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By Jackie Damrau, 1st VP
Special meeting date: Wednesday, October 8th.
Andrea Ames, our Society 1st VP, will be adding to her 50th Annual Conference closing statement when she said that we are no longer technical communicators, but information architects. Information (human factors) architects must pay close attention to human factors.
What are "human factors?" Those characteristics of our users that influence or affect their experiences while using our products – the way they think, solve problems, and learn, as well as their background, past experiences, and attitudes. Why should technical communicators care? Information "is" part of the product, and many technical communicators are woefully out of touch with their users. Technical communicators developing online information, like Help and Web sites are, strictly speaking, designing interactive interfaces. And many communicators are moving away from developing only traditional documentation deliverables – some are designing product user interfaces.
Who is Andrea?
Andrea is a Senior Information Developer at IBM Corporation where she leads information development for a large data management product. She is an Associate Fellow and a member of the STC International Board of Directors (she will be President in 2004–05); coordinator for two University of California Extension technical communication certificates; and a published author and freelance writer. She teaches at the university level and speaks internationally at professional conferences.
Meeting Time & Logistics
This month's meeting will be on the second Wednesday because of the STC Region 5 conference that takes place in Austin, Texas from October 9–11, 2003.
Join us at our October 8th meeting at the Crowne Plaza in Addison! Food selections include:
Regular Menu |
Vegetarian Menu |
Tex-Mex Caesar Salad Pan Seared Chile Chicken Breast w/Roasted Pepper Cream Sauce Leek Potato Cake Corn Ragu Brownie Mountain |
Tex-Mex Caesar Salad Spinach/Mushroom Enchiladas Leek Potato Cake Corn Ragu Brownie Mountain |
Costs for the dinner and program are $20 for STC and UPA members and $25 for non-members. Anyone may attend the program only at no cost. To attend (eve if you are not joining us for dinner), you must register by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, October 6, 2003. You may register by calling 972-558-1622 or visiting the LSC website at www.stc-dfw.org.