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Announcements

Tuesday, December 16, 2003

the 2004 slate of candidates for the STC elections appeared in the November issue of Tieline. For your convenience, this issue can be found at www.stc.org/Tieline/issues/2003_11.pdf

Friday, December 12, 2003

Synergistech is relaying this listing as a service to our candidates. We remain officially in hibernation, due to continued weak economic demand, so PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO US. Instead, read the whole listing, then send your resume directly to the hiring manager if you have the required qualifications. Principals only; do not forward this listing to recruiters.

For more info about Synergistech and our free lead-distribution service, refer to this note's footer. Thanks, and good luck to us all.

* * *

[From today's KITList-Tech Yahoo group.]

Manager, TiVo Documentation Team

The successful candidate will manage a team responsible for the development and delivery of documentation to TiVo consumers, to partner engineering organizations, and to TiVo internal engineering. The broad responsibilities of this position require a highly skilled, creative, and flexible candidate who understands how to manage the production of top-quality documentation in a fast-paced, collaborative environment.

Duties:
------
* Manage a staff of technical writers to the production of first-class documentation for TiVo consumers, licensing partners, and TiVo internal engineering.

* Create, track, and deliver to, schedules and milestones based on project goals.

* Solicit and incorporate feedback from TiVo internal cross-functional teams and TiVo manufacturing and service partners.

* Provide transparent and reliable project effort estimation and tracking.

* Work cross-functionally on issues such as style development, brand presentation and the out-of-box experience.

* Clearly and appropriately articulate document style and production requirements for a variety of audiences and mediums.

* Find, hire, and retain top technical writers to staff TiVo documentation projects.

* Work closely with print vendors to negotiate production agreements that drive the cost of printed documentation down without compromising quality; understand and clearly communicate the trade-offs between cost and the out-of-box experience.

* Maintain documentation team resources such as the docs team style guide, intranet glossary and intranet pages for useful images.

* Create documentation as required.

Qualifications:
--------------
* Experience managing a documentation team for a technical organization.

* Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal.

* Excellent editorial skills.

* A strong focus on the user experience, including the impact and value of a consumer brand, and an interest in information design.

* A broad knowledge of the roles of various content development tools such as FrameMaker, Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, Robohelp, Doxygen, JavaDoc, Perldoc, and WebWorks, and working expertise in several such tools.

* A broad knowledge of content delivery formats such as HTML, PDF, and XML, and of the appropriate use of graphics formats such as jpg, png, gif, eps, and tif.

* An understanding of all aspects of technical content development, including the development of style guides, templates, and high quality technical illustrations.

* An understanding of the role of documentation specialists in the development, implementation and maintenance of content delivery systems.

* Enthusiasm for consumer electronics and an understanding of (or willingness to learn about) consumer electronic fundamentals such as the various types of cabling and audio and video formats.


Please direct your responses to: rdavis@tivo.com

* * *

How to respond to this listing
------------------------------
If you have the credentials the listing requires, please
RESPOND DIRECTLY TO THE HIRING MANAGER using the contact information we supply in each listing. Responses to this account will not be forwarded.

About Synergistech's lead-forwarding service
--------------------------------------------
On November 16, 2001, Synergistech Communications suspended its
full-service technical publications recruiting activities
due to weak economic demand.

We are currently in hibernation, but continue to reply to email and voicemail, and (more significantly) to forward staff and contract employment listings to candidates seeking work.

Synergistech's lead-forwarding service is entirely free to companies as well as candidates. If you know a hiring manager who wants access to over 1500 of the best Technical Communicators in the San Francisco Bay Area, is personally responsible for the hiring decision, and is willing to let us post complete contact information in our listing, please tell them about this service.

Candidates subscribed to our listservers will not receive listings from other recruiters, unaccountable HR representatives, or faceless "resumes@company.com" email accounts, but nor will they receive assistance in advancing their candidacy with the companies whose listings we post. Sorry, no exceptions.

What the future holds
---------------------
Although Synergistech won't market our services or seek remuneration from them while recessionary pressures prevail, we hope to resume for-profit operations when local economic conditions improve. Until that time, we encourage candidates to avail themselves of the job-seeking resources in our Career Development Corner (www.synergistech.com/develop.htm).

