Travelling to see a different chapter

By Gwyneth Evans

Membership has its privileges™. OK, so that saying belongs to a credit card company (American Express), but regarding STC membership privileges the spirit of that message is 100% true. One under-exercised privilege is the right to meet up. Meet up with your own chapter! And meet up with local and international chapters!

Recently, I travelled to see what was up at a nearby STC-Toronto membership social event. Like our own STC-SOC chapter events, it was advertised on-line, open to members and non-members, and hosted at a central location in the region - in this case a Milestones restaurant on the subway line and by a highway. After our group of 10 did introductions and ordered a brunch feast, conversation began to flow.

Technical communicators are an interesting group. We enjoy terms like “context of use”, “progressive disclosure”, the problem of “findability” and might use expressions like, “That’s Madcap!”, “I grow my own wiki,” and "Darwin Information Typing Architecture" while debating the future of fine print and internet media as we know them. The STC Toronto council and members did not disappoint. Conversation addressed the place for documentation in mobile application spaces, the finer points of automatic and manual indexing techniques, new CAD and DITA tooling, the managing of it all and more.

Regionally specific topics including talk of local STC events, goings-on in the city of Toronto, mayoral views on public libraries versus the right of the individual to literacy resources, the likelihood and date of a first snowfall or ski season all came up. We found we all could relate to the globally available STC education webinars: Technical Communicator in a Business Process Model World, Organizing Help Content, Document standard for Technical Publications, held high hopes for successful completion of work and wrap-up of documentation projects before the December holidays whether Hanukah, Kwanza, Festivus or Christmas, and hey… the pancakes – they were good. By the time our brunch meet-up was done, I had discovered that while our STC members come from different chapters, we all do and have a lot in common.

Successes & Lessons learned:
Travelling to regional STC events is energizing, is encouraged, leads to new relationships and new ideas to bring back to your chapter. You might, like I did, discover a funny, but good, understanding that under the STC umbrella, wherever you go, you will be welcome within a community that speaks your language.

So, keep your membership up to date, enjoy meeting up with your membership and when you do travel, bring your STC membership card – Don’t leave home without us. ™

See: Upcoming STC-SOC events
Let us know: Share your STC meet-up story
Been away? Renew your membership

Student Award Winners

About Heidi Thiessen

The Heidi Thiessen Memorial Award was officially named in 2000, although the award itself was established years before that.

The Southwestern Ontario Chapter of the STC created this award to keep her memory and legacy alive. Beyond her involvement as an active member of our chapter, Heidi was influential in hiring new graduates, and she mentored many students and young writers. Through her work at the University of Waterloo Centre for Professional Writing, and later at Storm Technical Communications, many co-op students gained valuable work experience in a supportive environment. Unfortunately, Heidi passed away from breast cancer while she was still in her 30s.

Requirements for Submission

To apply for this award, students had to meet the following requirements:

- Attend a college or university full time
- Be in second year or higher in their program
- Have a minimum of a 75% average (official transcript required)
- Write a letter describing how their writing skills have improved with experience
- Submit two writing samples to demonstrate their technical writing skills (for example, reports, newsletter articles, and essays).

General Comments

This is the first year that we made the Heidi Thiessen award available to all college and university students in Ontario who are in their second year of study. Previously the award was restricted to the University of Guelph, University of Waterloo, and Wilfrid Laurier University. It was also previously restricted to 3^rd and 4^th year students. These changes are definitely reflected in the winning entries. Two of the winners are in their second year of study, and all of them would not have met the requirements for this award in the past.

1st Place – Josh Wellstood

4^th year student at McMaster University (Electrical Engineering Management Program)

His Letter

The following sentence captures an important concept about technical communication:

“I have worked significantly to develop key communication skills to effectively explain technically detailed material in a manner that a person without a background in the subject can understand.”

Submission Titles (Topics)

- Analysis of the SLN-Aecon Field Change Notice Process for Bruce ‘A’ Restart Balance of Plant Project

- Arc Flash Hazards: Causes, Calculations and Controls

Comments

While the titles seem complex, the well-written text and great use of graphics within these submissions made the information easy to understand. In addition to content, the information was laid out well with useful headings and groupings of information. These are truly impressive entries and very worthy of their 1^st place finish.

