What is the Writing Turbocharger?

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Turbocharger contents

What is on this page?

Who is the Writing Turbocharger for?

The Writing Turbocharger is for first-year students at the University of Hong Kong. The Turbocharger will show you how to use your computer to write better essays and assignments right from the beginning of your university career.

How is the Turbocharger organized?

The units are arranged in the order you need them when writing an essay. Each unit has its own home page (listed on the left-hand side of this page). To complete a unit, follow the directions on its home page. It is a good idea to use the Turbocharger when you write your first university essay. You will find that it makes this essay and subsequent essays easier to complete with your computer. You may even get higher grades.

How do I use the Turbocharger?

Start with the Table of Contents on the Turbocharger home page. From here you can go to the home page of any unit. We suggest that you work through the units in the order they are listed in the Table of Contents, because this corresponds to the usual order of the phases in writing an essay.

When you begin a unit of the Turbocharger, first read through the description on the unit home page. Then work your way through the pages in the unit. There are two ways to do this: either click on the headings on the unit home page or follow the 'next page' links at the bottom of each page. If you use these 'next page' links, you will not miss a single page of the Turbocharger.

Each unit begins with some questions and answers to start you thinking about the topic of the unit. This is followed by some advice relevant to the topic. The remainder of each unit consists of step-by-step instructions on techniques that will help you make the best use of your computer. Practical tasks and activities are also included. Lastly, you can test your understanding of each unit through its review page or a short quiz.

There is also a short evaluation form at the end of each unit. Please fill these in when you have finished each unit to help us improve the Turbocharger for you and your fellow students.

Many pages in the Turbocharger contain step-by-step instructions on how to do things with other applications on your computer. In order to use the Turbocharger effectively, you will need to know how to arrange the Writing Turbocharger in a convenient part of the screen, so that you can read the instructions and work in another part of the screen at the same time. Find out how to do this before you start using the Turbocharger by reading the Using multiple windows Turbotool.

What software do I need?

To use the Writing Turbocharger you will need a recent web browser such as Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 or Netscape Communicator 4.0. The Turbocharger has been designed for Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 and some of its features may not work well in other browsers. The Turbocharger also contains some downloadable documents for which you will need Microsoft Word 7.0. If you have purchased an IBM ThinkPad through the University of Hong Kong, all the software you need will be already installed on your computer.

The Turbocharger also gives advice on two free applications that are not pre-installed on ThinkPads purchased through the University: the Eudora Light e-mail program and ICQ. We recommend that you download and install these applications as soon as you can. Find out how by reading the Eudora Light and ICQ Turbotools.

What are Turbotools?

Turbotools are tips that will help you use the Turbocharger more effectively. You will find links to them in the Turbocharger whenever they may be helpful. There is also a list of Turbotools in the sidebar on the Turbocharger home page. You can find out more about the Turbotools available in the Turbocharger on the Turbotools home page.

What can you find in the Writing Turbocharger?

Each unit of the Turbocharger contains advice, activities and step-by-step instructions on setting up your computer for academic work that you can carry out as you read. Below is a list of the units in the Turbocharger with a brief description of what you will find in each.

Unit 1 - The electronic workspace
Covers basic file management procedures. It explains how to use files and folders to organize your university work and gives step-by-step instructions on customizing your computer so that you can get ready for work now.
Unit 2 - Researching an essay
Gives step-by-step instructions on storing references to web-sites, searching the University Library catalogues on the web and searching the web for research sources.
Unit 3 - Planning
Covers two kinds of planning: planning how you are going to write and planning what you are going to write. Learn about some of the differences between writing with your computer and writing with pen and paper. Learn how to use Microsoft Word to writing a plan using freewriting or outlining.
Unit 4 - Drafting
Explains what drafting and redrafting are and helps you to produce a draft using some of the special features of Microsoft Word. Learn how to write a draft based on a Word Outline, how to use Outline view to keep track of the structure of your draft and how to use cut and paste to reorganize your writing.
Unit 5 - Collaborating
Shows how to use Eudora Light and ICQ to talk about your writing with other students and exchange drafts as file attachments. Learn how to set up discussion groups for e-mail or chat.
Unit 6 - Feedback
Helps you to give sensitive feedback on other students' writing and shows you how to use the Protect Document features of Microsoft Word to insert comments and suggested revisions directly into a Microsoft Word document.
Unit 7 - Formatting
Helps you to format the different parts of your essay (paragraphs, headings, quotations and references) using Microsoft Word. Shows you how to use Microsoft Word Styles and Templates to format text automatically.
Unit 8 - Proofing
Gives suggestions on proof-reading, including use of the Microsoft Word Spell-checking and Grammar-checking tools.
Turbocharger quiz
The last page of the Turbocharger is a short quiz. If you make a mistake, the Turbocharger will point you back to the unit you need to revise.

Turbocharger home

Next page - Unit one