Hi everyone

The next Canberra IA Cocktail Hour is Thursday 22 January 2009.

Jessica Enders, Principal of Formulate Information Design, is going
to take us on a fascinating journey of memory, cognition, language
and sociology, exploring the hidden complexity behind writing a good
question. This will be a dry run of a completely new talk being
presented in the United States later in the year, so the more
(feedback) the merrier.

We also hope you’ll join us for an informal dinner somewhere in
Dickson afterwards.

Time: 17:30-19:00
Day/Date: Thursday 22 January 2009
Venue: Ipsos-Eureka Social Research Institute
Level 1
55 Woolley Street (above Zefferelli’s)
Dickson

Please RSVP to [facibus AT gmail DOT com] as soon as possible for
catering purposes.

Cheers

Jessica Enders
Principal
Formulate Information Design
----------------------------------------
http://formulate.com.au
----------------------------------------
Phone: (02) 6116 8765
Fax: (02) 8456 5916
PO Box 5108
Braddon ACT 2612
----------------------------------------

Hi everyone

The schedule for IA Cocktail Hour in 2009 is now up: http://
iacanberra.org/2009/01/16/ia-cocktail-hour-schedule-2009/

There are lots of free slots so please get in touch with Andrew Boyd
if you're interested in sharing some of your knowledge/experience/
hair-pulling adventures with us, via facibus AT gmail DOT com.

The first IA Cocktail Hour for 2009 is next week: Thursday 22 Jan.
Sorry about the late notice, still getting my head around everything
post holidays! Details to follow in just a few minutes.

Cheers

Jessica Enders
Principal
Formulate Information Design
----------------------------------------
http://formulate.com.au
----------------------------------------
Phone: (02) 6116 8765
Fax: (02) 8456 5916
PO Box 5108
Braddon ACT 2612
----------------------------------------

Hi everyone

The next Canberra IA Cocktail Hour is Thursday 23 October 2008.

This will be the final presentation-based Cocktail Hour for the year,
so make sure you come along to see Dean Klemick give an interactive
demonstration of an exciting quantitative analysis tool, using the
results from the 2007 ‘A List Apart’ survey (http://
www.alistapart.com/articles/2007surveyresults).

We also hope you’ll join us for an informal dinner somewhere in
Dickson afterwards.

Time: 17:30-19:00
Day/Date: Thursday 23 October 2008
Venue: Ipsos-Eureka Social Research Institute
Level 1
55 Woolley Street (above Zefferelli’s)
Dickson

Please RSVP to [facibus AT gmail DOT com] as soon as possible for
catering purposes.

Cheers

Jessica Enders
Principal
Formulate Information Design
----------------------------------------
http://formulate.com.au
----------------------------------------
Phone: (02) 6116 8765
Fax: (02) 8456 5916
PO Box 5108
Braddon ACT 2612
----------------------------------------

Hi everyone

I am sorry for the problem with the IA Cocktail Hour scheduled for 2
October. The presenter, Nathan, had been delayed in court - one of
the downsides of being a legal expert! The court session was closed
and in lock down, making it impossible for him to call and give us
warning that he was going to be late. In the end, he arrived in
Canberra at 7pm, just in time for dinner (which was very nice, in
Manuka)!

Nathan has done a lot of work to prepare a great, interactive session
for us on the topic of untangling legal documents. He was very
apologetic about his delay, even though it was out of his control. We
have asked him to come back and speak with us in the new year, an
invitation which he gladly accepted.

The final 'official' IA Cocktail Hour for 2008 will be on Thursday 23
October, at Ipsos-Eureka in Dickson. We are waiting for confirmation,
but it looks like it's going to be a demonstration of some really
usable and powerful quantitative analysis software. As soon as
confirmation is received, we'll post the invitation.

I say the final 'official' IA Cocktail Hour, because the (dis)
organisers of these events are planning to hold a social occasion
(e.g. picnic) in the slot reserved for our November Hour, i.e. on
Thursday 27 November. At this stage, we're looking for a good
location - requested characteristics include 'by the water',
somewhere child friendly and somewhere that allows alcohol. If you
have any suggestions for where this magical place might be, please
email the list.

That's all for now. Thanks for your understanding and hope to see you
soon!

Cheers

Jessica Enders
Principal
Formulate Information Design
----------------------------------------
http://formulate.com.au
----------------------------------------
Phone: (02) 6116 8765
Fax: (02) 8456 5916
PO Box 5108
Braddon ACT 2612
----------------------------------------

Hi Ryan

Welcome!

Julie makes a good point. Unfortunately, I suspect there may not be
much spare time either side of Nathan's session next week but there
probably will be for the following IA Cocktail Hour, which is on 23
October.