2^nd Place – Daniel Pinelli

2^nd year student at McMaster University (Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering)

His Letter

Daniel’s cover letter was very strong. In fact he started with a definition of communication:

“Communication. A skill that is immensely important in the fields of science and engineering and yet is rarely given the emphasis it deserves in academic study.”

Submission Titles (Topics)

· Propeller Selection

· ECCS Work Term Report for a company that is a component repair shop for the aerospace industry. His main task during his work term was the improvement of the thermal spray process.

Comments

Daniel made good use of flowcharts to illustrate processes with corresponding explanations and formulas. He also provided good descriptions of elements before providing more details. He did an excellent job of presenting his goals and then following those goals with examples of how they were met. He also included examples of problems and solutions.

3^rd Place – Daniel Dulcin

2^nd year student at Lakehead University (Honours Bachelor of Science in Biology)

His Letter

The following is a quotation in Daniel’s letter:

“I am determined to strive for excellence in my written work and have already registered for two writing classes this summer that are not requirements in my degree.”

Submission Titles (Topics)

The following articles were written as part of the SPARK program at Lakehead University. The SPARK program conveys to the public the importance and significance of local research. Daniel wrote two such articles:

· Mussel Man (Note: Since you cannot see the spelling, it refers to the one in the Clam family.)

· Evolution: An Evolving Science

Comments

Daniel’s two submissions demonstrate that technical documentation can be easy to read, even by people not educated on the topic. It also shows that the length of the document is not necessarily reflect the quality of the writing. If you can say the same thing with fewer words then you should be commended. Daniel has demonstrated that he knows his audience and recognizes how much content that audience can grasp, and how much time that audience will spend to read an article.

Debbie Kerr

Immediate Past President

Southwester Ontario Chapter, STC

2011 STC Director Candidates

To be eligible for voting, you need to renew your membership by February 28. Voting starts on March 9 and ends March 30.

For full election details: http://notebook.stc.org/election

Bernard Aschwanden

http://notebook.stc.org/election/bernard-aschwanden

Member Status: Senior Member

Current Community: STC Toronto

Current Professional Title: President of Publishing Smarter

Company: Publishing Smarter

Company Location (City, State, or Country): Canada

Ray Gallon

http://notebook.stc.org/election/ray-gallon

Member Status: Senior Member

Current Community: France Chapter

Current Professional Title: Global Software

Technical Information Systems Designer

Company: Carestream Dental, division of Carestream Health Inc.

Company Location (City, State, or Country): Marne La Vallée (Paris region), France
(HQ in Atlanta, GA)

Brian J. Lindgren

http://notebook.stc.org/election/brian-lindgren

Member Status: Associate Fellow

Current Community: South Carolina Midlands Chapter

Current Professional Title: Systems Analyst

Company: Imagine One Technology & Management Ltd.

Company Location (City, State, or Country): Charleston, SC (HQ in Colonial Beach, VA)

Rich Maggiani

http://notebook.stc.org/election/rich-maggiani

Member Status: Fellow

Current Community: Vermont

Current Professional Title: Communication Consultant

Company: Solari Communication

Company Location (City, State, or Country): Essex, VT

Tricia Spayer

http://notebook.stc.org/election/tricia-spayer

Member Status: Senior Member

Current Community: Northeast Ohio, all SIGs

Current Professional Title: Technical Writer/Illustrator

Company: Pressco Technology Inc.

Company Location (City, State, or Country): Solon, OH

Recording of STC Vice President Candidate Discussion

Sarah O’Keefe and Scriptorium recently held a webinar discussion with the two candidates for STC Vice President, Alan Houser and Victoria Koster-Lenhardt. If you missed the live webcast, watch this recording to get to know the candidates.


Thanks again to Sarah for hosting. Remember, the STC election opens 9 March and runs through 30 March at 4:00 PM EDT (GMT-4). You must have renewed your STC membership by 28 February in order to vote in this election. To learn more about all candidates and ask questions of the candidates, visit the STC Election site.
 
