Toledo, OH, USA

Recap of Michigan/Ohio local leader meeting

On Wednesday, April 2, we held a local user experience networking meeting in Ann Arbor. We invited leaders of local professional chapters related to user experience, university representatives, and anyone else who was interested in spending the evening meeting new people who are interested in UX. After letting everyone meet each other individually, we had dinner and then went around the room, learning about what each person was involved in. (See some photos.) The attendees:

• Anthony Viviano, Detroit UXnet local ambassador
• Bob Hale, Columbus UXnet local ambassador
• Carol Smith, UPA board member
• Connie Lippert, Refresh Detroit
• Constantinos Coursaris, Michigan State - Department of Telecommunication, Information Studies, and Media
• Dan Cooney, Ann Arbor UXnet local ambassador
• Dave Mitropoulos-Rundus, UPA & IUE
• Erin Moulton, STC/SM
• Jason Withrow, Washtenaw Community College
• Jenny Jacob, Hanson, Inc., Toledo
• John Rivard, MOCHI
• Josh Holmes, GANG, AACS (Ann Arbor Computer Society), AADD
• Keith Instone, Toledo UXnet local ambassador
• Lavie Golenberg, Human Factors Student, Wayne State College of Engineering
• Lisa Mullinaux, Bay area
• Mark Newman, U of M - SI & MOCHI
• Maureen Hanratty, U of M - SI, HCI Student, SOCHI
• Michael Beasley, Michigan UPA
• Mike Osswald, Hanson, Inc., Toledo
• Ross Johnson, Refresh Detroit
• Shane Sevo, SemaFX (SIGGRAPH), Creative Energy Alliance, Joomla Detroit,

There were several opportunities for cooperation and collaboration mentioned, such as organizing World Usability Day, joint HCI researcher/practitioner speaker series, monthly meeting information sharing, game design talks, and so on. As opportunities arise, we will leverage the contacts made at this meeting.

We asked several people if they wanted a mailing list or online group to stay in touch, and almost everyone said they were already on too many lists. We think instead it is better to leverage the existing lists, groups, social networks and so on. For example, the UXnet group on Facebook is something to join.

We think while we are using the existing tools to stay in touch and look for opportunities to work together, we should start planning our next meeting of local leaders with a passion for user experience. There are several representatives from local groups that could not make it this time, there are new groups of people to invite (such as advertising professionals or managers of local user experience teams), there is more brainstorming and planning we can do for specific UX projects, and there are other areas of the region we can reach out to.

As UXnet local ambassadors, we think that the biggest value we can add to the local user experience community is to focus on organizing these face-to-face networking events, and then let others take it from there on how they want to cooperate and collaborate.

We look forward to organizing more user experience networking events in the future.

Anthony, Dan, Keith

Posted in Ann Arbor, MI, USA | Detroit, MI, USA | News | Toledo, OH, USA
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Cathy Fromet & Gina Gerken Alumni Lecture (Bowling Green, OH, USA)

BGSU graphic design alumni Gina Gerken and Cathy Fromet from Studio Graphique, a Cleveland-based brand development consultancy and environmental graphic design firm, will be presenting at the next AIGA Toledo event. They are idea people who take a creative approach and turn it into practical and creative solutions. They are a passionate team of designers moved by color, form and function.

Studio Graphique has developed a proprietary method for working with clients: “Design with Direction is the foundation from which effective visual communications can be achieved. It gives our solutions uniqueness, purpose and meaning… in essence, it makes them work.”

Sponsored by the School of Art, the Division of Graphic Design and AIGA Toledo.

See AIGA Toledo for more information.

Posted in Calendar | Cleveland, OH, USA | Local meeting | Toledo, OH, USA
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Demo Night (Ann Arbor, MI, USA)

By: Deborah @ 6:42 pm on the Refresh Detroit blog.

Where: Ann Arbor District Library, 343 South Fifth Avenue, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104 (map). Parking is available in the library parking lot. We’re meeting in the conference room on the third floor. At the third floor stairs lobby, go through the double doors, turn right, and look for the first door on the right to enter the conference room.

When: Wednesday, April 23, 2008 6:30PM-8PM

Join us for demo night on April 23, 2008 at the Ann Arbor Public Library, as meeting participants will demo their latest websites, designs, applications, tools, and products. Each person has five minutes to present and answer questions.

Demo night is a great opportunity to share your work, see what others have been working on, and get feedback on works in progress.

Interested in demoing your work? RSVP by commenting below with your name and application/design/tool/product, so we have an idea of how many people will be presenting.

As of April 3, 2008, the following people are planning to present their work:

• Julie Van De Water
• Nick DeNardis
• Vince Chmielewski

Posted in Ann Arbor, MI, USA | Calendar | Detroit, MI, USA | Local meeting | Toledo, OH, USA
Tags: ann arbor | applications | designs | presentations | products | refresh detroit | tools | websites
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[MOCHI] Sean O’Driscoll - Social Media: If you could only leverage what your customers know

Please join us next monday for a very special event. We will be
hosting former Microsoft Community Support expert, Sean O’Driscoll. Details of the talk below. All are welcome and light snacks/drinks will be provided during the event.