We regret not being able to assist you more actively at this time.

* * *

You are receiving this message because you are subscribed to
staff_pubs, a free technical publications *staff
employment* listing service from Synergistech Communications.

To unsubscribe, send email to:

pubpros@synergistech.com

with the words "unsubscribe staff_pubs" in the subject line. Note that you must send this message from the same account/address that is currently subscribed. For example, you won't be able to unsubscribe your JaneDoe@yahoo.com address by sending email from JaneDoe@hotmail.com, or even from JaneDoe@mydomain.yahoo.com

Synergistech is relaying this listing as a service to our candidates. We remain officially in hibernation, due to continued weak economic demand, so PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO US. Instead, read the whole listing, then send your resume directly to the hiring manager if you have the required qualifications. Principals only; do not forward this listing to recruiters.

For more info about Synergistech and our free lead-distribution service, refer to this note's footer. Thanks, and good luck to us all.

* * *

[From this afternoon's KITList-Tech Yahoo group]


Please direct your responses to: jim_flanegin@yahoo.com.

[NOTE: Synergistech doesn't know or have any association with Mr. Flanegin. We just know that many of you want to work, and dream of doing so in San Francisco....]

I am looking for a Sr. Technical Instructor for a network security company located in San Francisco. Local candidates only. Please send resumes directly to me at jim_flanegin@yahoo.com.

The job posting is described below. Please note the qualifications listed are the *minimum* qualifications for the job. Only those meeting the minimum qualifications will be considered. Thanks for your consideration. No phone calls please.

Responsibilities:
----------------

-Deliver to customers instructor-led, hands-on technical courses, both on-site and virtual classroom models.

-Assist with design and writing of technical courses.

-Maintain staged equipment for virtual classroom support.

-Maintain fixed classroom equipment.

-Assist with student registration.

-Provide internal technical training as needed.

-Some travel is necessary.


Minimum Qualifications:
----------------------

-In depth practical knowledge of networking and network security products and industry (IP addressing, network device integration, packet parsing, OSI model, etc.)

-3 to 10 years experience as a technical instructor delivering hands-on technical training courses

-Proven track record in design and writing of technical courses

-Good project-management skills

-Experience in a start up environment helpful

-Experience with virtual classroom instruction helpful

-Proactive attitude

-BS or equivalent experience

* * *

How to respond to this listing
------------------------------
If you have the credentials the listing requires, please
RESPOND DIRECTLY TO THE HIRING MANAGER using the contact information we supply in each listing. Responses to this account will not be forwarded.

About Synergistech's lead-forwarding service
--------------------------------------------
On November 16, 2001, Synergistech Communications suspended its
full-service technical publications recruiting activities
due to weak economic demand.

We are currently in hibernation, but continue to reply to email and voicemail, and (more significantly) to forward staff and contract employment listings to candidates seeking work.

Synergistech's lead-forwarding service is entirely free to companies as well as candidates. If you know a hiring manager who wants access to over 1500 of the best Technical Communicators in the San Francisco Bay Area, is personally responsible for the hiring decision, and is willing to let us post complete contact information in our listing, please tell them about this service.

Candidates subscribed to our listservers will not receive listings from other recruiters, unaccountable HR representatives, or faceless "resumes@company.com" email accounts, but nor will they receive assistance in advancing their candidacy with the companies whose listings we post. Sorry, no exceptions.

What the future holds
---------------------
Although Synergistech won't market our services or seek remuneration from them while recessionary pressures prevail, we hope to resume for-profit operations when local economic conditions improve. Until that time, we encourage candidates to avail themselves of the job-seeking resources in our Career Development Corner (www.synergistech.com/develop.htm).

We regret not being able to assist you more actively at this time.

* * *

You are receiving this message because you are subscribed to
contract_pubs, a free technical publications *staff
employment* listing service from Synergistech Communications.