Republished from STC's Notebook Feed

STC’s International Candidates

My fourteen years of STC membership have undoubtedly provided excellent professional development value, from a local perspective.

Initially, I relied on STC for contacts in my neighborhood to help me become established in the profession. As I grew in confidence and experience, I joined my chapter executive and tried to pay it forward by helping to provide a platform for new tech writers, as others had done for me.

The work is rewarding, and my colleagues on our chapter executive are first-class. So I guess you could say, I love the STC.

But at the international level, I have certainly felt some frustration. A particular sore spot for me is the way this international organization seems to remain firmly focused on what happens within the United States.

In 2010, I joined first the Community Funding and Support Task Force, and then the Community Affairs Committee, to help define the kinds and quantities of support that would most benefit our chapters and SIGs. My particular interest was the full inclusion of international members.

I participated out of concern that STC membership fees purported to provide a number of benefits that weren’t practical (US-centric job bank and salary data) or weren’t available (insurance) to international members. During our sessions, I learned that even within the US, rules vary so much from state to state that things are not substantially better for Americans!

At the Dallas conference in 2010, the Community Funding and Support Task Force summarized a number of recommendations. Many of these ideas are now being put into practice, and I hope they will benefit all STC members.

I believe that the STC executive genuinely desire to improve the value of STC memberships for all members, but change is always hard. Even characterizing myself as an “international” member suggests that “American” is the default position – exactly the perception I am struggling against.

But my experience on these committees has helped me see that the STC needs leadership from its international members, before it can become the organization it is striving to be.

In the upcoming STC election, we have a chance to vote for two international candidates. Bernard Aschwanden (Canada) and Ray Gallon (France) are both running for election as Directors of our Society.

I believe that the fresh perspectives these experienced members bring can help the STC transform itself into a truly international organization.

So when you vote for your new Society Officers between March 9 and March 30 this year, ask yourself whether the STC could use a helping hand from some international candidates.

And if you agree, then remember: Bernard and Ray are willing to step up and help us all.

Thank you,
Tracey Martinsen


Tracey Martinsen has been a member of the STC (Canada West Coast) since 1997.

STC Summit - Topic Trends

By Debbie Kerr

Prior to coming to the conference, I tried to plan which education sessions I wanted to attend. Since I was going to a conference for technical communicator, nearly every session seemed to apply to me. I took my best guess at what I thought would be the best for me. However, once I got to Dallas and started looking again, I started to develop stronger feelings about some sessions over others. The name of the speaker made the difference. In other cases, I noticed something in the session descriptions that I hadn't notice it before. It was like being told you could only have one piece of candy when all of them looked good. With this in mind, I spent every night reviewing the next day's sessions to make sure that what I thought were my best selections before I arrived at the Summit were still my best choices.

When I was planning for the conference, Fei Min Lorente (your fearless president) and Carol Lawless (your chapter secretary) suggested that I select two sessions for each time slot so that if one session wasn't providing me with the information that I wanted I could go to my second choice. I am happy to report, in all cases, that I was satisfied with my first choice.

On May 3, I attended the following sessions:

• Assessing Your Corporate Value - Jack Molisani


• Using Stories for More Effective Usability - Whitney Quesenbery


• Content Management as a Practice - Pamela Kostur (my favourite for the day)

On May 4, I attended the following sessions:

• How to Edit Online Like a Pro! - Linda Oestreich and Michelle Corbin


• Creating Visual Help and Training Using Adobe Acrobat - Neil Perlin


• Managing Documentation Projects in a Collaborative World - Larry Kunz (one of my favourites for the day)


• Content Strategy SIG Progression - too many presenters to mention


• Building Visual Explanations: Practical Advice for Writers - Don Moyer (my favourite of the Summit)

On May 5, I attended the following sessions:

• Results of Interviewing Editors: Best Practices, Challenges, Insights - Angela Eaton, Liz Pohland, Cynthia McPherson


• Thriving in an Agile Environment - Kathryn Poe


• Enhance Your Writing Career with Improved Speaking Skills - Barrie Byron

While the topics may seemed varied, there were two hot topics for the Summit: Content Strategy and Agile. Some of these topics you can see in the title of the sessions and others were embedded in the topic descriptions.

