting specialized processes and software, including Siemans NX and TeamCenter. Working with NX, TeamCenter, Camtasia, Microsoft Teams and 365 suite, Sharepoint, and specialized, custom tools. Creating and editing training videos by interviewing subject matter experts, in order to illustrate complex 3-D software procedures. Adding callouts, table of contents, zooms, and snippets to increase video usability. Incorporating photos from the manufacturing floor to help newly hired 3-D drafters connect abstract images to locomotives. Collaborating with electrical and mechanical engineers, drafters, etc.

ProbablyMonsters provides state-of-the-art resources and support to enable creators to build exceptional games.Redesigning information architecture of internal Probably Monsters Dev Ops documentation, which includes a 1500-document data set. Conducting tree tests and card sorting exercises to design user-focused doc architecture for internal doc. Using Figma, Figjam, and Optimal Workshop. Evaluating search analytics to design effective indexing. Adding custom Confluence macros and indexing strategies to leverage landing page automation. Exploring techniques for cross-linking SharePoint and Confluence documents that span the company. Documenting OpenAI's ChatGPT Guidelines for our team. Designing Confluence and SharePoint templates, programming keywords to enhance indexing.

Worked on projects for several domains that I own. Published books for clients using Amazon's Create Space. Volunteer.

After completing work that accelerated Unity's migration to Google Cloud for the Cloud Dev Ops/ Engineering team, including creating Data Studio charts to track Google Cloud costs and billing, was invited to join the new Acquire and Monetization Platform doc team. As a Dev Ops writer, created templates and runbooks, designed information architecture for and curated or wrote 150 Confluence articles about Google Cloud at Unity. Attended Cloud Next in 2018, participated in systems architecture meetings to obtain clarity and direction. Presented "Lunch and Learn" to engineers to demonstrate Data Studio charts that I created to track Google Cloud Platform spending and cloud billing during the transition. As a senior writer on the ads-doc team, which grew from 2 to 8 writers from 2019-2022, onboarded and trained new writers, wrote for five doc sets for discrete teams, worked with engineers and product managers from Helsinki to China, and enhanced documentation project tracking strategies using Jira, Airtable, and Monday. Participated in Agile teams, leading efforts to transition Tech Writers to provide UX Text for products, contributing using Figma. Presented to company-wide ERG about inclusive and problematic onscreen text, resulting in improvements to dashboards and repos. Please see each role below for more details.

Ads tech doc explains how to make money from your game, from selling game items (like character costumes, coins, etc.) or displaying ads. Acquire doc explains how to acquire new users by advertising your game.- With UX team, crafted information architecture strategy to prepare ad tech doc for migration to MadCap Flare.• Contributed to API and SDK docs, editing comments in code then updating the appropriate doc branch in git repositories.• Conducted peer reviews focused on user journey and doc effectiveness. Used Figma to design improvements to on-screen text. Used Airtable and Monday to track projects. Innovated tool templates to accelerate tracking. • Created Data Studio reports to analyze doc usage trends, ingesting Google analytics. This work was used to identify targets for localization.- Worked with Sprint teams to fold writing into the Agile process for custom apps and processes developed by Unity. Conducted user research on Monetization documentation useabilty.Empathy & Inclusion Projects •By invitation of an affinity group, presented a talk via Gather that was open to all at Unity. It was called "From Blacklist to Blocklist" about how and why Unity realized it mattered that we eliminate problematic text, and how we made it happen on our docs team as well as dashboards.• Mentored and championed a brilliant woman from Jordan via the TechWomen Project (2019).• Conducted mock interviews of students from non-traditional backgrounds.Started onsite in San Francisco prior to the pandemic.

I created a comprehensive doc set in Confluence to help Unity Network Engineers migrate to the Google Cloud Platform, then moved on to Ad Tech doc after the project was successfully completed. Working with Google's Cloud Console, Google experts, and Unity Infrastructure Engineers, created an architecutre to enable our team to build a 150-article doc set in Confluence to enable easier onboarding to the Google Cloud from AWS. Built doc templates in Atlassian Confluence to maximize self-documenting on the team. Conducted tech writing one-on-one sessions as well as teach-ins and "office hours" to help engineers with docs. Projects included creating an easy-to-search information architecture, as well as documenting and editing major entries. Document topics included relevant security settings, API's, support escalation strategies, Terraform, Google cloud console, Kubernetes settings, NATs, etc. Leveraged Slack, Atlassian JIRA, Confluence, gitlab, Google Docs, Google Sheets, Okta, Workday, and other tools.