To unsubscribe, send email to:

pubpros@synergistech.com

with the words "unsubscribe contract_pubs" in the subject line. Note that you must send this message from the same account/address that is currently subscribed. For example, you won't be able to unsubscribe your JaneDoe@yahoo.com address by sending email from JaneDoe@hotmail.com, or even from JaneDoe@mydomain.yahoo.com

Wednesday, December 10, 2003

Important information follows these job listings. Please read it.

Information Development Project Manager - Job #15033
Location: Pleasanton, California

PeopleSoft (Nasdaq:PSFT - News) is the world's leading provider of
application software for the real-time enterprise. PeopleSoft pure internet
software enables organizations to reduce costs and increase productivity by
directly connecting customers, suppliers, partners and employees to
business processes on-line, in real time. PeopleSoft's integrated,
best-in-class applications include Customer Relationship Management, Supply
Chain Management, Human Capital Management, Financial Management and
Application Integration. Today more than 5,100 organizations in 140
countries run on PeopleSoft software.

Job description - Information Development Project Manager.
The Information Development group develops content for PeopleSoft
documentation and training materials. This position oversees the the
day-to-day operations of a team of technical writers as they create online
documentation and printed training materials for specific releases,
ensuring on-time delivery of quality content. Responsibilities include
helping analyze resources, creating necessary project plans, monitoring
project progress, and performing a post-release analysis.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
1. Help identify project milestones and coordinate information development
project plans with Product Development project plans and with Language
Services schedules.
2. Perform resource analysis during initial scope phase of information
development process.
3. Assist information developers to: define scope and assemble timelines
for individual projects; prioritize, track and re-assess project timelines
as development cycle progresses.
4. Review documentation and training content for quality and adherence to
PeopleSoft writing standards, including working with Editorial to identify
areas where individual writers need improvement and assisting writers to
implement plans for meeting improvement objectives.
5. Assist information developers to understand PeopleSoft writing standards
and PeopleSoft writing tools (Word and XML.)
6. Organize resources and disseminate information needed for information
developers moving onto a new projects, e.g., development contact
information, database information, project specific issues and goals.
7. Participate in creation of efficient information development processes
and resolve information development incidents.
8. Assist in writing when needed, oversee or write pre-release and release
notes.
9. Assist the IDM with quarterly and annual reviews for the group.

ESSENTIAL KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS:

Education & Experience:
· BS/BA or work experience in related field
· 4+ years experience as a Documentation/Curriculum Development Specialist.
· 4+ years experience managing complex projects.

Technical Knowledge & Skills:
· Software proficiency: MS Word, MS Project, Visio, Documentum, Arbotext
Epic Editor; online publishing software, client/server technology and
application software
· Excellent oral and written communication skills.
· Excellent interpersonal skills.
· Ability to work effectively cross-functionally.
· Outstanding project management skills.
· Excellent technical skills.
· Outstanding time management skills.
· Adept at handling multiple priorities.

Customer & Industry Knowledge:
· ERP/CRM solutions.
· PeopleSoft Applications

PeopleSoft is an Equal Opportunity Employer

Send resumes to: Yolanda_Weimer@peoplesoft.com


IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Volunteers from Bay Area chapters of the Society for Technical
Communication, an educational and charitable organization, collect
and distribute job leads as a public service.

STC and its volunteers assume no responsibility for the contents of
the listings or for any errors made in preparing them for distribution.

To unsubscribe, send an e-mail message to STCJOBSBA-L-request@stc-berkeley.org. Leave the subject line blank and turn off your automatic e-mail signature if applicable. Insert the following command in the first line of the message body:

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For information on how to prepare job listings for this list and
where to send them, please send a message to postinginstrux@stc-
berkeley.org.

Tuesday, December 02, 2003

Important information follows these job listings. Please read it.

POSITION

Instructor-Science Writing



SALARY

Approximately $4000/semester for the 3-unit course (.20 part-time
status)



EMPLOYER

San Francisco State University, College of Science & Engineering. Our
campus is in the southwestern corner of the city, near Lake Merced.
Students in the Science Writing class have upper-division or graduate
standing. Many are pursuing a degree or certificate from the Technical &
Professional Writing Program in the College of Humanities.