Social Media

With changes in the way that information can be presented to users, a content strategy is becoming more accurate than preparing a documentation plan. With the various social media options available (e.g. forums, wikis, Twitter, and blogs), many organizations are looking toward using these resources in addition to traditional documentation. In some cases, these other methods of communication will replace all or some of the more traditional methods. For this reason, the method for planning how to provide users with information must be an entire content strategy, and not merely focused on documentation.

For example, in one education session, the presenter talked about how someone had used Twitter to learn when users were having trouble with a product. Since the success of a company is often based on customer service, being proactive in providing information is an excellent place to start. Imagine being on Twitter and complaining to someone that a particular feature doesn't work. Wouldn't be great if someone from that company contacted you and provided you with an answer without you even having to contact them? In many cases, users don't even ask for assistance from the company. They often complain about the company/product without trying to get an answer to their questions. Using Twitter helps to eliminate this step.

Another interesting way to use Twitter is to get sales leads and to obtain feedback about what features users would like to see in a product. Another way that companies are using social media is to use wikis for Help and forums for customers to obtain support from either the company or fellow users. Social media seems to have more uses than just being sociable.

Agile

Agile is a new way of planning and completing a project. This methodology replaces the traditional waterfall and iterative waterfall that is usually used for the software development life cycle. With Agile, requirements, development, documentation, and testing, take place over and over in iterations that build on the previous iteration. One iteration might include A, B, and C. The second iteration will include any necessary changes to A, B, and C, and new items D and E. This process will continue until everything is complete -- development, documentation, and testing.

The major change for technical communicators is that everyone involved in the design and development cycles are part of the project right from the beginning. This means moving from the end of the development cycle to being involved right from the beginning. As you can imagine, for many technical communicators, this is a big and welcome change.

Some people enter into the Agile world for the wrong reasons, for example, they believe that it will eliminate the need for documentation and that everything will get done faster. The truth is that documentation will still be needed; it just might be created using different timelines, which will necessitate writing and reviewing documentation in a different way. As for getting work done faster, this will only be true if the people involved in the process have the discipline needed to complete their work on time and in the way that is needed. Without this discipline, companies can end up with more chaos than they may have had before.

Conclusion

It seems like there is a lot of potential changes to the role of technical communicator. It also emphasizes that the term technical writer does not accurately reflect our changing role.

STC Summit - Tourist Tidbits

By Debbie Kerr

The Summit was held in the Hyatt Regency hotel, which is the building on the right. The structure on the left is Reunion Tower, which has several components that include Wolfgang Puck's restaurant (Five Sixty) and an observation deck. Unfortunately, the tower was closed for renovations. Based on information that I found on the Internet, it seems that the tower has been closed for over a year.

Although the tower was closed to the public, the lights on the top of the were still visible at night. My husband managed to take this picture when we were returning during one of many trips to the nearby Historical District.

The Historic District contains items associated with the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. There is the Book Depository, the grassy knoll (where some believe there was a second gunman), the JFK Memorial, and even an X on the road where President Kennedy was shot. The Book Depository is where the Sixth Floor Museum is located. This is the location from which Lee Harvey Oswald shot Kennedy. Ironically, while we were there, someone tried to rob the museum of both money and some artefacts; however, the thieves never got away.

One day, while I was attending some of the education sessions, my husband rented a car and looked at some sites farther away from the downtown area. His day trip included the Texas Motor Speedway, the Cowboys Stadium and the Rangers Ballpark. At the speedway, his tour guide (shuttle bus driver) got permission to go around the track with my husband, so they sped around the track going 80 mph. At the stadium, my husband did his own walking tour and got lots of valuable information by talking to the employees onsite. While he did not go into Rangers Ballpark, he did get some great pictures.

On 4.2 acres of downtown Dallas, there is Pioneer Plaza, which contains approximately 40 statues of longhorn steer, complete with cowboys. These larger than life statues show a typical cattle drive. My husband found out about this site when he talked to Manny, who worked at the hotel. Manny turned out to be a wealth of information.

