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Way back at the beginning of April I asked folks whether or not the STC
conference was worth it, then spent the next several weeks travelling and
teaching training courses, so I'm ridiculously late summarizing the
responses, but . . . .
The overwhelming response was that the conference is definitely worth it,
both in terms of the information presented and the chance for networking.
There's a danger of information overload, of course, and many people
strongly suggested going with a clear plan and back-up choices for each
session, as well as listening actively and making sure to attend some of
the networking sessions. The networking aspect is a huge draw for many
people, especially those who are lone tech writers. Being able to talk to
other tech writers, exchange ideas, work on problems, etc. makes the
conference very meaningful.
The negative responses (2 or 3 out of 21) focused primarily on the
"shallowness" of the conferece -- that is, there's a lot of breadth, but
not much depth, and many of the session (at least in the past) seemed to
cater more to newbies. A couple of folks said they had gone early in their
careers, but didn't think it would be as helpful now that they're more
experienced. Of course, other experienced folks said it was well worth it
b/c they got a solid overview of a broad range of new developments in the
field.
The upshot is that I've decided to go, and I've been reading the brochure
and picking out sessions as I drink my morning coffee.
Thanks very much to everyone who offered encouragement and advice. I look
forward to seeing many of you there and putting faces to names.
Marie
Marie C. Paretti, PhD
Recognition Research, Inc. (RRI)
1750 Kraft Drive, Suite 2000
Blacksburg, VA 24060
mparetti -at- rrinc -dot- com http://www.rrinc.com