@nozurbina

The Internet is Everywhere—So What’s Changed?

Noz Urbina, Consultant

noz.urbina@mekon.com

@nozurbina

@nozurbina

Noz Urbina @nozurbina

~ Consultant/Trainer for Mekon Ltd.– Content strategy, Technical

Communications– 12+ years in structure & mark-up– Chairperson for Congility Events

~ Jun 18-20, UK ~ Call for speakers / pre-reg open now!

– Author / retrospective futurist

congility.com/2014

@nozurbina

This is relevant to you

~ Social media~ Gesture control~ Augmented reality~ Widespread tablet use~ All started/starting commercialisation in

B2C and moved/moving into B2B~ Curmudgeon at your peril

@nozurbina

In the next 45 minutes…

~The Internet as a technology~How we struggle with technologies~The impact of communication

technologies~Recommended approach to coping:

–Become participatory and proactive

@nozurbina

THE INTERNETThe world’s technology

@nozurbina

Over 70 percent of U.S. adults keep their smartphone within five feet of themselves at all times.— Jumio Consumer Habbits Report

Image: Moyan Brenn report here

Why are we here?

@nozurbina

Our pockets have become connections to hardware and software all over the world. Our (technology) control-panel for our lives. The Net is everywhere.

Image: Moyan Brenn report here

Why are we here?

@nozurbina

Samsung

Smartwatch

Smart TVs

The Challenge

Google Glass

@nozurbina

http://cnnmon.ie/PE6CC1

http://bit.ly/OLb7cM

http://bit.ly/T1yYRE

Internet of Things

@nozurbina

Who is on YouTube

http://bit.ly/anthroyoutube

@nozurbina

HOW WE STRUGGLE

“Media are not just means of communication [they] mediate human relationships” — Michael Wesch, assoc. Prof, cultural anthropology, Kansas State

@nozurbina

We need to be able to reflect before we could write. Socrates thought writing would make us mentally lazy and stop our use of memory.

Socrates was a writing sceptic

@nozurbina

The telegraph changed prose

Within a few years of mass adoption, writers were noting how pay-by-the-word

comms were eroding politeness, depth and discourse.

@nozurbina

The telegraph changed prose

The telegraph was instrumental in the growth of USA money markets vs. Europe

(who took up slower).

@nozurbina

We used to think point-to-point was a good

enough. It solved a problem and created new

ones

Image: Jan-Hendrik Caspers

Phones were first sold in pairs

@nozurbina

The company who invited the phone isn’t the

company who invented the switchboard (years

later).

Image: Jan-Hendrik Caspers

Phones were first sold in pairs

@nozurbina

Manhattan skyscrapers were enabled by the

telephone. This enabled the apartment

buildings, changing our cities.

Image: Jan-Hendrik Caspers

Phones were first sold in pairs

@nozurbina

Image: Jan-Hendrik Caspers

TV rearranged our furniture

@nozurbina

THE IMPACTHow the internet changes our relationship with technology

@nozurbina

Technology is…

~ Losing its fear factor~ Creating a participatory, collaborative

multichannel culture~ Reworking a generation’s understanding of

content~ Going from pull to push

@nozurbina

NOT SCARY

@nozurbina

Fear factor

@nozurbina

Jawbone “UP”

@nozurbina

PARTICIPATORY

@nozurbina

Participatory culture

~ Michael Wesch’s class studied “Context collapse”–Speaking to everyone and no one at once–Highly self-reflexive, and time is collapsed

~ You are your viewers

~ “The most public space in the world, from the privacy of our own homes”

@nozurbina

@nozurbina

@nozurbina

NEW SENSE OF CONTENT

@nozurbina

The public now touches metadata every day

Today’s content

@nozurbina

"Aggregated

metadata can be

more revealing

than content.“

– J. Kirk Wiebe &

Bill Binney

"Not looking at

content... sifting

through

metadata“

– Barak Obama

@nozurbina

The net is measurable

@nozurbina

PULL TO PUSH

@nozurbina

Google Cards

@nozurbina

Kindle

@nozurbina

Kindle

@nozurbina

@nozurbina

@nozurbina

SO NOW WHAT?Change format, go proactive and personal

@nozurbina

Tony Self, HyperwriteAuthor of the DITA styleguide

~“PDF [as a primary delivery format] is a failed technology. The fax machine of the content word”

@nozurbina

Some disappointing thoughts

~ Most dita projects lack an understanding of DITA's reuse features beyond topics and conref

~ Less still are doing anything besides making cheaper pdfs

~ Even less are taking advantage of cross departmental reuse

But it's starting…~ We must learn to be empathetic to users who are

unfamiliar and or unlike us and design content for them

@nozurbina

Simplify My Life

~ Only show me what I need when I need it

http://bit.ly/noz_droid

@nozurbina

Info

Vie

w

1

2

Help

View

Embedded help

@nozurbina

Embedded Proactive assistance

~ Timed appropriately for my skills and context– UI item descriptions– Field validation guidance (number or date formats;

where the user can find the data; banned characters)– Concept short descriptions

~ Can be stats-driven, profile-based, personal~ Many can be replace/reused to/from the

traditional help/manuals.

@nozurbina

@nozurbina

Enchant Me

~ Let me make it mine / Get to know me

@nozurbina

Statistical, collaborative content

Comments

In-line discussion

Page discussion

Community

and

Personal

data

Bookmark/Download

Let users build and

share their own

deliverables, for

any format

@nozurbina

Simplify My Life

~ Keep it brief

@nozurbina

Simplify My Life

~ Pictures are faster than words

@nozurbina

Ifixit.com

@nozurbina

BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER

Content strategy

@nozurbina

Tech

nic

al

Docu

men

tati

on

Different Perspectives

Customer Needs

Product Development

Mark

eti

ng

Train

ing

Su

pp

ort

/Serv

ice

Pro

du

ct

Mg

mt

The customer doesn’t care about your org chart!

@nozurbina

Content Strategy

Development efficiency &

significant cost avoidance

Unified Framework for Content

Delivery, Measurement and Improvement

Brand Equity, regional markets

& revenue channels

Content

Strategy

Org & User

Goals

Enabling,

Product data &

Technical Content

Persuasive,

Sales &

Marketing Content

More than words, more than tech

@nozurbina

If a CCO was a CMO, they’d be called

CMO

@nozurbina

In summary

~ Social media~ Gesture control~ Augmented reality~ Tablets

~ Personal ~ Proactive/measured~ Integrated~ “Friendlier”

~ DITA is an ideal platform, if we used it for more than cost

cutting our old outputs

@nozurbina

THANK YOU! (FEEDBACK FORMS )

Noz, don’t forget to give them some stuff…

@nozurbina

Free stuff!

@thecsbookthecontentstrategybook.com

Congility 2014

Jun 18-20, UK

Call for speakers & pre-

registration open nowcongility.com/2014