The Cherryleaf Podcast

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Latest Episodes:

157. The Rise of Autonomous AI Agents and What It Means for Technical Writers Apr 13, 2025

Show notes

🔍 Episode Overview

In this episode, Ellis explores how AI agents, especially autonomous AI agents, are reshaping the landscape of technical communication. What are they? How do they differ from traditional AI tools? And crucially, what does their rise mean for technical writers?

Blending two recent blog posts, Ellis walks us through emerging tools like Manus, Opera's browser AI, and AgentQL, and what these changes mean for how we create, structure, and deliver documentation.

🧠 What You'll Learn

What AI agents and autonomous AI agents are — and how they're evolving
The four key traits of autonomous agents:
Insights from new AI tools

🧰 Impact on Technical Writers

Ellis explores three main ways AI agents could change the role of technical authors:

Content for Autonomous AI Consumption
- Structuring content for AI readability
- Multimodal delivery (text, audio, UI elements)
- Built-in accessibility for dynamic adaptation
Documentation as Agent-Ready Data
- Writing docs as if they were APIs
- Emphasis on semantic structure, metadata, and clarity
AI Agents as Co-Creators
- Personalised content generation
- Agent-driven feedback loops
- Enhanced content curation and adaptation tools

🗨️ Key Quotes

"Autonomous is the key word. It signifies something that’s self-governing, that can operate independently, with little human oversight."

"The real transformative potential of AI lies in autonomous AI agents."

"Rather than being replaced, technical writers could become the architects of AI understanding."

🔗 Resources & Links

📄 Blog post: The Rise of Autonomous AI Agents
📄 Blog post: Meet Your Future Co-Worker – AI Agents
🌐 Manus AI
🌐 Opera’s AI-Powered Browser Agent
🎤 Rachel Lee Nabors on AgentQL
The Race Is On to Redesign Everything for AI Agents
📧 Contact: info@cherryleaf.com
A transcript will be posted to our blog.

📢 Stay Connected

For more insights into the future of tech comms, AI tools, and professional development for technical writers, visit cherryleaf.com or follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

156: Privacy and AI: Risks and Solutions for Technical Writers Mar 12, 2025

Show notes

Summary:

In this episode, Ellis Pratt explores the critical issue of data privacy for technical writers using AI tools and chatbots. He delves into the potential risks, from data leaks and copyright infringement to compliance violations and intellectual property concerns. The episode also provides practical solutions and strategies for mitigating these risks, empowering technical writers to leverage AI responsibly and ethically.

Key Discussion Points:

The Promise and Peril of AI: AI offers significant productivity gains for technical writers (content creation, first drafts, automation of tasks), but introduces critical privacy risks.
Potential Risks of Using AI:
- Data Leaks: Inputted data becoming part of the AI model, accessible to others.
- Copyright Infringement: AI generating content based on competitor data.
- Data Breaches: Risk of AI providers being hacked.
- Data Sovereignty: Data stored in different countries potentially conflicting with regulations.
- Compliance Violations: Risks related to regulated industries (healthcare, finance).
- Intellectual Property Rights: Ambiguity over who owns AI-generated content.
Practical Solutions and Mitigation Strategies:
- Sanitising Content: Replace sensitive data (API keys, product names) with placeholders.
- Generic Examples: Use generic rather than actual customer data.
- Limiting Data Input: Provide only the minimum amount of data required.
- Review and Redact: Carefully review content before inputting to AI.
- Check Public Domain Status: Determine if the content is already publicly available.
- AI Provider Privacy Policies: Review data retention policies and opt-out options.
- Choosing Secure Tools: Select tools with better data deletion options (e.g., Google GeminiAI Studio, Claude).
- Managing Data Controls: Understand how to control data collection settings (e.g., ChatGPT).
- Private/Managed LLMs: Consider private, self-hosted, or managed AI models for sensitive data.
- Develop Policies and Procedures: Create guidelines for team use of AI, tiered approaches based on document sensitivity.
- Content Filters: Implement filters to check for sensitive information.
- Audits and Assessments: Engage IT security for impact assessments and security audits.

