Intercom: September/October 2008

To discuss Intercom articles on the STC Forum, please visit: http://stcforum.org/viewforum.php?id=51

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.

No theme this issue.

Feature Articles

When Good Projects Go Bad [ FREE! ]: Learn how to recognize and address problems in a project before it is too late.
The Magic Three: With an inundation of tools for technical communicators to choose from, what are the best ones for specific tasks? And what should be the focus of technical communication—content, design, style?
STC's New Direction: Read about STC's new strategic goals and the direction in which the organization is heading.
Feast or Famine: U.S. Technical Writer Employment, 2007: O'Sullivan gives an in-depth overview of the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics information regarding salary data for technical communicators.
Job Hunting in a Recession: Being unemployed can be very stressful and difficult—but being unemployed during a recession can be even worse. Molisani gives his tips and advice on how to weather the storm, and what steps you can take to find a job.
Best of Show: Read about the winners and winning projects of STC's 2008 international technical publications, online communication, and student technical communication competitions.

Departments

Cut & Paste
Cut & Paste: Read about the newest version of MadCap Flare and the University of Central Florida's technical writing program's name change.
F.Y.I.
F.Y.I.: Check here for upcoming events of interest to technical communicators.
Off Hours
Training for Transit: Carole Beaudin-Hayes thought her job as a technical writer would lead her to a life of sitting behind a desk. Little did she know that there was much more to the world of technical communication in the transportation field.

Society Pages

New Associate Fellow Nominations Encouraged: Hoffman details the process of nominating candidates for the Associate Fellow designation.
Call for Proposals to Be Posted Soon: The call for proposals for the 56th Annual Conference will be posted to the STC website soon.
STC's Newsletter Competition [ FREE! ]: Does your chapter, SIG, or student chapter have one of the best newsletters around? Then consider entering STC's Newsletter Competition.
Sigma Tau Chi, Alpha Sigma Applications Due November 1, 2008: Learn how to apply for membership in STC's honorary societies specifically devoted to students of technical communication.
2008–2009 STC Scholarship Winners: See a list of the recipients of both the undergraduate and graduate scholarships.
New Member Benefit: Special Discounts from STC's Corporate Value Program: Learn about the new member discounts on two of the premier software used by technical communicators—both MadCap and ComponentOne have offered special rates for STC members.
A Short History of STC's Competitions: Past Society President Bill Leavitt gives a brief overview of how and why STC competitions started and who the key players were in their conception.

Columns

Teaching Technical Communication
Teaching Students in Trades and Technologies: Teaching students in academic settings can be very different than teaching technical communication to nonacademic students. Campbell gives tips on how to teach those in trades and technologies effectively.
Computer-mediated Communication
Screencasting Redux [ FREE! ]: In a continuation of a previous introductory article about screencasting, Archee continues the discussion by delving deeper into the history, benefits, usefulness, and future of this powerful technical communication tool.