Intercom Website Launched

Intercom, the Society's magazine, provides practical examples and applications of technical communication. Intercom also includes Society news, columns edited by technical communication experts, and a calendar of industry-related events. Intercom is published ten times per year and is free with membership.

To view the online version of Intercom, visit http://www.stc.org/intercom

STC's 52nd Annual Conference

Seattle, May 8-11, 2005

STC's 52nd Annual Conference will be held May 8-11, 2005 in Seattle, Washington. The theme for the conference is "Experiencing Technical Communication." STC's annual conference is the world's largest gathering of technical communicators. Among the many highlights of the conference are educational sessions, workshops, vendor exhibits, and displays of the winning entries of the Society's international competitions. Technical communication professionals also benefit from numerous networking opportunities and employment resources. In addition, STC chapters organize regional conferences to address the specific needs of technical communicators in a particular geographic area.

Upcoming STC Remote Seminars

STC conducts quality remote seminars on topics relevant to technical communication professionals. The two modes of presentation are telephone and Web-and-telephone.

A telephone seminar is much like a large conference call in which the speaker makes a presentation over the phone. As a participant, you simply dial the toll-free number from your phone, enter your personal identification number, and you're connected! You then sit back and listen to the presentations and join in the lively Q&A discussion that follows. In a Web-and-telephone seminar, participants listen to the presenter over the phone (much like a conference call) while viewing presentation materials over the Web.

Upcoming Seminars

A Brief, Comprehensive Indexing Primer: In this Web-Telephone seminar, the presenter Seth Maislin discusses sorting, tools, and usability of indexes along with useful tips on indexing topics such as information analysis, conceptual relationships, locators, and labelling. Date: October 20, 2004  

Introducing Windows 'Longhorn' Help: In this Web-Telephone seminar, Char James-Tanny introduces the next generation of the Microsoft Windows operating system, code-named "Longhorn," which is due for release in 2006. Longhorn's dramatically new Help environment uses a structured authoring model built around an XML format called MAML (Microsoft Assistance Markup Language) and is designed to provide solutions to user issues. It will respond to—and solve—real problems that customers experience. Windows “Longhorn” Help has a well-designed application user interface, and assistance is available directly from the application. Date: November 10, 2004

Highlighting Hazards: Mastering Warnings and Error Messages: In this Telephone seminar, Leah Guren will help you learn the theory, standards, and usability of hazards. Date: December 8, 2004

Pre-emptive Project Planning: In this Web-Telephone seminar, John Hedtke will teach you how to spot upcoming projects before they sneak up on you. You’ll learn to prepare for these projects, avoid those nerve-wracking schedule crunches, and look like a hero in the process! Date: January 12, 2005