One of the sites that I did see, and the one that is my favourite, is a 120 year old building in downtown Dallas called the Old Red Museum. On top of this building are four decorative creatures called Acroteria/Wyverns (from the Latin word "serpents). Each of these creatures also have two feet and wings. There is also a clock tower and stained glass windows.

As you can see, there is lots to see in Dallas.

The Summit 2010, Keynote Speaker and Education Sessions Begin

By Debbie Kerr

For most of the conference attendees, this was the day when the bulk of us started learning. The Leadership Day enabled me to learn from one perspective, the remaining days were opportunities for me to learn from another perspective.

The first stage of learning was from the keynote speaker. Erin McKean—Chief Consulting Editor, American Dictionaries for Oxford University Press, as well as founder and CEO of Wordnik —showed us how words, especially when considered as part of the history of the dictionary, are as much fun as we expected. She talked about the first issue of the dictionary and how there were instructions on how to look up things in alphabetical order. There was even a description of what alphabetical meant! To top this off, it was written in an older form of English (looketh up writing from the 1600s and you will knoweth what I mean). :-)

She poked fun at the dictionary itself because it describes a dictionary has having one-sentence descriptions of words that are captured in a book. If you have ever looked at a dictionary, you know that there is far more content than one sentence and it no longer needs to be in a book.

She also talked about dictionaries defining what without capturing, who, how, where and when. Her example was the word "tuxedo". Without context, how would you know if the person wearing the tuxedo was a waiter or James Bond? To give you an example of Erin's sense of humour, this was conveyed with pictures of Lego figures, where only one was carrying a gun and an attache case.

She also gave an example of a definition of a feather that went on for about five lines, which left us more confused than ever before. Talk about poor choices of words and the passive voice!

All in all, the topic struck a chord with the audience, and it became quite clear why she had just been made an Honorary Fellow of the Society.

After the keynote speaker, the more intense learning began. Because of the keynote speaker, the education sessions did not start until 1:30 pm, but they continued throughout the day until 6:15 pm. During that time I attended the following sessions (each of which is about 1.5 hours long):

• Assessing/Increasing Your Corporate Value


• Using Stories for More Effective Usability


• Content Management as a Practice

The last session hit home with me because it related to some projects that I have been working on lately. It emphasized the importance of putting processes in place even before selecting a tool, and even deciding if a tool is needed. Ironically, the speaker is from Toronto. It was particularly funny (for me) when she mentioned Canada's win over the U.S. team in the Olympics. Things went uphill after that. :-)

After these learning sessions, I attended a Community Reception. It's at events like this that you get a good sense of just how international the organization is. As a member in your own town or city, you don't really think about India, France, Israel, Australia or even the vastness of the United States, and just how many states there really are. After a short time at a networking event—not to mention Leadership Day, and talking to the person beside you at one of the education sessions—you have a real eye-opening experience. You start to recognize the vastness of the technical communication profession, of which you are an important part.

I am writing this blog entry between learning sessions, which is when I am supposed to be eating; however, to get free Internet access, which is set up in the Exhibitition Hall, I have to use the terminals a little off hours, although, as you can see from the picture, there really is no down time.

My head is getting ready to burst with all the new information. It helps to write about it and share it with others. Stayed tuned for more details about some great sessions that I have attended so far today.

The Summit 2010, Leadership Day

By Debbie Kerr

Leadership Day started at 7:30 am Sunday morning. Perhaps it was a test of leadership to be on time for this event and still follow the great presentations going on. Not all people are morning people.

The day started with Cindy Currie, STC President, providing a summary of the financial crisis and how the Society survived and even made a small profit after taking many actions to deal with a projected deficit.

In an effort to let chapters participate in how we move forward, the Society asked for volunteers to be on a task force -- Community Funding and Support. One of the members of that task force is from the West Coast Chapter in British Columbia. Four members of the task force gave a presentation, which was really well received. In fact, their observations and recommendations were one of the highlights of the morning as the leaders (both Chapters and Society) recognized the validity and value of the information.

In the afternoon, there were various progressions to attend. I participated in the following:

• Re-engineering Your Community
• How to Create Webinars
• Community Funding and Support
• Developing Educational Programs

Everyone had some great ideas. The day was full of a lot of questions and answers -- so many that one of the items on the agenda had to be dropped. Some of the suggestions require more research at the Society level. I look forward to seeing the end result.

