Darics Readings on Digital Writing and Professional Communication

     Darics readings introduces us to the concept of digital writing in an age in which new media creates a professional environment that necessitates instantaneous response to messages and updates, but is comparatively lethargic in learning and adapting to the nuances inherent in the language of well-structured communications through digital media. The book introduces these overlooked concepts to go over further, an employee's punctuation and word choice, level of formality in a message, and even the extraneous details afforded by new media such as e-mail. The second of Darics readings dives straight into the complexities of communication within a business or office setting, and how even in a simple conversation, employees are trying to accomplish several tasks while communicating; creating or learning the workplace culture, identifying and expressing solidarity with the workplace community, expressing friendliness, showing one's position through use of language specific to the position, and accomplishing tasks like requesting or confirming information are all things people do in one combination or another through daily interactions. The balancing act required to maintain a clear and unmuddied line of communication is the main focus of Darics second chapter. How a thing is said is just as important as the thing that needs saying, if not more so; therefore, a careful crafting process is needed to communicate clearly and successfully. Because of the lack of non-verbal cues and the emphasis on the language of any given message in digital media, this careful approach to language is needed to communicate the intended reality or message to the reader. The lack of non-verbal audio and visual cues has allowed for the development of a range of symbols including use of emoticons or multiple punctuation marks in lieu of grunts or gasps. However, this seemingly quick fix is weighed down by the subjectivity of these symbols. The correct interpretation of a message containing one of this substitutes for non-verbal cues is heavily reliant on the factor of the relationship between sender and recipient. Darics readings boil down to one of the single most important facts when crafting a message, context. The context of any given message will affect how the sender words it and how the recipient responds to it.

I found the reading on how the non-verbal cues correspond with emoticons and punctuation very interesting. It is one of those facts that you had never really given deliberate thought to, but just subconsciously understood.

When is it appropriate to use such symbols in the workplace?

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