Berkeley Chapter
Society for Technical Communication

The latest change to this website was made on Saturday, May 16, 2012.

The May 12, 2010 Chapter Meeting

Register now!:

RSVP using our online storefront.

Topic:

Writing for People and Situations When Reading Is Not Easy
(a report from a CHI 2010 workshop)

Many different factors and situations can make it difficult for people to read, for example, cognitive impairment, reading in a second language, high stress situations, vision problems, and dyslexia. This year at CHI 2010, Kath Straub participated in the workshop Design to Read: Designing for People Who Do Not Read Easily. The workshop brought together expert practioners in the usability and accessibility fields to consider issues related to writing for audiences and situations when reading is not easy. Participants in the workshop first explored strategies that can enhance readability in different "hard to read" contexts, and then discussed how to leverage strategies from one context for use in other contexts.

In this interactive session, Kath will review these strategies with us and help us consider how we can apply them in our own work as technical writers.

If you are not familiar with CHI workshops, they provide a venue where professionals with common interests can discuss and explore a particular area of interest. Workshops often move an area of study forward, and can result in additional research or writings. For more about CHI workshops, see http://www.chi2010.org/authors/cfp-workshop-participants.html.

Speaker:

Kath Straub

Kath Straub works with organizations and agencies to create, integrate, and evaluate interactions and content. Usability and Content strategy are both key elements of this effort. To ensure that sites are both usable and useful, Kath also focuses on how to create meaningful small talk that engages users via readable and persuasive content to drive behavioral change.

Kath is an energetic and entertaining speaker who presents frequently at conferences and workshops around the world. Recently, she has presented in Atlanta (CHI), Berlin (UPA), London (TecCom), and Austin, TX (GTC). She's currently the Principal of Usability.org. Prior to that, she spent 9 years as the Chief Scientist at Human Factors International. Kath holds a Ph.D. in Brain and Cognitive Science from the University of Rochester.

Date:

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Times:

6:00 to 7:00 pm: Networking, conversation & dinner
7:00 to 7:15 pm: Announcements
7:15 to 8:30 pm: Presentation
8:30 to 9:00 pm: Conversation, follow up on job announcements
9:00 to 9:15 pm: Clear the room; move conversations to the sidewalk

Location:

Highlands Country Club,110 Hiller Drive, Oakland, California

Monthly Chapter Meetings

The Berkeley chapter meets the second Wednesday of the month.

Continuing in May, 2010 we will regularly meet at the Highlands Country Club in Oakland, CA.

RSVP
Fees
Agenda
Location and Directions
Program Ideas

RSVP

RESERVATIONS FOR THE MAY 2010 MEETING
Use the Berkeley Chapter's online storefront to make reservations now for the May 2010 meeting.

Chapter Meeting Fees

For the meeting and dinner, reserved on the Chapter's website in advance:

Members: $12
Non-members: $20
Students/Low Income: $6

For the meeting and dinner, at the door:

Members: $16
Non-members: $24
Students/Low Income: $9

Note: If you do not reserve dinner in advance, dinner may or may not be available on a walk-in basis. We order dinner for the number of reservations plus a few walk-ins.

To attend the program only, reserved in advance:

Members: $6
Non-members: $10
Students/Low Income: $3

To attend the program only, at the door:

Members: $10
Non-members: $14
Students/Low Income: $6

NOTE ONE: Non-members are always welcome to STC meetings.

NOTE TWO: All members of the San Francisco Chapter of the IABC are welcome to register for Berkeley STC General Meetings at the member price.

Interested in becoming a member?

Chapter Meetings Agenda

6:00 to 7:00: Networking, conversation, and dinner
7:00 to 7:15: Chapter business, announcements, introductions, jobs needed and available*
7:15 to 8:30: Formal program
8:30 to 9:00: Conversation, off-line questions for the speakers, follow-up on job announcements
9:00 to 9:15: Clear the room, move conversations to the sidewalk

*Attendees are encouraged to announce open positions. Please bring job listings for distribution. Recruiters may introduce themselves, but may not describe open positions in detail. Save that for one-on-one after the program.

Location and Directions

Highlands Country Club
110 Hiller Drive
Oakland, California

Directions to Highlands Country Club

NOTE: The club's parking lot is for members only. Please park on the street. (There's typically plenty of on-street parking right along Hiller Drive.)

From San Francisco

Cross the Bay Bridge to I-580 Eastbound. Remain in the right lane, until Highway 24 Eastbound (toward Berkeley and Walnut Creek). Continue eastbound until the Tunnel Road off-ramp. Ext will loop around to the west, crossing back over Highway 24. Turn left at the stop sign. Follow Tunnel Road/Caldecott Lane to traffic signal. Veer to the right, and follow Hiller Drive halfway up the hill. Highlands Country Club will be on the right-hand side of the street.

From Walnut Creek

Take Highway 24 Westbound through the Caldecott Tunnel. Stay in the right-hand lane, taking the first exit after the tunnel ends, the Tunnel Road exit, going towards Berkeley. Follow Tunnel Road to the complex intersection and stop light, at Tunnel Drive, Hiller Drive, and Highway 13. Veer to the right, and continue halfway up the hill on Hiller Drive. Highlands Country Club will be on the right-hand side of the street.

From I-80 and Berkeley

Take Ashby Avenue to the Highway 13 exit. Ashby becomes Tunnel Road at the Claremont Hotel. Continue on Tunnel Road (through the split-level section) to the stoplight just before the Highway 24 overcrossing. Remain in the left lane and make a sharp left U-turn around the Firestorm Memorial Garden, on to Hiller Drive. Continue halfway up the hill. Highlands Country Club will be on the right-hand side of the street.

From Hayward

Take I-580 Westbound to Highway 13 north. Continue on Highway 13 past the overcrossing of Highway 24. At the stoplight, turn right, then left, onto Hiller Drive. Continue halfway up the hill. Highlands Country Club will be on the right-hand side of the street.

Chapter Meeting Program Ideas?

If you have a suggestion for a meeting topic you'd like to hear more about or if you'd like to be a presenter, send an email to Linda Urban, our VP for Programs.

Please email web-page corrections or web-page comments to:

(internet@stc-berkeley.org)

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