Look for my next post about the keynote speaker and my first education seminars.

The Summit 2010, Travelling to Dallas

By Debbie Kerr

I am the Immediate Past President of the chapter. In a draw that the chapter held to see which council member would attend this conference, my name was selected. The last conference did not go well for me -- my appendix ruptured and I spent my time in Las Vegas, the place of the conference, in a hospital room. The standard bon voyage message as I left for the conference had something to do with returning and having all my organs intact.

In an effort to keep costs down, I decided to fly out of Detroit. Although the drive was a long one, the weather was good and I saved about $400 in the process.

While the drive was long, the sleep was limited. I got up at 3:30 am to make sure I caught my 6:45 am plane. The lineups at the airport were like those at Wonderland. I couldn't believe that there would be so many people at the airport at that awful hour. The plane out of Detroit was delayed because of a storm (lightning, high winds, and heavy rains). I was glad that it started before takeoff rather than after. Although there was some turbulence, I arrived in one piece.

My husband came with me on the trip, so in an effort to do something together before all the meetings and education sessions started, we tried out Dallas's transportation system and went to the Dallas Zoo. The zoo in Toronto is a lot bigger, but from the walking we did and the pain in our feet, my husband and I were glad that the zoo wasn't any bigger.

Bedtime was early because, between the 3:30 am start and the amount of walking, we were exhausted. Our last bit of exercise was trying to climb up into bed. The top of the mattresses was about 3 feet off the floor, which meant that neither my husband or I could touch the floor when we were sitting on the mattress.

The Leadership Day started at 7:30 am the next day, so I wanted to be wide awake for the discussions.

Look for my next blog entry about Leadership Day. I am off to my first education session.

Canadian Questions Posed to STC Election Candidates

The presidents of the Canadian chapters agreed that it would be helpful to our voting members if we asked the candidates some questions that are relevant to Canadian STC members. The questions were:

• How would you propose to make international chapters like Canada feel more like they are a part of the bigger organization?
• What would you do to convince Canadian members that they should pay the same membership dues as Americans, when many of the STC services do not apply to Canada?
• Are you aware that the International Affiliation Agreement is currently being reworked, and what do you think it should contain?

These questions were posed on February 1 to candidates running for all positions: director, secretary, and nominating committee. They each had a choice of whether to answer them or not. The following people chose to answer them as of February 11:

• Mak Pandit: http://notebook.stc.org/2010-election/makarand-pandit-member-questions/. Mak requested a copy of the International Affiliation Agreement, so I sent it to him. He responded by email:
  “Since I could not answer your question I had asked forwarded it and the reply I got is STC is working with it lawyers to update this agreement. The updated agreement will then be sent to the chapters.”
• Tricia Spayer: http://notebook.stc.org/2010-election/tricia-spayer-member-questions/.
• Nathaniel Lim (answered one of the three questions): http://notebook.stc.org/2010-election/nathaniel-lim-member-questions/
• W. C. Wiese: http://notebook.stc.org/2010-election/wc-wiese-member-questions/.
• Nicky Bleiel: http://notebook.stc.org/2010-election/nicky-bleiel-member-questions/

Please feel free to scan the other candidates’ answers to see if they have responded to these questions after this blog post. You can also pose questions of your own if you are an STC member. Note that you must have paid for your membership before February 28, 2010 to be eligible to vote. Voting starts on March 9.

We hope this additional information will help you decide who to vote for.

STC 2010 Election Reminder

(Copied from the STC Election Message)

Who will be STC's next...

• Secretary?
• Board Members?
• Nominating Committee Members?

Do you know the candidates? Take this opportunity to get to know the individuals running for elected office at the Society level. Click here to visit the 2010 Election and Candidate Information page on the STC website. You can review the candidates' biographies, ask them questions, and view their responses to questions posed by other members.

The 2010 election will be held from 9 March 2010 through 8 April 2010. Information on casting your ballot will be sent to you prior to the opening of the election. As a reminder, you must renew your membership (and new members must join) by 28 February 2010 in order to be eligible to vote in the 2010 election.