With regards to your questions, here are my 2 cents, FWIW:

1. Manage scope through having a clearly communicated and
collaboratively developed plan (we're doing this now, and planning to
roll out this then etc) with a way for reviewing new requests and
incorporating them (or otherwise) over time. It's the usual sort of
thing: be clear who your users are, what their needs are and what the
relative priorities are for the 'owners' of the Intranet. The
confluence of these things is your sweet spot.

2. No. 1 should help with No. 2 also as such communication makes it
clear that you are listening and it won't stay like this forever. And
if the intranet can't provide what they want, find out what should be
and (transparently) send the feedback that way.

You might also find this blog useful: http://egovau.blogspot.com/

Cheers

Jessica Enders
Principal
Formulate Information Design
----------------------------------------
http://formulate.com.au
----------------------------------------
Phone: (02) 6116 8765
Fax: (02) 8456 5916
PO Box 5108
Braddon ACT 2612
----------------------------------------

On 26/09/2008, at 9:48 AM, Julie Hale wrote:

>
> Hi Ryan
>
> Welcome to Canberra's IA community. These are great questions and
> ones that we all have to deal with on a pretty regular basis.
>
> Why not ask them as general questions for the brains trust to
> respond to at teh begining of the next Canberra IA Cocktail hour?
>
> You are likley to get some very honest and thought provoking
> responses. The breadth of IA consulting expertise is refreshing and
> it is a good oportunity to meet with others in the field.
>
> See the web site or Jessica's last e-mail for date and time.
>
> Kind regards
>
> Julie Hale
> From: canberra_ia_community@...
> [canberra_ia_community@...] On Behalf Of Ryan Merton
> [rmerton@...]
> Sent: Friday, September 26, 2008 8:14 AM
> To: canberra_ia_community@...
> Subject: [canberra_ia_community] Community based Intranets
>
> Hi Canberra IA’s.
>
> My name is Ryan, I’m an IA, and I’m a new member.
>
> I’m working on what I’m calling a Community based Intranet.  It’s
> an intranet for a WoG portfolio where officers can add and tag
> their own content.
>
> The challenge I’m facing and hoping to get some of your points of
> view is:
>
> How to manage scope change as the number and types of users increase?
>
> As the site is gaining popularity and use, the types of users and
> what they are looking for is also changing (not radically, but
> noticeable).  I can’t keep up with the demand as each new business
> area comes online and wants to do their own thing.
>
> How do I keep people interested and motivated while telling them no?
>
> Since it’s a community site and thus relies on people adding their
> own content in order to be successful (and useful), how do I divert
> their attention from what they think they want...?
>
> Cheers
>
> Ryan
>
>
> NOTICE - This communication is intended only for the person or
> entity to which it is addressed and may contain confidential and/or
> privileged material. Any review, retransmission, dissemination or
> other use of, or taking any action in reliance on, this
> communication by persons or entities other than the intended
> recipient is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient of
> this communication please delete and destroy all copies and
> telephone SMS Management & Technology on 9696 0911 immediately. Any
> views expressed in this Communication are those of the individual
> sender, except where the sender specifically states them to be the
> views of SMS Management & Technology. Except as required by law,
> SMS Management & Technology does not represent, warrant and/or
> guarantee that the integrity of this communication has been
> maintained nor that the communication is free from errors, virus,
> interception or interference.
>
>

Hi all

The next Canberra IA Cocktail Hour is Thursday 2 October 2008. We are
delighted to have Nathan McDonald, Service Director of the Mustor
Institute, coming down from Sydney especially to speak to us.

The Mustor Institute works hard to make the complex world of
regulation, business, contracts etc accessible for, and
understandable by, all through their novel “Regulatory DNA (MIS
1000)” approach. This system for navigating through these difficult
domains has been described as “revolutionary” and “one of the most
exciting developments”.

Nathan will demonstrate the clarity and simplicity provided by the
DNA method using examples such as:

      * NSW Building Industry payment regulations;
      * Austrac Anti Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing
(AML/CTF) regulations;
      * Australian Department of Defence contracts; and
      * Australian Taxation Office regulations.

The session aims to be interactive and practical, so we want you to
submit examples of the legal texts that you have to work with (e.g.
contracts, policies, regulations and agreements). Nathan will use
these as an exercise and point of discussion. Send your examples,
preferably in Word or RTF format, to jessica [at] formulate [dot] com
[dot] au by close of business on Monday 1 October.

Join us for what’s guaranteed to be a thought-provoking and
fascinating meeting. You’re also welcome to come for an informal
dinner afterwards in Manuka/Kingston.

Time: 17:30-19:00
Day/Date: Thursday 2 October 2008
Venue: Stamford Interactive
Level 1
301 Canberra Avenue (right near Officeworks)
Fyshwick

Please RSVP to [facibus AT gmail DOT com] as soon as possible for
catering purposes.

