I wanted to update you on a few recent and upcoming Publications-related initiatives.

1. Subcommittees

I am pleased to announce the formation of two subcommittees, the CHI Papers Support, and Publications Strategy Subcommittees. I'd like to thank William Newman and Bob Kraut for leading these committees and the many great people who have signed up as working members of the teams. I am excited about the initial discussions on each and look forward to some good progress on some important SIGCHI publications initiatives. A bit more on the subcommittees:

CHI Papers Support Subcommittee. This team is supporting the CHI Papers co-chairs in implementing the papers process for CHI 2005 and beyond, including any process innovations introduced. Team members include: William Newman (lead), Victoria Bellotti, Tom Erickson, Robin Jeffries, Jock Mackinlay, Tom Rodden, Mary Beth Rosson, Marilyn Salzman. CHI 2005 Papers co-chairs are Wendy Kellogg and Shumin Zhai.

Publications Strategy Subcommittee. This committee's charge is to examine whether current publication venues (conference, CHI Letters, TOCHI, other journals, other serial publications) are meeting the needs of SIGCHI's researchers and the people who consume that research. The committee will also identify gaps/needs, and to develop some strategies to address those gaps/needs. They will also evaluate CHI Letters against other alternatives and recommending some next steps there. Team members include: Robert Kraut (lead), Michel Beaudouin-Lafon, John Carroll, Gilbert Cockton, Jonathan Grudin, Wendy Kellogg, Dan Olsen.

2. Publications Web Pages

I have sent new publications pages for posting on the SIGCHI web site. I will send out a quick note when they have gone live. Enhancements will include: a refined CHI Letters page, a new Publications Board page with descriptions of subcommittees and initiatives, and an updated Publications page that includes some additional pointers to key SIGCHI/HCI publication resources. Once live, it would be great if you check them out and let me know if you opportunities for additional enhancements.

3. interactions review.

As you probably know, the interactions review is now complete. It was based on feedback from interviews and surveys of SIGCHI's membership editors, authors, and subscribers alike. It identified some of the strengths and weaknesses of the magazine, and offered potential next steps for interactions, SIGCHI, and the ACM. It was submitted to the SIGCHI EC in October 2003, and to the ACM Publications Board in November 2003. It is currently forming the basis for some innovations and process enhancements for the interactions magazine in 2004. The report will be posted on the SIGCHI web site, a link will follow in the next issue of the Bulletin.