I Read It But Don’t Get It, or How to Tackle Technical Texts

Discover effective strategies for tackling technical texts in this RubyConf 2021 talk. Learn how to approach challenging engineering and development books, enhancing your reading skills and knowledge acquisition. Explore concrete techniques used by engaged readers, including connecting ideas, questioning content, and visualizing concepts. Gain insights on maintaining focus, extracting valuable information, and applying these skills to various technical materials, including code reviews. Equip yourself with practical tools to maximize learning from technical literature and improve your overall comprehension of complex subjects in the field of software development.

Intro
deliverables
what are technical texts
why should we read them
road map
story time
baseline assumptions
reading is a skill
connects
refreshes
why we read the book
engage reader
original example
making my thinking visible
example of connecting
example of question
example of paragraph
what changed for me
what didnt change
Capture your thinking
Note the silence
Stop once per page
Applying this to books
PR Review
Questions