Online Communication Competition

Entries for the FTCC Online Communication Competition include forms of communication that depend on an electronic medium for delivery. The entries must be primarily intended for viewing on a computer or similar device, not on paper. These forms of communication include computer-based training, online documentation, help systems, online demonstration programs, simple text-retrieval systems, multimedia information systems and Web pages.

The FTCC Online Communication Competition is not limited to online documents supporting computer products. Entries can include online encyclopedias, road maps, foreign language instruction, medical handbooks and more.

The FTCC Online Communication Competition accepts entries run on PC or Web platforms. The competition can accept entries that run on other platforms or require special equipment only if the entrants provide any specialized hardware or software at their own expense to the judging location. All PC entries must be submitted on USB drive, CD-ROM or DVD. If you send compressed files, they must be self-extracting.

An entry on the Web will be judged as it exists on the day of judging. Demonstration of an entry by the entrant(s) is not permitted.

On the entry description, include installation instructions, purpose, audience, tools used to develop the entry and any other information relevant to evaluating the entry.

Entries must install correctly, be virus-free and not take an unreasonable amount of time to install.

You must submit three copies of any software required to use the entry other than the following standard software:

  • Mozilla Firefox 2
  • Adobe Acrobat Reader 7.0
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0

Categories for the FTCC Online Communication Competition

This competition has four categories.

Help

Online information having a primary purpose of providing immediate assistance to individuals while they use a product. Help provides information appropriate to the task on an as-needed or as-requested basis. This category includes and is not limited to general help, procedural help, cue cards, examples, performance support and integrated user assistance.

Promotional

This category consists of two types of entries:

Interactive online information having a primary purpose of demonstrating or describing the main features of a product or product line with user interaction or feedback. This type of online material motivates people to buy or use a product or it informs them of the features or benefits of the product. In addition to product demonstrations, this category includes guided tours and marketing material designed for dynamic user interaction.

Static, non-interactive online information having a primary purpose of describing the main features of a product or product line. This type of online material motivates people to buy or use a product or it informs them of the features or benefits of the product. This category includes and is not limited to online brochures, catalogs and marketing materials designed to remain static. Most corporate Web pages belong in this category.

Tutorials/Training

Online information having a primary purpose of either teaching the techniques for using the main features and capabilities of a product, or assisting in the process of teaching. This category includes and is not limited to computer-based training applications, tutorials, online lesson books and training aids.

Reference

This category consists of two types of online information: 

Documents having the primary purpose of defining or explaining structure, results, words, problems or parameters. These documents are typically published in a reference work format, similar to a dictionary or encyclopedia. This category includes and is not limited to online dictionaries, glossaries, function or object descriptions, data structure definitions, encyclopedias and directories.

Documents with the primary purpose of assisting the user in completing a set of tasks or solving a set of problems. This includes troubleshooting tools, wizards or wizard-like task completion tools, quick start guides and automated support tools.

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