Thank you for doing your part to make STC a vibrant, growing organization.

STC Conference Award for Council Members

In the past, the council set aside money that the chapter president could put towards the costs associated with attending Leadership Day at STC’s annual conference. The intent was to improve the president’s leadership of the chapter and find new ideas to try out at home. However, the budgeted amount only covered a little more than the registration fee (@ $500US).This was impractical because if the president could not afford to pay the air fare and hotel costs (which are usually much more than the registration fee), she could not attend. As a result, the budgeted amount was rarely used.

This year, the council changed the allocated amount to a maximum of $2500. Furthermore, they decided that other members of the council are in leadership positions, and the opportunity is now open to anyone who meets all the following criteria:

• Any volunteer who is a chapter member, and


• Has volunteered for at least one year in the past, and


• Is currently volunteering.

In addition, each candidate also had to agree to:

• Stay at the conference hotel.


• Attend Leadership Day.


• Give a seminar about what they learned.


• Write an article for chapter publication about any aspect of the conference.

The benefits of sending a council member to the conference are:

• The chapter will have a volunteer who is better equipped to serve the membership.


• The whole council will benefit from the collected knowledge.


• The networking opportunities could turn up other people who are useful to the chapter (such as potential speakers).


• The attendee will raise the profile of our chapter on the international stage--be a kind of ambassador.


• Some of the money will be going to the Society.


• We could attract more volunteers.

Eligible candidates were identified and had the option of withdrawing from the contest. From those candidates who wanted to participate, the winner was selected by a random draw. Winners will not be eligible for the subsequent draws.

As a result of the council’s decision, the first winner of the STC Conference Award is Debbie Kerr, our immediate past president. Congratulations, Debbie!

Why not volunteer so that you can be considered for a future draw?

Pondering When to Renew? Renew Now and Enter to Win!

Posted: 09 Dec 2009 11:19 AM PST on STC's Notebook

Ponder no more! If you renew your STC membership by 16 December, you’ll be automatically entered to win an Amazon Kindle or one of five iPod Shuffles! So not only will you get all the great benefits STC has to offer, but you might get a little something-something in the bonus round as well—Wink Martindale, eat your heart out!

Last year STC gave away five iPods, but we’ve upped the ante a bit to include the Amazon Kindle this year. And with the contest ending 16 December, we’ll do our very best to get the winners their prizes as soon as we absolutely can for gifting purposes.

Valid entries must be completed by 11:59 EST PM (GMT-5) Wednesday, 16 December. At that point, we’ll conduct a drawing and notify the winners. What could be better? Renew your STC membership and continue all the benefits, and maybe win some stuff in the process!

Tips for Renewing or Buying an STC Membership

As I was renewing my membership, I found out a few things that I didn't read before starting the online process. I also found out a few things by asking STC Head Office. To help you avoid some surprises, or perhaps to answer some questions before you ask them, here are my personal discoveries (all prices are in US dollars):

• A Basic STC membership no longer gives you membership in a chapter or a SIG. Each chapter membership now costs an additional $25, and a SIG membership costs $10 each.


• If you do not renew your membership by February 28, 2010, you are subject to an extra renewal fee of $15.


• If you do not renew your membership for a year, you are subject to an extra renewal fee of $30.


• When you buy an STC membership for the first time, there is an additional initiation fee of $30.


• If you want printed versions of the publications, the magazine Intercom is $30 + $7.50 for postage to Canada; the journal Technical Communication is $75 + $7.50 for postage to Canada.


• You have the option of paying your total dues in four equal installments over the course of the year.


• If you want to add a chapter or SIG membership to your existing membership, you can do it over the course of the year.

To buy or renew your membership, go to the STC Head Office website.

If you discover something useful about buying or renewing a membership that isn't listed here, feel free to leave a comment.

STC Montreal Teams Up with Other Professional Organizations

I just heard about a one-day professional development and networking event for freelancers in Montreal on October 24, 2009. The STC chapter there has teamed up with other organizations to set up expert panel discussions. There's still time to get early-bird discount tickets. For more information, see http://mediaville.ca/.