Cheers

Jessica Enders
Principal
Formulate Information Design
----------------------------------------
http://formulate.com.au
----------------------------------------
Phone: (02) 6116 8765
Fax: (02) 8456 5916
PO Box 5108
Braddon ACT 2612
----------------------------------------

Hi everyone

Usually we have our Canberra IA Cocktail Hours on the 4th Thursday of
the month. This would make the next IA Cocktail Hour on 25 September.

However, Web Directions South is on 23 - 26 September, and a lot of
the IA Canberra crew are going to be away.

So, the next IA Cocktail Hour will be on THURSDAY 2 OCTOBER.

A formal meeting invitation, with the details of the topic and
location, will be issued closer to the date, so watch this space.

Cheers

Jessica Enders
Principal
Formulate Information Design
----------------------------------------
http://formulate.com.au
----------------------------------------
Phone: (02) 6116 8765
Fax: (02) 8456 5916
PO Box 5108
Braddon ACT 2612
----------------------------------------

Dear friends,

The next Canberra IA Cocktail Hour is on Thursday 28 August 2008.

Come along and get a sneak preview of Ruth Ellison’s talk for Web
Directions on integrating accessibility into design.  Ruth is a
Senior Consultant at Stamford Interactive.

You’re also invited to an informal dinner in Dickson afterwards.

Time: 17:30-19:00
Day/Date: Thursday 28 August 2008
Venue: Ipsos-Eureka Social Research Institute
Level 1
55 Woolley Street (above Zefferelli’s)
Dickson

Please RSVP to [facibus AT gmail DOT com] as soon as possible for
catering purposes.

Cheers,

Jessica Enders
Principal
Formulate Information Design
----------------------------------------
http://formulate.com.au
----------------------------------------
Phone: (02) 6116 8765
Fax: (02) 8456 5916
PO Box 5108
Braddon ACT 2612
----------------------------------------

Hi

Thanks to all who have answered so far - much appreciated.

I just want to clarify that I have a background in forms design (both
electronic & paper based) and have read Luke's book (which I agree,
is great). I have an opinion on the question but want to make sure
that my article covers off the diversity of views on the matter. This
is why I'm interested in what you think and, in particular, your
reasons for that view.

With thanks

Jessica Enders
Principal
Formulate Information Design
----------------------------------------
http://formulate.com.au
----------------------------------------
Phone: (02) 6116 8765
Fax: (02) 8456 5916
PO Box 5108
Braddon ACT 2612
----------------------------------------

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Jessica Enders <jessica@...>
> Date: 27 July 2008 3:34:30 PM
> To: BFMA Formspace <Formspace@...>,
> wsg@..., content@..., sigia l <sigia-
> l@...>, canberra_ia_community@...,
> discuss@...
> Subject: [bfma] Design of forms on web vs paper
>
> I've been involved in a few debates about this question lately and
> would like to write an article summarising the different positions.
> It would be great if you could spend a few minutes emailing me or
> posting your personal position on the following query:
>
> "As a matter of best practice, should forms on the web be designed
> to look like their paper equivalents? Why/why not?"
>
> I recognise that this is a fairly "open" question but there are
> lots of different ways that one could come at this issue and I'm
> keen to hear about them all! Will send around a link to the article
> when done, for future reference.
>
> Thanks in anticipation,
>
> Jessica Enders
> Principal
> Formulate Information Design
> ----------------------------------------
> http://formulate.com.au
> ----------------------------------------
> Phone: (02) 6116 8765
> Fax: (02) 8456 5916
> PO Box 5108
> Braddon ACT 2612
> ----------------------------------------
>
> [Apologies if you get this email more than once - I'm casting a
> wide net]
>
> _________________________________________________________

On Sun, Jul 27, 2008 at 3:34 PM, Jessica Enders
<jessica@...> wrote:
> I've been involved in a few debates about this question lately and
> would like to write an article summarising the different positions.
> It would be great if you could spend a few minutes emailing me or
> posting your personal position on the following query:
>
> "As a matter of best practice, should forms on the web be designed to
> look like their paper equivalents? Why/why not?"

You're far more expert at this than me, so my views are very personal
and completely subjective. That said, I did manage a large and very
successful online grants application and management system for the
Department of Industry Tourism and Resources (they have a new name
now) before I joined SMS. The thoughts below mirror a lot of the
thinking we used for that system.