COURSE DESCRIPTION

Principles of research, writing, and editing of technical documents and
articles for the public understanding of science. Students write
publication-quality articles for possible inclusion in Intersci, the journal
of the College of Science and Engineering.



SCHEDULE

Spring '04 semester. Class will meet once/week on Mondays, 4-7pm,
February 2-May 17 (except March 22). You also will need to be available for
one office hour/week and commit to time required for preparation and
grading.



REQUIREMENTS

* Minimum five years of professional science journalism writing
experience, preferably including writing feature articles about scientific
research for a publication directed to a non-specialist audience.

* Master's degree.

* Teaching and/or training experience.



APPLICATION

Email resume to: RehlingL@sfsu.edu. No phone inquiries, please.



IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Volunteers from Bay Area chapters of the Society for Technical
Communication, an educational and charitable organization, collect
and distribute job leads as a public service.

STC and its volunteers assume no responsibility for the contents of
the listings or for any errors made in preparing them for distribution.

To unsubscribe, send an e-mail message to STCJOBSBA-L-request@stc-berkeley.org. Leave the subject line blank and turn off your automatic e-mail signature if applicable. Insert the following command in the first line of the message body:

unsubscribe

To subscribe, send an e-mail message to STCJOBSBA-L-request@stc-berkeley.org. Leave the subject line blank and turn off your automatic e-mail signature if applicable. Insert the following command in the first line of the message body:

subscribe

Please do not send messages to this list.

