Beginning in 2010, the Calgary UX Book Club will merge with the Calgary UX Group. We will still get together to review UX books, but on a bi-monthly basis. We will alternate every other month with a Calgary UX Group function. We will maintain having our get-togethers on the last Wednesday of every month. For February we are planning a screening of Objectified. More details to follow soon.

Date: Wednesday, March 31, 2010 Time: 7:00-9:00pm Location: SAIT Polytechnic: 1301-16th Ave NW – MB026H (Basement of the Heart Building)

Need directions? Here is the Campus Map and some parking information. Don’t forget SAIT is also easily accessible via C-Train and various bus routes. Detailed directions to the room: The Heart building is the addition built behind Heritage Hall (the old, original SAIT building). Go to the atrium at the centre of the Heart building. Take the down escalator. From there, it’s a bit of a maze, so I’ll ensure there’s signage to the room.

It was decided by the group that was in attendance that we be reading and reviewing: Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art by Scott McCloud. You can find out more about the book by visiting the author's website. You can purchase the book on Amazon. It's a 215-page comic book about comics. The book explains the inner workings of the medium and examines many aspects of visual communication. It's ideas apply in fields such as game design, animation, web development, and interface design.

Topics include:

• Definitions, history, and potential.
• Visual Iconography and its Effects.
• Closure, reader participation between the panels.
• Word-picture dynamics.
• Time and motion.
• The psychology of line styles and color.
• Comics and the artistic process.

We will reconvene on January 27, 2010, at our usual time: 7:00pm. The selected title for the January discussion is A Project Guide to UX Design, by Russ Unger and Carolyn Chandler. Once again we will have the pleasure of an author joining our discussion via Skype. This time we will have co-author Russ Unger to chat with us.

The meeting will more than likely be held at Shaw's Barlow office (2400 32 Ave NE), unless someone else comes forward to offer their companies facility. If your company has a more central location, with connectivity, a large monitor and is willing to host our group, please let me know ASAP.

You can find out more about the book on the A Project Guide to UX Design Website, purchase it on Amazon or find it at your local book store.

The Calgary UX Book Club will be taking a break in December. We will resume in the New Year. Have a safe and happy holiday.

This month we have the opportunity to speak with one of the authors of Wired to Care. Pete Mortensen will be joining us via Skype.

You can find out more about the book on the Wired to Care Website, purchase it on Amazon or find it at your local book store.

The next meeting will be the evening of November 25th at 7:00pm at Shaw's Barlow office (2400 32 Ave NE).

It was decided by all participants at the last meeting that the next book we will read and discuss is: Made To Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die by Dan and Heath Chip.

You can find out more about the book on the http://www.madetostick.com/ Website, purchase it on Amazon or find it at your local book store.

The next meeting will be the evening of October 28th at 7:00pm, with the location to be determined as we get closer to the date. If anyone has a facility that they can offer up for a few hours please let me know.

On September 23 - 2009, we had 12 people out for our first Calgary UX Book Club get-together. Thank you to all that attended! While the majority of people hadn't completely finished the book, most likely do to the book's length, it was a very good turn out with great discussion. In general it sounds like most people enjoyed the contents of the book, especially the retrospective look at Interation Design, although it could benefit from a bit more editting.

About Face 3: The Essentials of Interaction Design by Alan Cooper, Robert Reimann, and David Cronin (free read on Safari at the TPL)
A Project Guide to UX Design by Russ Unger & Carolyn Chandler
Designing the Obvious: A Common Sense Approach to Web Application Design by Robert Hoekman Jr.
Designing Interactions by Bill Moggridge
Don't Make Think: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability (Second Edition) by Steve Krug
Subject To Change: Creating Great Products & Services for an Uncertain World: Adaptive Path on Design by Peter Merholz, Todd Wilkens, Brandon Schauer, and David Verba
The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman
Designing for the Scent of Information (paper)by Jared M. Spool, Christine Perfetti, and David Brittan
Made To Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die by Dan and Heath Chip
Web Form Design by Luke Wroblewski
Wired to Care: How Companies Prosper When They Create Widespread Empathy by Dev Patnaik & Peter Mortensen

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