Critical Mass looks at where we are going in terms of the things we already know that shape our desires and needs for the future. Ever wonder why science fiction tells the future? Have you noticed a bit of Jane Jetson creeping into your kitchen? This fast and informative read puts it into perspective.
W.D. (Bill) McDaniel, EDPP has been active in Information Technology since the mid-1970's. He started in the industry with a 3-year run as a computer operator, learning the practical requirements of data manipulation, application design, and usability requirements. That position included two years in the UK managing operations of a payment processing system. From there he returned to the US and a position with a company specializing in insurance document applications. He designed and was responsible for the initial implementation of their lead product, including it's underlying data management technology.
P.C. (Pat) McGrew, EDPP began in journalism as a reporter, editor and writer for industries as diverse as archeological consulting groups, trade press in the music industry, and car racing magazines. In 1980, she changed direction and moved into Technical Writing and ultimately on to end user documentation design and implementation for software products. After completing assignments to create documentation for accounting systems, MRP and Order Entry systems, backup and recovery test plans, and computer center operations manuals, she took a position working for an insurance application developer. There she served as Manager of Documentation, responsible for the creation and implementation of the end user documentation as well as providing internal and external consulting for all products created by the leading vendor of merging applications in the insurance industry. In 1989, McGrew and McDaniel left their employer and formed GenText, inc., with McGrew as the president and McDaniel as the CRO until its sale in 1998. Since 1985 they have co-authored four books, including In House Publishing in a Mainframe Environment and Online Text Management: Hypertext and other techniques, published by McGraw-Hill. They also contributed a chapter to the VM Handbook. Since 1990, they have been frequent authors in the trade press, including Xplorations Magazine and Document Processing Technology magazine. They have written hundreds of articles for the trade press, are quoted regularly on topics dealing with emerging technologies and legacy data migrations, and speak regularly at industry conferences and executive retreats.