Actionable Takeaways:

Prioritise Data Sanitisation: Make it a core practice before using any AI tool.
Review Privacy Policies: Understand the data handling practices of your AI providers.
Implement Security Measures: Protect proprietary and confidential information through policies, technology, and human oversight.
Collaborate with Security and Legal: Engage relevant internal teams to ensure compliance and minimize risk.
Start Small and Stay Informed: Gradually introduce AI with low-risk documentation and keep up to date on the latest privacy risks and solutions.

Quotes:

"AI and chatbots offer in technical writing…a huge promise of a way to be more efficient and more effective in what we do. But…we do need to be aware that there is a privacy risk, and we need to address that."
"AI…is both a powerful productivity tool and a potential risk. So we need to think about those two aspects and manage it."
"So we're going to be on a tightrope, a privacy tightrope."

Want Help Improving Your Documentation?

Cherryleaf specializes in fixing developer portals and technical documentation. If you're struggling with user feedback, contact us at info@cherryleaf.com for expert guidance.

CC Flickr image: Stock Catalog

155. Dealing with Criticism as a Technical Writer Feb 12, 2025

Show notes

In this episode of the Cherryleaf Podcast, we explore the challenges of receiving and responding to criticism as a technical writer. Documentation plays a crucial role in user experience, and receiving feedback—whether constructive or harsh—can be an opportunity for growth. We discuss practical strategies for handling feedback, evaluating its validity, and implementing improvements to enhance documentation quality.

Key Topics Covered:

✅ Why receiving feedback (even negative) is better than receiving none
✅ How to separate personal feelings from professional criticism
✅ The importance of acknowledging user feedback and addressing concerns
✅ Types of criticism: Constructive vs. Unconstructive
✅ Methods for evaluating the validity of feedback
✅ Tools and techniques to measure documentation quality (e.g., IBM Quality Matrix, analytics, usability testing)
✅ Addressing common documentation challenges: clarity, findability, audience mismatch, and linking
✅ Steps for implementing improvements and tracking their impact
✅ Preventative measures for reducing future criticism

Key Takeaways:

Criticism is not personal – It’s about improving the documentation, not attacking the writer.
Acknowledging feedback is crucial to building trust and ensuring continuous improvement.
Evaluating feedback critically helps differentiate between valid concerns and personal preferences.
Quality measurement techniques (analytics, support ticket trends, usability testing) can validate feedback.
Structured improvements through linking, clearer writing, audience targeting, and prioritization can make a big impact.
Continuous monitoring is necessary to ensure long-term effectiveness.

Mentioned Resources & Tools:

🔹 IBM Quality Matrix for documentation assessment
🔹 "Every Page is Page One" by Mark Baker
🔹 Google Analytics & support ticket analysis for measuring documentation success
🔹 Usability testing tools (e.g., video session tracking)
🔹 Style guides, templates, and content governance

Want Help Improving Your Documentation?

Cherryleaf specializes in fixing developer portals and technical documentation. If you're struggling with user feedback, contact us at info@cherryleaf.com for expert guidance.

154. Trends for 2025 and beyond in technical writing Dec 11, 2024

Show notes

In this episode, we reflect on 2024's trends and explore what may be coming in the world of technical writing and content development in 2025. From the impact of AI to evolving policy requirements and shifting market dynamics, we look into the key factors shaping the field.

Reflections on 2024
- Overview of the year's major trends in technical writing and client demands.
- Changes in government spending and its influence on projects.
- Increased demand for documentation in AI, e-commerce, and SaaS sectors.
AI and Technical Writing
- How generative AI is reshaping technical documentation workflows.
- Specific use cases for AI in content creation.
- Challenges and potential pitfalls of AI-based solutions like chatbots.
Policy and Procedure Writing
- Emerging legal requirements influencing documentation needs.
- Shifting from static policy documents to active communication projects.
Training and Development
Future Trends and Predictions
- The growing importance of API documentation and developer portals.
- Increasing focus on user-friendly, contextually aware documentation.
- The interplay of economic trends and cross-border trade on technical writing projects.