I've seen both approaches done badly and I've seen both approaches
done well. Here's how I view the idea:

- forms on the web should be completed in the same *logical* order as
a paper equivalent, i.e. same fields at the same point in the form
- tab order in a web form is critical. Not every user will tab between
fields, but when it *doesn't work*, it is a major flaw
- for an HTML form, the presentation needn't be exactly like the paper
equivalent, but should be similar as users often have a paper
equivalent at hand
- for a live PDF form (which I have seen done both well, and very,
very badly) the paper form and the web form can and should be exactly
the same
- if you are going to use live PDF, you have an additional requirement
to be super-accurate and make the experience seamless
- delivery of a printed, data-complete form at the end of the process
should *absolutely* look like the printed form

Hope this helps.

Steve
--
Stephen Collins
Cell +61 410 680722
Skype trib22
www.twitter.com/trib
www.linkedin.com/in/stephencollins

www.acidlabs.org

acidlabs - strategies, tools and processes to empower knowledge workers

I've been involved in a few debates about this question lately and
would like to write an article summarising the different positions.
It would be great if you could spend a few minutes emailing me or
posting your personal position on the following query:

"As a matter of best practice, should forms on the web be designed to
look like their paper equivalents? Why/why not?"

I recognise that this is a fairly "open" question but there are lots
of different ways that one could come at this issue and I'm keen to
hear about them all! Will send around a link to the article when
done, for future reference.

Thanks in anticipation,

Jessica Enders
Principal
Formulate Information Design
----------------------------------------
http://formulate.com.au
----------------------------------------
Phone: (02) 6116 8765
Fax: (02) 8456 5916
PO Box 5108
Braddon ACT 2612
----------------------------------------

[Apologies if you get this email more than once - I'm casting a wide
net]



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I've been involved in a few debates about this question lately and
would like to write an article summarising the different positions.
It would be great if you could spend a few minutes emailing me or
posting your personal position on the following query:

"As a matter of best practice, should forms on the web be designed to
look like their paper equivalents? Why/why not?"

I recognise that this is a fairly "open" question but there are lots
of different ways that one could come at this issue and I'm keen to
hear about them all! Will send around a link to the article when
done, for future reference.

Thanks in anticipation,

Jessica Enders
Principal
Formulate Information Design
----------------------------------------
http://formulate.com.au
----------------------------------------
Phone: (02) 6116 8765
Fax: (02) 8456 5916
PO Box 5108
Braddon ACT 2612
----------------------------------------

[Apologies if you get this email more than once - I'm casting a wide
net]

Hey,

I just had a great idea; You can all come over to my place. I'd even
buy all the food and drinks you'd ever want. :)


Alexander (Oslo, Norway)
--
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Project Wrangler, SOA, Information Alchemist, UX, RESTafarian, Topic Maps
------------------------------------------ http://shelter.nu/blog/ --------

'cept I think we should find a park that allows alcohol ;)

Andrew Boyd wrote:
> Folks,
>
> forwarding this message from the IXDA list.
>
> Throwing this open for discussion - should we do the same for our
> November meeting? We traditionally fold the December meeting into
> WebBlast.
>
> We could even combine this with a debate, or an APS vs
> Contractors/Consultants quiz, or some other shenanigans. Thoughts?
>
> Best regards, Andrew
>
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: *Boston IxDA* <boston.ixda@... <mailto:boston.ixda@...>>
> Date: Tue, Jul 22, 2008 at 6:27 AM
> Subject: [IxDA Discuss] [Event] Boston - Picnic in the Park - Tomorrow
> evening
> To: discuss@... <mailto:discuss@...>
>
>
> <snip>
>
>
> It's a pot-luck so please bring food to share. Make it at home or pick
> it up
> on the way. There is a Whole Foods in the neighborhood. We will provide
> drinks, cups, paper plates, napkins, plastic forks, knives, spoons. Sorry,
> no alcohol is allowed in the park.

> </snip>

On Mon, Jul 21, 2008 at 4:49 PM, Jessica Enders
<jessica@...> wrote:
> The next Canberra IA Cocktail Hour is this Thursday 24 July 2008.
> Stephen Collins, owner of AcidLabs (http://www.acidlabs.org/) and
> futurist/socialiser/writer/designer/strategist extraordinaire is
> going to be speaking about Enterprise 2.0.

Well, I'll be talking (briefly) about attending the recent Enterprise
2.0 Conference in Boston and opening the floor to questions about who,
what, when where, why and how. I figure my experience there, and the
things I saw will be of at least some interest to the group.

To suggest that I would be teaching everyone about E2.0 presumes a
great deal of hubris on my part...

That said, I have two upcoming what is/state of the nation
presentations on E2.0, so getting a feel from the group as to what
issues might be appropriate to cover in terms of information for those
events will be mightily useful.

Steve
--
Stephen Collins
Cell +61 410 680722
Skype trib22
www.twitter.com/trib
www.linkedin.com/in/stephencollins

www.acidlabs.org

acidlabs - strategies, tools and processes to empower knowledge workers