This will be hosted at the UofM’s School of Information.
Venue: West Hall Rm. 411 (Erlicher Rm.)
http://uuis.umich.edu/cic/buildingproject/index.cfm?BuildingID=163

Abstract: Web 2.0, social media, Marketing 2.0, Enterprise 2.0, communities, transparency, virtual worlds, social graphs??? Like most new trends, there’s no shortage of buzz words, but there’s a big gap between the enthusiasm for this “new media” and what it means to a business. This sessions will try to address the following fundamental questions designed to inform a business on how to get started:

• What is Social Media?
• What is Social Media Strategy?
• Why does it matter to a business?
• Who are the “influencers” who make these social spaces thrive?
• How do you measure it?
• What is the social graph…and why should I care?

About the presenter: Sean O’Driscoll is a 15 year Microsoft veteran who recently left to form his own strategy consulting business focused on Social Media, community and influencer initiatives. In his most recent role at Microsoft, he was the general manager of community support services, where for the past 5 years he was responsible for leading the Web 2.0 strategy across Help and Support, focused on influencer engagement, user generated content, and integration with customer listening systems.For a bit more, visit his blog here: www.communitygrouptherapy.com

Posted in Ann Arbor, MI, USA | Calendar | Detroit, MI, USA | Local meeting | Toledo, OH, USA
Tags: enterprise 2.0 | Lecture. UofM | marketing 2.0 | MOCHI | Social Media | Web 2.0
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UX local leader meeting (Ann Arbor, MI, USA)

Leaders from Southeast Michigan / Northwest Ohio professional chapters interested in user experience will be meeting to network, share best practices and discuss cooperation and collaboration opportunities. Held in conjunction with the Internet user experience conference, the meeting will set the stage for more regional UXnet activities in the future.

Some of the local groups invited to participate include:

• Michigan UPA
• MOCHI
• Refresh Detroit
• MI-ASIS&T
• AIGA Detroit and AIGA Toledo
• STC/SM
• SE Michigan IIBA

Representatives from area universities and colleges are also being invited. In fact, anyone interested in participating in the meeting and furthering UXnet’s mission is welcome to join us. Contact us if you are interested.

Organized by UXnet local ambassadors Keith Instone (Toledo), Dan Cooney (Ann Arbor) and Anthony Viviano (Detroit).

Posted in Ann Arbor, MI, USA | Calendar | Detroit, MI, USA | Planning meeting | Toledo, OH, USA
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Thirsty Thursday (Toledo, OH, USA)

Reconnect with your fellow design community in a fun, easy-going forum. Don’t miss out on our special giveways!

Thursday, March 13, 5:30 - 7:00pm, The Blarney, 601 Monroe Street, Toledo, Ohio. This will help kick off The Blarney’s St. Patricks Day 2008 party.

An AIGA Toledo event.

Posted in AIGA | Calendar | Social | Toledo, OH, USA
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Internet User Experience 2008: March 31 - April 3, Ann Arbor

It just keeps getting bigger and better - Internet User Experience, the "local" conference with "national" quality. It will be in nearby Ann Arbor, Michigan, March 31 - April 3.

IUE, in its 4th year, has expanded to 4 days. The first day has 2 all-day tutorials to choose from. The second day is the beginning of the main conference with 7 presentations and a night out-on-the-town. The third day has 2 morning panels, a presentation and 2 half-day afternoon tutorials. The last day is an interactive workshop.

You will see how web sites have been effectively designed for many different markets and target groups, ranging from 3-year olds to adult consumers to specialized professionals. You will see dramatic before-and-after improvements to established web sites. You will learn from experts in fields such as search engine optimization, online communities, and user experience management as they explain and debate the current state, future destiny, and current opportunities that exist for businesses with these evolving technologies and professions.

We are blessed to have such a high quality program for a locally-organized event. Dave Mitropoulos-Rundus, a Michigan UPA officer, is the main force behind this, but he gets volunteers from other local groups like MOCHI, STC/SM and Refresh Detroit, to help. It is a great example of how local User Experience Network collaboration can help pull off something "local" that is comparable to the other UX conferences.

Check out the schedule and register if you are interested. I have gone every year and it has been great. I will be there for at least part of the 4 days - see you there.

Posted in Toledo, OH, USA
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IUE 2008 (Ann Arbor, MI, USA)

Internet User Experience 2008, sponsored by UXnet, is a conference spotlighting methods for dramatically improving today’s web site user experience. This fourth annual conference brings you top industry speakers, practitioners, and authors to provide you with the most complete package of Internet user experience design training, case studies, and real-world examples ever assembled.

We cover most aspects of web site design and strategy, including user experience design, graphics, branding, marketing message, effective web writing, and enhancements that drive customers to your site.

The program includes half-day and full-day tutorials, student posters, presentations and a full-day workshop (after the main conference).

Posted in ACM SIGCHI | Ann Arbor, MI, USA | Calendar | Conference | Detroit, MI, USA | STC | Toledo, OH, USA | UPA
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Student portfolio review (Bowling Green, OH, USA)

Ready to strike out into the world after graduation? First, get some feedback on your book here! This AIGA Toledo portfolio review will feature a keynote speaker, multiple review sessions, and a panel of recent grads who will give the real scoop on getting that first job, and what it’s like “in the real world”.

See AIGA Toledo for more information.

Posted in AIGA | Calendar | Toledo, OH, USA
Tags: aiga toledo
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Copyright and Wrong (Toledo, OH, USA)

Learn about copyright issues & protection from the perspective of a graphic designer. Get answers to your questions about copyright and related intellectual property issues at this initial installment in the AIGA Toledo Design & Business Series.

Check out AIGA Toledo for more details.

Posted in AIGA | Calendar | Local meeting | Toledo, OH, USA
Tags: aiga toledo
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