npm packages, modules of JavaScript code, are literally the building blocks of the internet. npm users download over 900 million packages a day from the npm registry. As sole tech writer, I collaborated with UX, QA, Support, Marketing, and Engineering to discover doc issues, and solve them. - Created and published doc to npmjs.com, doc read by thousands of users per day around the globe.- I redesigned the doc site to reflect the user journey, and used classic open source tools such as git, git-hub, markdown, atom, and npm. - I used Google Analytics to study how readers accessed and experienced npm doc. I contributed to QA processes, website and error message UX Text, and tracked issues with Git Issue Tracker and Git Projects. -I evaluated and responded to user-created issues, pull requests, and other contributions to npm's doc.-I became adept at Slack, Zoom, Camtasia, and other tools that simplify working with remote teams. Two samples below.

Dev Doc writer / UX Writer for Cobalt, BAL's ground-breaking immigration and foreign travel legal software. (BAL is a global, award-winning top-five Immigration law firm.) Searched for, interviewed, and presented recommendations for UX/UI firm to conduct usability studies. Mined specs, bug trackers, Rally Agile user stories, sprint meetings, and code to write content for a globally dispersed team. Defined personas, advocated for users, contributed user stories, participated in requirements gathering, and discovered and reported defects. UX Writer: reviewed on-screen text, user notifications, and labels for clarity, interaction flow, and usability. Wrote automated emails for differing user personas as well as complex situations. Point of contact for internal training teams; wrote complex, illustrated internal release doc for each 2-week sprint. Wrote weekly mini-blog about product for company-wide web page, maintained company-facing wiki for product. Prototyped tools. Developed User Acceptance Training (UAT) scripts that resulted in 30 unique findings per 4-hour session, exposing user interface issues. Designed and led testing sessions, concatenated results, contributed user stories and defects to Rally as appropriate to address found issues. Observed users in their environment, collected usability feedback, analyzed software, and developed actionable ideas for UX improvements in both process as well as text flow and messages. Selected UserVoice from a review of customer feedback tools, customized interface to align with BAL branding, worked with training team to create video, seeded the environment, and deployed to great positive reaction. Evaluated tools such as Service Now and competitors for BAL's use. (Note: Reorganization November 2016: Role changed to Business Analyst / Product Management team).

Created technical/marketing customer stories about Big Data, to illustrate compelling use cases for Splunk. Crafted each story to fit pre-set formula, including an executive summary, value statistics, technical "how to" and unique, Splunk style prose. Topics, which I selected from dozens of choices, included IoT (Internet of Things), security and manufacturing. Stories included details about specific Splunk Apps. To make the stories come alive, I created screen shots, added infrastructure detail, designed sample searches, and described customer impact. Each story is just the right size for a quick airline or train ride . . try them out below! :-) Certificates: - Developing Apps with Splunk 6- Advanced Searching & Reporting with Splunk Tools: Splunk writers use Atlassian Confluence, JIRA, Adobe, Salesforce.com (SFDC), Box, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, and Splunk demo tools. To illustrate docs, I created example dashboards and screen shots that matched the stories as needed. Attended training in Splunk Apps design as well as Splunk Search, and attended weekly hour-long learning calls about Splunk products, use cases, value studies and applications. Partner with sales engineers, product managers, and value team members to create stories.Details: My role was “Field Technical Writer, Customer Stories.” In this 100% remote position that reported to the Sales organization, my role included:- Created examples and screen shots to tell stories in a way that would speak to CEOs, CIOs, and other decision makers.- Wrote stories with 100% accuracy while still disguising the company described- Met with sales engineers, Splunk editors, and others who had direct connections with the customers in order to iterate stories, ensure compliance to Splunk guidelines, and include the most compelling details- Created PPTs summarizing dozens of stories to add sales collateral for the field sales team

This project occurred in 2013. Supported the effort to deploy SharePoint 2013 at Kaiser Permanente. Created KPIs and SharePoint 2013 sites to track deployment, provisioned new sites, documented processes, and used Remedy IT to identify and track customer issues.

Consulted for Vizdom at Google. Responsible for Release 3.X of the printed/online technical documentation set for the Google Search Appliance (GSA) connectors. The GSA allows corporations to see the familiar Google Search bar for all of their internal data, whether it originates in SharePoint, Lotus Notes, FileNet, LDAP, Livelink, Documentum, or the file system. I used Perforce, Buganizer, FrameMaker, Dreamweaver, XML, EMACS (yes, that EMACS!) and custom Google tools on this assignment. I scoured Buganizer for relevant doc bugs and interviewed support and engineering. I launched existing virtual machine test versions of the GSA connectors in order to get screen shots, and to test documentation for accuracy and flow. Note: At Google, my name was Carolyn Coughlin.

