I recently had the privilege of attending the Intermediate Excel 2013 class at DeVore Technologies, Inc. in Beachwood, where NEO STC held its October meeting. Thanks to the wonderful folks at DeVore, attendees of that NEO STC meeting were able to attend one of a handful of classes for FREE. Yeah – you read that … Continue reading…
This look at current thinking about top emerging technologies should help us in our own work to see how we might use these technologies. Whether it is social media, wearable technologies, the latest in printers, personalization, big data, cloud computing, mobile apps, analytics, digital identity, haptic interfaces, augmented reality, or the internet of things, we … Continue reading…
A few days ago I returned from a short trip to London, England. While there, I toured Westminster Abbey and spent several minutes in an area of the abbey called Poet’s Corner, where many famous writers are either buried or commemorated with plaques on the walls and floor. With such recognition, there is no question … Continue reading…
Meet our new Vice President, Jill McCauslin! Jill left in-house employment about one year ago to work full-time at her company, WhitePoint Professionals. Right now, she works as an instructional designer for a few different clients. She says, “I’ve done work for both instructor-led training and elearning courses. I have a small office on the … Continue reading…
On September 10th, Tricia Spayer of Pressco Technology kicked off the new program year with an engaging talk about using effective visuals in technical communication. Drawing on her 20 years of experience in technical illustration, Tricia provided guidance in these areas: Making illustrations more useful How to not scream amateur Following ISO standards for icons … Continue reading…
Now is the time to join or renew your STC membership for 2016! Current members with a Classic membership can take $30 off the price of their renewal. To receive this limited-time discount, use promo code STC2016 on the payment page. This offer expires in early December, so act now. Members who renew now receive 15 … Continue reading…
Fresh off the Content Marketing World (CMW) Conference in Cleveland, full of new ideas and ways to connect our NEO Chapter’s social media theme for the year, pay homage to the National Day on Writing and include human interest stories—killing several birds with one stone—my mind turned to writing about a special person I am privileged to … Continue reading…
From Jules Verne’s moon landing in From Earth to the Moon, to the water beds that Robert Heinlein predicted in Beyond This Horizon, sci-fi writers have predicted the future in some eerily accurate ways. So when our tech caught up with their imaginations, many sci-fi authors had conveniently already come up with the words for … Continue reading…
A newsletter is a great communications tool. At The JPT Group, they’re one of our specialties. And, with the advent of the electronic newsletter, they’ve never been easier or more cost effective. But, they’re not for everyone. Before you start down that road, there are (at least) three questions that you need to ask yourself. … Continue reading…
Our chapter president, Brian Smith, recently asked us to think about the National Day on Writing. Here are some thoughts about what writing means to some of us in NEO STC. Please let us know your thoughts on how you would complete the phrase. Contact us as newsletter@neostc.org. To me writing means… empowering people … Continue reading…
October 20 of this year (and every year) is the National Day on Writing. “Lines & Letters” is looking for articles about this topic. Please contact us at newsletter@neostc.org with your ideas or drafts. Let’s honor this year’s social media theme, and combine that with writing to extend the National Day on Writing to a year … Continue reading…
Technical writers can bring their skills of communicating clearly about technical topics to today’s world of digital marketing. This can apply to communication about important current topics in the field including programmatic ads, B2B digital marketing, mobile applications, and skills digital marketers need today to be successful. Going along with this idea of communicating clearly … Continue reading…
The site at http://www.ncte.org/dayonwriting explains that the National Day on Writing recognizes “the significance of writing in our national life, draws attention to the remarkable variety of writing we engage in, and helps writers from all walks of life recognize how important writing is to their lives.” The National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) established the … Continue reading…
Submit an article to this newsletter via newsletter@neostc.org to be eligible for our drawing for a $50 gift card. Angie Dianetti and Janean Voss were the winners of our 2014-2015 drawing. Barb Philbrick won for the 2013-2014 drawing. Book reviews, article reviews, event and meeting reviews, and articles on any topic of interest to our … Continue reading…
When you read the Acknowledgement section in a book, you always see a big, heartfelt note to the author’s editor. “This book wouldn’t have been possible without the patience and help of my dear editor…” However, have you ever received comments back from your editor and thought that he bled all over your writing because … Continue reading…
Common themes identified in this list of top new trends in educational technologies include individualism, shared information, and hands-on. This is according to Pamela DeLoatch in her article at http://www.edudemic.com/10-emerging-education-technologies/. In the individualism grouping, we see this list: Wearable tech Bring your own device Mobile learning In the shared information grouping, the following is listed: Cloud … Continue reading…
Lee Murray, Youngstown State University, MA in Professional and Technical Writing, received the NEO STC Scholarship Award “for demonstrating both dedication to the study of technical communication and leadership potential in the field.” PMI – NEO (the NE Ohio chapter of the Project Management Institute) is celebrating its 25th anniversary. See http://www.pmineo.org/ for more details. APEX … Continue reading…
Fellow NEO-STC members, please meet our Scholarship Winner Lee J. Murray! Lee hails from Bournemouth, a beautiful seaside resort town on the south coast of England. It was voted “The Happiest Place to Live in the UK” in 2007. In August of 2008, he moved to Youngstown, Ohio. Luckily, it turns out the grass was in fact … Continue reading…
As NEO STC begins a new season of programs and other activities, I thank all the committees and dedicated volunteers for an information-packed transition. Everyone came to the small group meetings with enthusiasm and new ideas; we are off to a great start for another award-winning year! When I first began working in the business … Continue reading…
A manager I worked with recently provided copies of this book to her staff (and me), so I want to say a few words about this interesting read, especially the parts about clear communication. The book gets 4.5 stars out of 5, with 2895 reviews listed, when I checked Amazon recently, plus Oprah gave the … Continue reading…
