Intercom: January 2008

Intercom, the magazine of the Society for Technical Communication, is published to provide examples and applications of technical communication that will promote its readers' professional development.

The January 2008 issue focuses on trends in technical communication.

Testing

Download Full Issue: You don't need to be a skilled illustrator to create effective 3-D graphics. Three-dimensional illustration allows the technical communicator to respond quickly to project changes and create imagery appropriate for most publications or multimedia. Burns' article shows the benefits of 3-D artwork and its potential for technical communicators.

Feature Articles

New Products: Explore the features of some of the latest tools for technical communicators, including MadCap Lingo, MadCap Analyzer, and WebWorks ePublisher 9.3.
Cut & Paste: Read about the adoption of Adobe PDF as a standard, an unusual multimedia presentation, a list of the greatest science books that includes works by STC honorary fellows, and more.
F.Y.I.: Check this listing for upcoming events of interest to technical communicators.
Documenting While on Patrol [ FREE! ]: While the jobs of Mary Clouse and the rest of the Security and Documentation Unit of the New York State Senate Technology Services department aren't as glamorous as those of the senators themselves, they ensure that the Senate can use its automated systems to conduct its daily business smoothly, efficiently, and securely.

Departments

Felice Frankel Wins Top Photography Award: STC 2005 Honorary Fellow Felice Frankel has received the Lennart Nilsson Award for science or nature photography.
Resources for STC Leaders: Are you a community leader? Check this summary of resources to be sure you�re taking advantage of STC's many sources of information.
Early Bird Rates Expire March 17 [ FREE! ]: Register by March 17 to take advantage of the Early Bird rates for the Technical Communication Summit.
Scholarship Applications Due February 15 [ FREE! ]: Find out about how to apply for one of STC's four $1,500 scholarships or the Marian Norby scholarship for female United States federal government employees.
Membership Categories for 2008 [ FREE! ]: Read more about the membership packages offered this year, including the new all-SIG membership option.
Preliminary Program to Be Mailed in February: Keep an eye out for the Preliminary Program for the Technical Communication Summit, which will include general information about technical sessions, networking opportunities, lodging and transportation, and more.
Renewal Invoices to be Mailed: STC's renewal season is in full swing. Be sure to renew soon if you haven't already, and find out whom to contact if you have questions about your membership.
Voters Approve New Bylaws: Find out more about the adoption of STC's new bylaws.
Academe-Industry Leaders' Summit: Bringing Together Society Resources: At STC's Academe-Industry Leaders' Summit, held in September 2007, leading academics and practitioners discussed ways of strengthening the Society.
Arts and Culture in Philadelphia [ FREE! ]: Philadelphia is a smorgasbord of cultural diversity. Explore some of the city's highlights in art, music, dance, and film.

Society Pages

Much Ado about Nothing, Part I: The Importance of White Space [ FREE! ]: White space is a paradox: by definition it contains no information, yet it clearly communicates despite lack of content. Hart describes how to incorporate white space into the information design process.
Teaching Professionalism in the Classroom: Campbell looks at what it means to be professional as a technical writer, as a teacher, and as a student and explains how to teach professionalism in the classroom.
Publishing XML Content with XSL: How do you convert your application-neutral, vendor-neutral, unformatted XML content into paginated content (such as PDF) or HTML? O'Keefe introduces one solution: the Extensible Stylesheet Language, a programming language for processing XML.