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Leonard C. Porrello
> Sent: Monday, April 28, 2008 17:49
> To: Bill Swallow
> Cc: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
> Subject: RE: STC is broken
>
> I hope you'll report back to share with those of us who no longer
belong
> to the STC.
My shallow and lacking take on the value of the STC to me, and of me to
the STC:
It's costing my company some number (I forget) of dollars to allow me
and three other writers at other offices to put "Member - Society for
Technical Communication" on our resumes.
Apparently, the company is not prepared to spring for a trip to the US
midwest (the annual conference) for any of us, let alone all of us, so
I'm not sure what the value is. Last year, I had one or two SIGs
selected, and got not a single e-mail, so this year I elected not to
select any. Not being an expert, I would not have jumped in without at
least getting a feel for what they were doing first - according to my
inbox, nothing. I forget if I'm a "member at large" or a member of the
local STCEO (STC of Eastern Ontario [Canada]), but the STCEO meetings
seem to fall on the same night as those of an organization that I
actually pay for out-of-pocket and am avidly interested in, so no
attendance at STCEO from me.
I get (and give when I can) support on this and other more specialized
mailing lists, so STC is no additional help there, and I'm no help to
them. Overall, I think that, by proxy (my employer's accounts-payable
dept.), I'm of some small financial help to STC. That's about the extent
of the relationship.
In a previous life (and a previous century) I was a member and attended
a couple of the conferences (back when there were travel and
professional-development budgets), and enjoyed it, and actually read the
printed publications that I received from STC. Then I dropped out for
about six years and resumed only a couple of years ago, possibly out of
nostalgia.
Certainly, I wouldn't mind a trip and a few days of stimulating sessions
and presentations, but not to the extent that I'd lay out a couple of
thousand of my own dollars to do it. If I get a few grand ahead in the
bank account, I'm buying a RANS Cruz or Citi crank-forward bicycle to
replace the 12-year-old hybrid wreck that I stopped riding last summer,
and another for my wife (who is also nearly of an age to appreciate that
sort of thing.... sorry Hon... :-).
So, where were we? STC relevance... er... um.... hang on, I'm
thinkin'...
Kevin
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