Once again, some new faces turned out for the June 5 Tech Comm Café in Victoria. And, once again, the discussion was lively, varied, and long-lasting. We all cleaned our plates, drank our beer, and covered five topics at the busy Northern Quarter bar and music venue in downtown Victoria.
Beyond Writing: We talked about the many platforms and practices of technical communication and the blurred lines between disciplines. Specifically, the platforms of multi-media, video, animation, chatbots, and audio, as well as the practices of information architecture, user experience, structured content, and content strategy.
Digital Armageddon: There were a lot of thoughts shared about the human ability to responsibly adapt to technology (or not!). We reflected on the TV series Black Mirror, the creepy use of social credit in China, where AI is taking us, and the book/movie The Circle. Optimists and pessimists made their cases on the social and psychological aspects.
Mac or PC: Yes.
Time and Space: The group unanimously questioned the merit of working in an office as opposed to working from home, particularly when drafting text. We also agreed on the idea that the hours put into a project rarely correlate with the text output. The consensus was that it’s best to work from home and to not be accountable for hours. Nice gig if you can get it!
Write the Docs: Many are getting a lot out of the Write the Docs community, website, and Slack channel. This is a likely discussion topic for a future meeting.
The Tech Comm Café provides networking opportunities, job leads, answers to work-related dilemmas, and a burst of professional energy to keep you motivated. We discuss technical writing tools and techniques, career planning, portfolios, and anything else related to working as a technical communicator.
We welcome anyone who’s interested in technical communication — contractor, in-house, student, long-time tech writer, STC member, non-member, career-changer, or recruiter. We hope to see you at the next meeting!
Next Meetings
Wednesday, July 11, 2018: Vancouver-area Tech Comm Café
Wednesday, July 25, 2018: Victoria Tech Comm Café; details below.
Next Victoria Tech Comm Café:
If you plan to attend, please RSVP to admin (at) stcwestcoast.ca.
Date: July 25, 2018
Time: 6:30–8:30 pm Pacific Time
Location: Glo Restaurant and Lounge, 104 – 2940 Jutland Rd., Victoria BC
Agenda
- Introductions. Take 60 seconds to introduce yourself, your background, current activities. A good chance to try out that new elevator speech.
- Summer Social. This meeting is a purely social get together. Get some sun, catch up with friends in the tech comm community, and meet some new faces.
Andrew McFallon is freelance technical writer living in Victoria.