In this small specialty software company specializing in migration analysis of Lotus Notes Domino systems to SharePoint and other environments, my roles included combing through and manipulating data to make understandable results, technical pre-sales support, prototyping, proof-of-concept, team lead, and product manager. Developed use case scenarios and built the first prototypes / UX for DART using InfoPath/SharePoint Designer. DART, a CASAHL migration tool, provided a powerful, actionable visual interface to CASAHL's existing analyses of 100,000-database Lotus Notes environments. Updated custom apps using Restful API calls with Lotus Notes to gather stats from Lotus Domino website. DART presented these results in a user-friendly, process-enhancing user interface. Product Manager: Ran Joint Application Design (JAD) sessions with major client-customers during prototype phase, with follow-up to continue to enhance system, partnered with off-shore and on-shore talent to help evolve earliest stages of product. Promoted to management position; handed off to Senior Engineering, but continued to stay in cycle as needed for demos and further concept development.

Troubleshooter, on-call. Resolved replication errors that occurred due to extremely large Lotus Notes databases.

Note: This was an incorporated consulting company that I founded and co-owned. At one time, it was an IBM Business partner for doing Lotus Notes Domino consulting (which becasme IBM Notes, and evolved to HCL Domino). Many of the consulting projects were done under its auspices; however, when I was employed in a "permanent" role, I halted work on Watermelon Sky during that time. But I've listed key projects as their own items, hence the overlapping dates. Thank you! Special interests and skills in:- bringing vision to reality- user experience design- the point at which genetics meets environment- troubleshooting- API Doc - user advocacy- bridging communities, users, and business

After working as a full time employee Apple from 1995 - 1997, I worked for Watermelon Sky (previously named Virtual-Paper) a specialty consulting company that I co-founded with a partner through 2008. Most of the short-term contracts listed on my linkedin profile were done under the auspices of this IBM business partner. We were specs to shrink-wrap and specs-to-web as the internet evolved. We would meet with clients, prototype on the fly in JAD sessions, develop iterations, finish products, document how to maintain, support, and update, and move on to the next satisfied client with a great reference. We observed users to ensure the user interface worked as it should, created multiple roles with views, forms, buttons, and functions that mapped to their roles, and built complex, useful applications. We used techniques such as restful API before it was called that--basically sending URL strings to and from the app to enact actions. At Apple, I built one of the first Lotus Notes on the Web apps ever--an early cloud app that interacted with other systems to help manage Macintosh distribution to vendors for schools.

Consultant. Created interface to Webloq's encrypted private email so that it would work with Lotus Notes/Domino servers and clients. Modified Domino mail template for private Webloq email. Created illustrated step-by-step documentation for technical staff and end users so that they could implement and understand the solution that I designed.

When I apply for UX Writer/ Senior Tech Writing /API doc roles, I am often asked about my dev experience. To help answer these questions, I am listing favorite (mostly web-facing) apps that I created prior to returning to tech writing in 2012. Please request a link to my portfolio for screen shots.- The first externally accessible app for architects at GAP Inc. This app was used by GAP business executives to work with architects and other planners when designing potential new stores. This Domino app had sophisticated security and unique algorithms, including REST API-type calls.- One of the very first public web-facing apps for Lotus Notes. Working with Lotus engineers, I designed an app that was used at Apple Computer to distribute installation assignments to vendors who installed Macintoshes at K-12 schools. I partnered with others at Apple who were experts in related systems. The technology was evolving as we designed. I used Lotus Notes to develop a friendly web interface for end users. Lotus Notes /Internotes/Domino provided HTML on the fly. - I wrote the agent that became the Lotus Notes spam mail filter used by Symantec. I created the workflow, designed the app and its installation method, and wrote all onscreen text. - I created a Lotus Notes/SharePoint hybrid app that was used to help system architects migrate data from SharePoint to Lotus Notes, using CASAHL’s custom tools. This was written in partnership with a SQL programmer.

Developed applications for custom software products. Participated in Agile team.

Wrote the Spam Filter code for the Domino plug-in, including the user interface. Brightmail was later acquired by Symantec; this product was used in millions of mail boxes. Created and documented clean, easy-to-follow design.

