Programmer 7500/MAX_PROGRAMMERS.iso/CLIPPER/MISC/AIE9009.ZIP/WRITERS.TXT

Text File | 1990-09-04 | 16.1 KB | 518 lines

                    Writer's Guidelines


Thank you for your interest in writing for AI EXPERT
Magazine!

AI EXPERT is the magazine of artificial intelligence in
practice. Our features include case studies, how-to
articles, technology tutorials, and product reviews. The
focus: expert systems and neural networks, plus coverage of
other AI topics like genetic algorithms, fuzzy logic,
intelligent databases, and object-oriented programming.

WHO ARE OUR READERS?

AI EXPERT's readers are programmers and technical managers
who have heard enough hype -- they're ready to put AI
problem-solving techniques to work today.

Our surveys show that about half our readers are developing
expert-system or neural-network applications, although many
more plan to begin such projects in the near future. They're
looking for ideas and tools they can apply to their
company's problems. They also want the details, technology
tutorials, and product reviews which will help them
implement those AI projects in the next year.

AI EXPERT's readers fall into three main groups: those which
program in traditional AI languages (like LISP or PROLOG),
those using object-oriented languages (such as C++ or
Smalltalk), and those using off-the-shelf expert-system or
neural-network shells. Although we generally like to have
our features be hardware-independent, you should note that
three-quarters of our readers have chosen MS-DOS running on
the Intel 80386 processor as their favored development
platform. Even so, interest in other platforms including the
Macintosh, UNIX (on several processors), IBM RS/6000, and
VAX/VMS, runs high.

Expert systems are the number-one topic, says our most
recent reader survey, followed closely by development
methodologies and case studies. Near the top of the list are
neural networks, object-oriented programming, genetic
algorithms, database management, fuzzy logic, and AI
hardware.

WHAT ARTICLES DO WE WANT?

AI EXPERT runs four types of feature articles: case studies,
industry overviews, how-to articles, and technology
tutorials.

Case studies examine a successfully deployed artificial
intelligence project. We like to see plenty of detail, not
only about what went right, but also what went wrong. Our
readers take case histories and apply them to their own
situations, so include specifics about which decisions were
made, and why. What was the initial problem? What
traditional solutions were tried, and why did they fail? How
long was the development process, and what hardware and
software tools were used? Who was involved, and for how
long? What was learned during the pilot project? What was
the final result of the project, and how much did it cost?
What would be done differently next time? Those are only
some of the questions you should answer in detail.

Industry overviews are a special kind of case study,
examining how AI technology is applied to various
disciplines. How can neural networks benefit assembly lines?
How are medical professionals using expert systems? Where
are intelligent databases used in the financial community?
Industry overviews require extensive contacts in the chosen
field, so that a broad cross-section can be examined.

How-to articles give plenty of hands-on examples of the
nuts-and-bolts of AI development. Make your concepts
independent of any particular hardware platform or
development environment, except as part of your examples.
How can you implement a neural network in C++?  Explain the
concepts, product annotated program code, and talk about why
it works -- and what to do with it.

Technology tutorials go into less depth, but over a broader
area. What are genetic algorithms? Describe the latest
developments and applications. Use plenty of examples.
What's the best way to find an AI consultant? Talk about
costs and benefits, the pros and cons. Get plenty of quotes,
from vendors, consultants, and from satisfied and
dissatisfied customers.

HOW ABOUT REVIEWS?













                Writer's Guidelines, Page 2

Reviews examine a single new product, such as an expert-
system shell, neural network development kit, or new AI-
applicable language compiler. AI EXPERT also prints hardware
reviews, such as of a neural network chip set or a high-
powered numeric processor board. Reviewers must have no
affiliation with the product's manufacturer or vendor and
should have a genuine application for the product. Reviews
must answer several questions, including: Does the product
work as promoted and advertised? Is it free of substantive
flaws? Where does it shine? What are its weaknesses? What
should it be used for? What shouldn't it be used for? And,
since no product is an island: Wow does it stack up against
its direct competitors?

Draw conclusions, and back them up. If the documentation is
lousy, say so -- give examples. If the program is fastest in
its class, say so -- give the test methodology and
benchmarks. If a competing product does a better job -- say
why. A review that merely describes the product isn't a
review at all, but a waste of space and the reader's time.