For information on how to prepare job listings for this list and
where to send them, please send a message to postinginstrux@stc-
berkeley.org.
PLEASE NOTE respond-to address. Thanks -- Barbara
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > Sent: Monday, December 01, 2003 3:18 PM
> > To: All Bay Area
> > Subject: FW: Usability Study for Macromedia RWS
> >
> > Please forward this to any non-Macromedia employees who may be interested.
> > We need some web designers who use another WYSIWYG instead of Dreamweaver
> > to create/edit etc websites.
> > Have them respond to usability_admin@macromedia.com.
> >
> > Hello,
> >
> > We are inviting people to come to our Macromedia facilities in Redwood
> > Shores in Redwood City to participate in a usability study. Interested? It
> > would be a 90 minute time commitment and in exchange you will receive a
> > choice of one of the following Macromedia products: Macromedia Contribute
> > 2.0, Dreamweaver MX 2004, Flash Communication Server MX, Fireworks MX
> > 2004, Flash MX 2004, or FreeHand MX. Please fill out the questionnaire
> > below. Your answers will be reviewed and if you fit a profile of the
> > participants we need, we will contact you to schedule a session time.
> >
> > If you don't hear back from us, this means that the openings for this
> > particular usability study have been filled. We will keep your information
> > on file, with your permission, for future studies. If you never want to
> > hear from us again, please respond with the subject line "no, thanks".
> > 1. What tools do you use when creating your web pages?
> > _____ Macromedia ColdFusion Studio _____ How long?_____ Hours per week?
> > _____ Macromedia Contribute _____ How long?_____ Hours per week?
> > _____ Macromedia Dreamweaver _____ How long?_____ Hours per week?
> > _____ Macromedia Flash _____ How long?_____ Hours per week?
> > _____ Microsoft FrontPage _____ How long?_____ Hours per week?
> > _____ Adobe GoLive _____ How long?_____ Hours per week?
> > _____ Macromedia HomeSite _____ How long?_____ Hours per week?
> > _____ Macromedia JRun Studio _____ How long?_____ Hours per week?
> > _____ Notepad _____ How long?_____ Hours per week?
> > _____ Microsoft Visual Studio_____ How long?_____ Hours per week?
> > _____ Other ______ Which?_____ How long?_____ Hours per week?
> > 2. If you use Dreamweaver, which version do you use?
> > _____ MX 2004
> > _____ MX
> > _____ 6.0 or 6.1
> > _____ 4.0 or 5.0
> > _____ Other
> >
> > 3. What, if any, is your experience with HTML?
> >
> > _____ None - Always use a visual tool to create web pages
> > _____ Beginner - I can make minor edits
> > _____ Intermediate - I can write most things in HTML
> > _____ Expert - I can hand code everything in HTML if necessary
> >
> > 4. How do you normally develop your web pages?
> > ____ I ONLY use a WYSIWIG tool or mode to create my web pages (e.g. I use
> > visual editing tools).
> > ____ I ONLY hand code my web pages (e.g. I type in the tags and code for
> > my web pages).
> > _____ I SOMETIMES hand code my web pages, but generally use a WYSIWYG tool
> > or mode
> > ______ I SOMETIMES use a WYSIWYG tool or mode to create and edit web
> > pages, but I USUALLY edit the HTML by hand
> >
> > 5. What, if any, is your experience with CSS?
> > _____None - I don't touch the stuff
> > _____Beginner - I have used it a little bit, but I don't know it well
> > ______How long?
> > _____Intermediate - I know it well and I feel comfortable working with
> > it_____How long?
> > _____Expert - I know like the back of my hand_____How long?
> >
> > 6. Which of the following tasks do you perform?
> > _____ Manage files and folders
> > _____ Insert/Edit Assets
> > _____ Create a library item
> > _____ Create/edit CSS
> > _____ Put data directly from a database on page
> > _____ Put data from Web Services, JavaBeans, or ColdFusion components on
> > page
> > _____ Attach/modify parameters of previously attached behaviors
> > _____ Look up information about a tag's HTML attributes.
> > _____ Create snippets
> > _____ Add server behaviors to a page
> > _____ None of these tasks
> >
> > 7. If you use Dreamweaver, what percentage of time do you use the
> > following features?
> >
> > _____ % Panels
> > _____ % Property inspector
> > _____ % Menus
> >
> > 8. If you use Dreamweaver, what features do you use most often?
> >
> > 9. Which of the following dynamic web application technologies do you use?
> > _____ ASP
> > _____ ASP.NET
> > _____ JSP
> > _____ CFML
> > _____ PHP
> > _____ Other_______________ please list
> > _____ N/A
> >
> > 10. What percentage of your time is spent working on dynamic vs. static
> > web pages?
> > _____% dynamic
> > _____ % static
> > _____ N/A
> > 11. Which platform do you write your web pages on (i.e. The platform that
> > contains the editor/tool you use to write your code)?
> > _____ Mac OSX
> > _____ Windows 2000
> > _____ Windows XP
> > _____ Other ___________________ Please list
> > 12. Please indicate your availability to come to our facilities in Redwood
> > City:
> > Wednesday, December 10
> > _____8:00 am
> > _____10:00 am
> > _____12:00 noon
> > _____2:00 pm
> > _____4:00 pm
> > Thursday, December 11
> > _____8:00 am
> > _____10:00 am
> > _____12:00 noon
> > _____2:00 pm
> > _____4:00 pm
> >
> > Friday, December 12
> > _____ 10:30 am
> > _____ 12:00 noon
> >
> > 13. Please fill out your contact information below (required):
> > Name:
> > Work Email:
> > Work Phone:
> > Company:
> > Job Title:
> > 14. If this email was forwarded to you, would you like to be added to our
> > database for participation in future studies?
> > _____ Yes
> > _____ No
> > ***Thank you! Please reply to usability_admin@macromedia.com.***
> >

Monday, December 01, 2003

Presidents and Editors,

Here is a column from Region 7 D-S for your upcoming newsletters.