I created a hybrid web application so that writers and editors of this popular San Mateo coast monthly magazine could log in, post their articles and art/photos, and have it approved by the publisher before it went online. They could work online or offline, using either Macintosh or Windows. I designed the look and feel so that it mirrored the printed version of the magazine, and I added a search engine and various views to make it easy to find features and articles. I also wrote stories on an occasional basis about topics such as telecommuting and local businesses.

Created sophisticated Lotus Notes databases with complex multi-layer security, easy-to-use views and forms, and interactivity with related systems.

Product Upgrade manamement and tracking.

During this time, I worked on two teams for GAP, Inc. The first team I joined was responsible for GAP's custom Lotus Notes mail system for store personnel, and related applications. This team brought corporate announcements, human resource mailings, recalls, etc., to the stores, sharing a satellite connection normally used to send credit card approvals. My work involved troubleshooting agents, Granite, and server architecture, QA testing, and adding new features to the applications. Later, I joined the second team. This team consisted of Gap Real Estate specialists working with IT management and consulting architects. As the sole Domino expert on this project, I developed an application that allowed partipants to share and receive details and files about planned new stores. Gap personnel could track progress for individual stores, look at information on a regional basis, and communicate with architects and others on the project. This program had sophisticated, multi-level security so that participants could see only what was necessary to their role in the project.

(Dates are estimates!)Transamerica, a company that demanded perfection and had zero tolerance for error, due to its financial orientation, had a complex Domino-based intranet. My task was to manage changes seamlessly, ensure precise adherence to existing standards, and direct a small team of consultants and permanent staff in this high pressure environment.

Created Lotus Notes Domino infrastructure, and worked on Lotus Notes/Domino applications for Citibank and others.

Domino developer and mentor. Created one of the very first "Lotus Notes on the Internet" sites. Taught programmers how to program in Domino. Managed several key projects, including one that helped disburse Macs to schools. I was the Evangelist for Lotus Notes within Apple, and spoke about Apple's use of Lotus Notes at the Lotusphere conference Macintosh user group meeting. I also trained Apple coders to develop in Lotus Notes. When my manager left Apple during that turbulent time, I was assigned to manage the Lotus Notes project and budget.

The Boston Computer Society was a fantastic Computer User Group in the Boston Area, founded by Jonathan Rotenberg. It had almost 30,000 members in its heyday. I founded a subgroup to focus on User Interface Design when that was a somewhat newer idea! My group was the 51st subgroup started in the BCS, and the first one founded by a woman! We featured the then-emerging world of virtual reality interfaces as well as examining the nuts and bolts of human factors design. We published a 10-page bi-monthly newsletter, Interface, which I edited. When I left Boston, I nominated a new Director (in 1991), who was still running this successful group 5 years later!

Just to note: I worked as an independent consultant most of my career in various roles. Thus the timing may overlap or be slightly off. I rarely had more than a day or two downtime between new projects, and got much of my work due to enthusiastic referrals.

Consulting Lotus Notes programmer and technical writer, working through Virtual-Paper.

Set up initial Lotus Notes Domino infrastructure and developed first applications at this biotech firm. Managed consultants, presented concepts to upper management, envisioned useful apps, and mentored other developers.

One of a team of writers documenting the original tablet computer, GO's innovative pen-based device, which used PenPoint operating system. I contributed to API doc and user manuals, and studied internationalization concepts while at GO. Many of the topics and interface questions studied at GO are still relevant in the world of IPAD and smart phones. GO was in Foster City. Dates Approximate based on memory!

Worked on PenPoint developer and API Doc.

I created a step-by-step systems administrator's guide. It described how to install Lotus Notes servers on a Banyan Vines network, something that even Lotus engineers had not yet fully documented--they sent experts out to San Francisco to work with me on this task. It was a team effort, and it took lots of hands-on research. My audience was technical but not familiar with Lotus Notes servers. The 300-page book I wrote won PG&E accolades and an award. By the time I had finished writing it, I understood Lotus Notes systems so well that I stopped doing technical writing for some time and became a Lotus Notes architect and developer.

Lotus Notes Domino Server Administration

These dates are approximate! I worked at Lotus on the pre-release of version 2.0 of Lotus Notes.

Answered critical segment of IBM customer's Request for Proposal comparing features of IBM's product to customer's product. Researched each item on the RFP and tested IBM and customer product to ensure accuracy in response. Research and writing work received top reviews from IBM's internal review. The proposal was ultimately successful.

Created user guides and programmer reference guides for UNIX-based BTOS software products. (Note: Date span shown is approximate!) Received award for BTOS Graphics guide.