TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:TECHWR-L Premium Jobs, Events, and Announcements From:TECHWR-L Listowner <lisa -at- techwr-l -dot- com> To:archive -at- infoinfocus -dot- com Date:Thu, 16 Mar 2006 02:00:03 -0700 (MST)
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In this posting, look for the following ...
* ANNOUNCE: Adobe FrameMaker for Mac OS X Petition (NEW)
* WORKSHOP: Toronto Workshops March 27-29
* ANNOUNCE: WritersUA Update
* ANNOUNCE: Rockley Group Opens Subscription
Publication Up to All
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Apple introduced its first Intel-based Macs in January and intends to transition the entire range from PowerPC to Intel by the end of the year. This is significant for Mac FrameMaker users because the new Intel Macs don't support the Classic environment and cannot run FrameMaker. To mark this critical phase in our campaign, I've set up a new domain for the FrameMaker for Mac OS X Web site (fm4osx.org), totally redesigned the site, and added PDF form letters to make writing to Adobe and Apple really easy. Please take a look at the new site and write to Adobe and Apple today. <http://www.fm4osx.org/>
Apparently, after putting all of its efforts into Acrobat and Creative Suite for the last few years, Adobe has reevaluated its portfolio and is reinvesting in FrameMaker. The first evidence of this was the September release of FrameMaker 7.2 for Windows and Solaris. Adobe has also said that if the market for Mac FrameMaker changes and there's an opportunity, it will respond. In other words, if enough people let Adobe know that they want FrameMaker for Mac OS X, they'll make it.
If you haven't already written to Adobe, I urge you to do so now. Even if you have already written, please write again. The new PDF form letters on the Web site mean that it will only take a few minutes of your time. I've also provided address labels.
Apple is still using Classic (Mac OS 9) and FrameMaker 6.0 to produce its own user guides and I know that its technical writers want FrameMaker for Mac OS X just as much as we do. Even Adobe is still using it.
Your role as a technical communicator is destined to change.
Are you ready? From March 27-29, the Toronto chapter of the Society for Technical Communication (STC) is presenting a three-day hands-on workshop series on Preparing for the Content Management Tipping Point. Several of the best-known industry experts and luminaries will lead us through half-day sessions on information design, architecture, and technologies needed for managing technical content.
DAY ONE
Saul Carliner, of Concordia University, kicks off the series with an exploration of information design. Jim Purdy, of Communicare in Toronto, looks into the well-established best practices of Information Mapping(R).
DAY TWO
Michael Priestley, of IBM, sets aside the morning to walk us through the intricacies of DITA (Darwin Information Typing Architecture). Scott Abel, the Content Wrangler, dedicates the afternoon to examining many of the peripheral technologies that will impact the way content is collected, managed, and distributed.
DAY THREE
Ann Rockley, of the Rockley Group, helps us develop a content management reuse strategy.
CM PROS SPONSORED EVENT
The afternoon program is hosted by CM Pros (Content Management
Professionals) and features: Content Management - Doing it right.
CM Pros is a non-profit organization established in 2003. The event is open to all members of the community but is limited to no more than 40 participants.
REGISTRATION AND FEES
Members of either the STC or CM Pros enjoy significant discounts on registration. Visit http://www.stctoronto.org/conference.htm to register online or call us at +1(416) 941-8383 x 13826. VISA, check or money order, and PayPal accepted.
Money raised by the conference will be used to support the Toronto STC chapter.
Survey: User Assistance Salary Survey Results Available
The results of the 2006 WritersUA Salary Survey are now available. Thank you to all of the user assistance professionals who contributed their information! http://www.writersua.com/surveys/salary06/index.html
WritersUA Conference Approaches
The 14th Annual WritersUA Conference for Software User Assistance will be held in Palm Springs April 9-12. The conference focus, as always, is on user assistance Design, Tools, Technologies, and Content Development. Over 60 informative sessions will be presented by 45 expert speakers. http://www.writersua.com/ohc06/index.html
Registration is Open for Australasian Online Documentation and
Content Conference
The ninth annual Australasian Online Documentation and Content Conference, AODC 2006, will be in Cairns, from Wednesday 3rd to Friday 5th May. AODC 2006 features 20 sessions covering techniques, technologies, tools and case studies, presented by international and local expert speakers. Session topics include DITA, structured authoring, XML, usability, editing, migration to Microsoft Vista, user assistance, dynamic HTML and case studies. For all the details, see the agenda. http://www.aodc.com.au/
ANNOUNCE: Rockley Group Opens Subscription Publication Up to All
Free access is now available to The Rockley Report!
Written and edited by practitioners who work in the trenches, The
Rockley Report features content management case studies, best
practices, and lessons-learned designed to help readers demystify
some confusing concepts and avoid making the costly mistakes made by
others.
â??The Rockley Report is published periodically and is jam-packed
with business-critical information you can use to ensure your content
management projects meet â?? even exceed â?? your expectations,â?? said Ann
Rockley, founder and president of The Rockley Group, a Toronto-based
content management consultancy.
â??Now everyone can benefit from the insight of the many content
professionals that have contributed their knowledge and experience to
The Report,â?? Rockley said. â??Our guest authors, our customers, and our
peers are all represented in The Report. Itâ??s a treasure trove of
useful information.â??
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