> > Market Changes Afoot: What does this mean for technical communicators?
> > - Rahel Anne Bailie, STC Director/Sponsor for Region 7
> >
> > One of my activities as a self-employed consultant is to monitor various
> > job boards. The job boards I monitor include those that list positions
> > and contracts for technical communicators, but more importantly, they
> > include for boards for the industries we support: software development,
> > engineering, and manufacturing. This gives me a daily temperature reading
> > on the industry where I'm most likely to find clients and contracts.
> >
> > This past week, the activity on the job boards has shot up. Between Nov 21
> > and 28, 2003, one Vancouver job board had 163 jobs posted, with almost a
> > dozen of them being communication-related jobs: technical writer,
> > instructional designer, marketing communications manager. This encouraging
> > news was confirmed by a consultant from Boston, whose business suddenly
> > got very busy; all consultants in his firm are fully booked. Does this
> > that the economy is bouncing back, and what does this mean for technical
> > communication professionals? How can we reconcile this apparent economic
> > recovery with the opposing trend of jobs moving from North America to
> > Asian countries?
> >
> > Certainly, the increase in North American development jobs is encouraging
> > for North American technical communicators, just as the surge of product
> > development in countries such Singapore, India, and China is encouraging
> > for technical communicators there. Generally speaking, product development
> > generally indicates a corollary need to communicate product features,
> > through marketing communications, the user interface, user instructions,
> > and internal documentation, and the communication jobs are kept in close
> > proximity of the development jobs.
> >
> > What we must keep in mind, however, is that as markets mature - and the
> > software industry, where so many technical communicators are employed, is
> > maturing along with all other industries - and profit margins are
> > narrowing, companies continue to find ways to be competitive. We consumers
> > like our software to be inexpensive, and we hunt around for the absolute
> > best deals. To provide us with those deals, companies need to find ways to
> > cut costs, then cut costs more, and then cut costs even more. In an
> > industry with few raw materials, where the largest cost is of the brain
> > power of its staff, the way to cut development costs is to cut labour
> > costs. If work can be fit into a formula and done where labour costs are
> > less, that will happen.
> >
> > From my Canadian perspective (keeping in mind that Canada was one of the
> > first countries to which American companies sent their work "off-shore"),
> > I see the current migration of jobs around the globe as inevitable. As
> > much of the hard-goods manufacturing of the world has gone to China,
> > thereby stocking North American dollar stores with inexpensive
> > merchandise, so follows the knowledge industry, to satisfy the market
> > demand for discounted products.
> >
> > What this means for me as a technical communicator based in North America
> > is that I need to make strategic career choices. If I choose to specialize
> > in the type of work that is moving to another part of the world, I can
> > look harder to do that type of work locally, or I can follow the work to
> > wherever it goes, the way that actors migrate to Los Angeles. Or I can
> > look for the type of technical communication work that, by necessity,
> > stays closer to home. I would tap into communities adjacent to technical
> > communication, to encourage cross-pollination of ideas and see what types
> > of work is suited to someone with my abilities, work that doesn't come
> > with the title of "technical writer" but involves a using my skill set and
> > qualifications. I would build my network outside of the technical
> > communication community, getting to know the decision-makers in new areas
> > and getting known there, as well.
> >
> > What it would mean for me as a technical communicator based in a country
> > with an emerging economy is that I would want to build my credibility as a
> > professional who delivers top-quality work that satisfies the demands of a
> > head office that may be overseas. I would tap into the body of knowledge
> > that exists in print and online, to find a way to exceed the documentation
> > standards out there, and deliver work that works for clients and end
> > users. I'd find out what makes the market tick, and figure out where my
> > skills should be going. I would find a colleague or peer as a mentor. I
> > would connect into existing technical communication communities, attend
> > meetings, take courses, and subscribe to listservs. I'd cultivate a
> > "buddy" relationship with a technical communicator in my area of interest,
> > and find ways to share information about the demands of technical
> > communication in various markets around the world. I'd look at trends and
> > determine what's coming, so I can stay current and not lose my work in a
> > year (or two, or five) to another country with even lower labour costs.
> > I'd ensure that my company knows, every step of the way, how much value I
> > add to the product and the company, and make management see that I am a
> > value contributor instead of a cost centre.
> >
> > The next few years will be very interesting times. From new tools, such
> > as software that writes instructions by recording screen actions as you
> > complete tasks on screen and creating content objects for content
> > management systems, to new trends that include moving jobs around the
> > world in a global economy, we are continually made to examine our personal
> > employment situations and our profession to look for interesting
> > opportunities.
> >
> >
>
>---
>You are currently subscribed to stc-ds as: bgraham@manuallabour.com
>To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-stc-ds-106679P@lists.stc.org

Bonni Graham
Manual Labour
Making Technology Easier
(858) 366-0170 (San Diego)
http://www.manuallabour.com



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