Product overviews look at more products (often between three
and eight), but offer less detail about each product than
would a stand-alone review. A good overview helps readers
distinguish between competing products by highlighting key
differences; a poor one runs page after page of boring
feature-comparison charts, and makes the reader do all the
analysis. (See the accompanying Reviewer's Guidelines for
more detailed information.)

WHAT'S THE WRITING STYLE?

We have performed extensive research into subscriber
demographics and reader/editorial relationships, which has
led to the conclusion that the publication should adopt a
stylistic methodology optimized for maximum readability
coexisting with an emphasis on reducing obfuscation and
excessive verbiage, towards the oft-desired but seldom-
realized goal of reducing cerebral-tension syndrome.

Or, to put it another way, our readers will have fewer
headaches if you stick to an informal, easy-to-read style.

AI EXPERT is a magazine for programmers and technical
managers interested in applying AI technology today. It's
not an academic journal citing the latest research which
might find its way into applications in the year 2037.
That's why we stress a conversational style.

Pretend you're speaking with a group of friends or co-
workers; that's the tone we want. The same is true of
diagrams: Use all you want, as long as each helps explain
the topic. Simple charts -- like those you'd draw on a
blackboard or scribble on a napkin -- are the best.


                Writer's Guidelines, Page 3


Sidebars are an excellent way of handling information
peripheral to your main topics, such as an historical
perspective, a case study, or a related interview.

AI EXPERT is a magazine, not a technical journal; it's not
appropriate to cite every idea or concept formally with a
footnote. That's why we encourage you to include a list of
books or other printed works that you'd recommend to the
interested readers. List the title and author, publisher,
city, state, and date of publication, plus a couple of
sentences describing the book's subject and intended
audience.

Regarding program listings: If you're teaching a concept,
please use pseudocode so that you can explain the algorithm
without confusing those readers not fluent in your chosen
language. Presenting ready-to-run code? Please stick to
standard language forms.

When developing your article idea, make sure the main point
is broad enough to be interesting to people working in a
variety of hardware and software environments. Assume the
reader has only limited exposure to the AI topic you're
covering but is aware of relevant general principals.

Finally, you're writing to your friends and colleagues.
Don't write to impress but to educate.

WHAT'S THE NEXT STEP?

When your proposal is ready for submission, you can call or
write. If you'd like to write to us, include a brief outline
(and be specific!), along with a note explaining your
credentials. If you have previously published writing
samples, send along one or two; magazine samples are
preferred over academic papers published in technical
journals. Send your proposal to:

                         AI EXPERT
                Miller Freeman Publications
                     500 Howard Street
                  San Francisco, CA 94105

Be sure to include your daytime telephone number, fax
number, and E-mail address (if you have one).

Rather call and discuss your idea? No problem. Call Alan
Zeichick, Editor, at [phone], during regular west
coast business hours. You can also reach Alan at CompuServe
address 76703,756, or Internet address
[e-mail].




                Writer's Guidelines, Page 4

After we receive your outline, someone from the staff will
call or write. We'll specify an article length and due
dates. After the final article is received, we'll copy-edit
the text according to our style guidelines. You'll receive
author proofs for correction.

Finally, when we receive the magazine back from the printer,
we'll send you three complimentary copies, plus your author
payment. Our general rates are $75 per full magazine page
for reviews, $50 for articles.

We look forward to working with you!












































                Writer's Guidelines, Page 5

                   Reviewer's Guidelines

So, you want to write a review for AI EXPERT? Great! Here's
how you proceed:

Talk to the magazine's editor, Alan Zeichick, before you
begin working. You should ensure that the package has not
already been reviewed or that a review isn't in progress.

Be prepared to state your qualifications for the review. One
qualification may be that you're an experienced user of the
product, and you have already deployed at least one
application using it. Another may be that you have a genuine
use for the product.

AI EXPERT will not use reviewers who have any ties to a
product's vendor. We won't use beta testers, company
employees, or anyone who might possibly benefit financially
or personally from a positive review (or suffer from a
negative one). We generally don't use reviewers recommended
by the vendor for the same reason.

