Thursday, November 3, 2005

Making It Easy!: World Usability Day

World Usability Day - Special Dinner Event & Presentation

The Minnesota chapter of the UPA is thrilled to invite you to an evening to celebrate World Usability Day on November 3rd.  We will be having a special dinner event featuring a presentation from Dr. Susan Dray.  Her presentation is entitled, "The Digital Divide: What does it have to do with HCI and why should we care?"  In a brief summary:

... all these affect access to to information and communication technologies

Around the globe, usability professionals and others in related fields will be saluting this first annual World Usability Day celebration with various events and activities.  For more information on these special activities, please visit: http://www.worldusabilityday.org/.

This special event requires that you register if you plan to join us for dinner.  Please register by emailing events@upamn.org by October 27th. Please include your name and the names of any guests you will be bringing.  All members will be asked to pay $12.00 at the door, payable by cash or check.  The fee for non-members is $25.00.  See the information below for more details.

Event Details:

Date/Time:
November 3, 2005, 6:00 PM
Place:
Radisson Hotel, Roseville
Address:
2540 Cleveland Avenue North, Roseville, MN 55113 [View/Print Maps: Mapquest | Google Maps]
Phone:
651-636-4567
Speaker:
Dr. Susan Dray
Topic:
World Usability Day

Agenda:

About Our Speaker

Since 1979, Dr. Susan M. Dray has worked in the field of human factors to increase the quality and intuitiveness of user interface designs for users around the world. She has worked as both an internal and external consultant, and combines expertise in interface evaluation, usability evaluation, and contextual and ethnographic research with a cross-cultural and organizational perspective.

Read more about Dr. Susan Dray's background below.

Cost & Registration

You may pay by cash or check at the door.


Please register by emailing events@upamn.org by October 27th. Bring a friend or spouse; guests are welcome!

Please include:

Directions & Maps:

View/Print Driving Maps: Mapquest | Google Maps

*** CONSTRUCTION NOTICE ***
There is a large reconstruction project along County Road C in Roseville.  There have been intermittent detours and many traffic backups.  You may encounter construction difficulties.

From the East Metro:

  1. Go west on Highway 36.
  2. Take the Fairview Avenue exit.  Rosedale Mall will be visible on your right.
  3. Go straight at the exit ramp stoplight, crossing Fairview Avenue. Stay in the left lane and go one block up to the stop sign.
  4. Go straight.  You'll be on the Hwy 36 Service Drive, which turns into Cleveland Avenue.
  5. Continue on Cleveland Avenue through the stop light at County Road B-2.
  6. The Radisson is one block down the hill on your right side.

From Minneapolis:

  1. Take I-35W north, continuing past where Highway 36 splits off.
  2. Take the Cleveland Avenue/County Road C exit (exit 24.)
  3. On the exit ramp, bear left and follow the signs to Cleveland Avenue.
  4. Turn right at Cleveland Avenue.
  5. Continue on Cleveland Avenue through the stop light at County Road C.
  6. The Radisson is one block up the hill on your left side.

From the North:

  1. Go south on I-35W, continuing past the I-694 exits.
  2. Take exit 24 to Long Lake Road/County Road C.
  3. At the exit ramp stop light, turn left onto Long Lake Road and continue for one block.
  4. Turn left at the County Road C stop light.
  5. Continue two blocks to the stop light at Cleveland Avenue and turn right.
  6. The Radisson is one block up the hill on your left side.

More About Our Speaker

... As President of Dray & Associates, Inc., she consults internationally on interface design and usability. She has evaluated and helped redesign user interfaces for all types of websites, desktop and Web applications, as well as both hardware and software consumer products and technical equipment. She specializes in international user studies, and has conducted user research in 20 countries.

A pioneer in Human-Computer Interaction, she was Director of Human Factors at IDS [now American Express Financial Advisors], where, in 1988, she developed one of the first corporate usability labs outside the computer industry. Previously, at Honeywell, she was involved in evaluating usability of consumer product hardware and software, as well as military technologies.

Dr. Dray is a leader in the Human Factors profession nationally and internationally. She has given over 100 talks at conferences and symposia in the U.S., Europe, and Australia, including:

In addition, she has published numerous papers and book chapters. She was elected a Fellow of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society and has chaired both the Organizational Design and Management Technical Group and the Computer Systems Technical Group of this same organization, as well as the Computers and Communications Scientific and Technical Committee of the International Ergonomics Association. Dr. Dray has been the North American editor of the prestigious international journal Behaviour and Information Technology, and the editor of the Business column of the Association for Computing Machinery's magazine interactions. Dr. Dray received her doctorate in Psychology from UCLA (1980) and is a Board Certified Human Factors Professional.

Help Spread the Word:

Know someone interested in usability? Feel free to invite them to an upcoming meeting. Visitors are always welcome. Please forward this announcement to other area professionals who might have an interest in UPA-MN meetings or activities.

Upcoming Meetings & Events:


Do you have an idea for a future meeting or know someone you think would be a good speaker? Contact our Program Directors (ProgramDirector@upamn.org) with your suggestions.

Last update: October 20, 2005