Come to the September meeting and find out what technical communicators can
learn from the world’s largest writing project. The encyclopedia that anyone
can edit, “Wikipedia can never work in theory, only in practice.” From its
roots as a radical experiment, it has become one of the world’s most popular
websites, changing the way we think about the relationship between writers
and readers. Who writes Wikipedia, and why? How does the English Wikipedia
maintain consistency of style and formatting across more than a million
articles? What happens when contributors disagree? We’ll take a tour behind
the scenes of the English Wikipedia to explore these questions.

The Speaker:

Su-Laine Yeo has worked in the software development industry since 1996 as
an interaction designer, usability specialist, technical communicator, and
software trainer. She is currently an Interaction Design Specialist at
JustSystems, where she is responsible for analyzing user requirements and
continually improving the usability of the XMetaL product family. Su-Laine
has presented at the WritersUA and the Content Management Strategies
conferences on DITA, an emerging XML standard. For about a year and a half,
she has also been spending too much time on her hobby of writing for
Wikipedia.

Admission: $20
Canada West Coast chapter STC members: 50% discount ($10) with proof of
membership
Other STC members: 25% discount ($15) with proof of membership. “Other STC
members” includes STC members who have either limited membership or other
categories of STC membership but do not belong to the Canada West Coast
chapter. Student, retired, and unemployed STC members: 75% discount ($5)
with proof of membership

Light refreshments will be served.

Time: Networking: 6:30 - 7 PM
Presentation: 7 - 8:30 PM.
Please pre-register at:
http://www.gifttool.com/registrar/ShowEventDetails?ID=47&EID=1582