When you've received your assignment, you may need to
acquire the review product, if you don't have it already.
Don't call the vendor yourself -- they're skeptical of such
calls from freelancers and treat them with suspicion. Ask
your editor to acquire the product for you.

Often you will be permitted to keep the evaluation product.
Note that sometimes the software you receive for review must
be returned to AI EXPERT after the review is completed
(generally because the vendor has requested its return). We
will not issue author payments or subsequent article
assignments, in those cases, unless all review software is
returned.

When writing the review, bear in mind that your job is to
advise readers whether or not to purchase the product. The
main criteria are:

* Does the product perform according to the vendor's claims?
* Is it a good value for the money?

Your job is not to defend or attack the product or be
concerned about the vendor's financial success or failure.
Your job is to advise the potential buyer whether to buy the
product, give it serious consideration, or walk away from
it.

A well-written review will briefly describe the product's
intended use, with an example chosen from your own real-life
test suite. However, a description alone does not a review
make.



                Writer's Guidelines, Page 6

A comprehensive review will answer the following questions:

* What are the product's hardware and software requirements?
  Are these requirements out of the ordinary, and if so, are
  they justified? (You should be harsh about products that
  require a full 640K of RAM and don't allow you to load
  your favorite TSR.)

* What platform did you test the product on? How was
  performance from a speed and compatibility perspective?
  What would you recommend as the minimum hardware
  configuration for regular users of this product? (Truth in
  advertising: Very often the specification will read "Any
  IBM-compatible," but the snail-like speed mandates a 386.)










































                Writer's Guidelines, Page 7

* Does the product conform to currently accepted hardware
  and software standards? Is it portable across platforms?
  Does it run on a network? Can its data be shared with
  other products? If not, how significant a weakness is
  this? (A broad-spectrum neural network should import data
  Lotus spreadsheets and dBase III files.)

* How long did it take you to learn the product? What
  background must the average buyer have to learn the
  product? Is the learning curve especially long or short?
  What technical support does the vendor offer new users? Is
  there unlimited free 800-number service, or does the user
  pay per-call after 90 days? When you called the support
  line, what quality response did you get? (Bonus points for
  on-line tutorials, or optional two-day training seminars.)

* Once learned, is the product easy to use? Does it grow
  with the user? Does performance bog down exponentially
  with the complexity of the program? What problems did you
  have? What bugs or "undocumented features" did you find?
  (If the maximum number of rules is 64, it's probably not
  for professionals.)

* How good is the documentation? Is there plenty of it
  (maybe even too much)? Is it well indexed? Is it well
  written? Does it appear to be accurate? Are there
  sufficient illustrations? Is there a quick-reference card?
  Is the on-line help context-sensitive? (There's nothing
  worse than ordering an extra-cost tech reference manual
  when it contains essential information for using the
  product.)

* How is the pricing schedule determined? Is there an
  evaluation policy or period? Is there a student discount?
  Are there site licenses available? Is there a demo
  version? How about a guaranteed maximum upgrade price?
  What's the warranty period? How does this compare to other
  major products in the marketplace? What's the company's
  track record here? (A money-back guarantee is a strong
  incentive to recommend that people try the product.)

* What's unique about the product? What are its best and
  worst features? What obvious features is it lacking? How
  signficant are these pros and cons? (Be on the lookout for
  gimmicks that look good on the spec sheet but add little
  to the product's usefulness.)










                Writer's Guidelines, Page 8

* How does the product compare to others you've tried? Would
  you honestly recommend this product to your best friend?
  If you bought it yourself, are you glad? If you would
  recommend it to only some people, who are they? If some
  people should stay away from this, who are they? ("This
  program is good for students, but it is too slow and
  consumes too much memory to make it appropriate for
  serious expert-system developers.) BE SPECIFIC!

Note that when you call the vendor for advice or to test the
quality of their technical support, you should NOT identify
yourself as a reviewer for AI EXPERT. Vendors lay down the
red carpet for reviewers; by identifying yourself as one,
you'll not be giving the reader an honest evaluation of the
vendor's commitment to end-user support.

If you follow these guidelines thoroughly, conscientiously,
and honestly, you'll write an good, solid review.

Thank you for your interest in AI EXPERT magazine!



Revised 8/28/90 (a)
































                Writer's Guidelines, Page 9