Get Involved
Have your own ideas about the future of technical writing? We'd love to hear from you! Reach out via email or connect with us on our social platforms. Email: info@cherryleaf.com for enquiries or to share your predictions for 2025.

Thank you for tuning in! We wish all our listeners a joyful holiday season and a prosperous New Year. Stay tuned for more insights in our upcoming episodes.

Website: Cherryleaf.com

153. Meeting and Connecting with Technical Communicators Nov 11, 2024

Show notes

In this episode, Ellis discusses the importance of networking and meeting other technical communicators, especially for those who work solo or in small teams. He explores various avenues for connecting with industry peers, from conferences and meetups to virtual groups and informal gatherings.

Key Topics Discussed:

Challenges of Solo Technical Communicators
Many technical writers in the UK work alone or in small teams, limiting opportunities for professional exchange.
Conferences & Meetups
- Ellis mentions conferences like TCUK and Tekom and describes the more casual atmosphere of meetups, such as those organised by ISTC and Write The Docs London.
- London-based events like ISTC’s monthly gatherings and Write The Docs London meetups, which feature speakers, presentations, and networking sessions.
Benefits of Attending Events
Navigating Networking for Introverts
- Tips on starting conversations, showing empathy, and practicing conversational balance to ease networking anxiety.
Write The Docs London Event Recap
- Highlights from recent presentations by Neo4j’s David Oliver on building a documentation team and Mark Woulfe on using dashboards to analyze documentation performance.
Alternative Networking Ideas
Tips for Speaking at Meetups
Final Thoughts

Connect with Ellis Pratt:

Website: Cherryleaf.com
Social Media: LinkedIn and other platforms (search "Ellis Pratt")

152. From User Docs to Podcast Oct 11, 2024

Show notes

We explore an intriguing development in content creation: AI-generated audio from technical documentation.

We’ve prepared two examples to showcase this technology, and we discuss its potential impact and applications.

We used the user guide for Audacity, the popular audio editing application, to generate an AI-narrated overview:

https://youtu.be/yPlfAPpqGuw?si=cCJeZ-hfvg_o--fg

We also created an audio overview of Transport for London’s API using only their OpenAPI (Swagger) file as the source:

https://youtu.be/-j1yiFz8-Tc?si=WaRHpn0mgID8J4qX

We'll also publish a transcript of this podcast on the Cherryleaf blog.

About Cherryleaf:

Cherryleaf

151.Emerging Trends in Technical Communication: A 2024 Conference Insights Deep Dive Sep 11, 2024

Show notes

In this episode of the Cherryleaf podcast, we explore the latest trends in technical communication as revealed by an in-depth analysis of conference themes from 2024.

By examining data from leading events such as Tekom, TC World, LavaCon, and the STC Summit, we identify eight major themes shaping the industry, with a surprising dominance of AI and generative technologies.

Listen in to understand how these trends are influencing content strategy, user experience, compliance, and more, and learn how to position yourself at the forefront of these developments in technical communication.

We'll also publish a transcript of this podcast on the Cherryleaf blog.

About Cherryleaf:

Cherryleaf

150. AI in technical writing: where's the ROI and is it all hype? Aug 12, 2024

Show notes

Remember the excitement when ChatGPT burst onto the scene? Suddenly, it seemed like AI was going to revolutionise everything, including our field of technical communication.

But now, 18 months and six Cherryleaf AI podcast episodes later, we're asking the big question: Was it all just hype?

You've probably heard some folks saying AI isn't delivering the promised return on investment. And others swearing it's changing the game. So, what's the real story?

In this episode, we'll examine these claims through the lens of technical writing. We'll: