Contributed Manuscripts
isdmag.com accepts contributed manuscripts for tutorials, user case histories, and technology articles, as well as survey articles, which include cover stories and focus reports. A description of the various article types follows. In particular, we invite design engineers and engineering managers to contribute manuscripts.

Manuscript Submission
If you'd like to write an article for isdmag.com, first submit an abstract and outline. (If you've already written it, send the entire manuscript.) e-mail submission is acceptable (sdean@cmp.com). You should state the topic of the article and the importance and appropriateness of the information. The second step, if the abstract and outline are approved, is to write the article to our specifications.

isdmag.com Specifications
Submit articles in MS Word 5.0 for Macintosh on a 3.5" floppy disk (Alternatives are other versions of Word through version 6.0 for either MAC or PC, plain text (ASCII), or HTML files).

Send to: 
Sean Dean
Web Editor
(650)
 513-4383
ISD Magazine

c/o Web Editorial Dept.
2800 Campus Drive
San Mateo, CA. 94403
Or send via e-mail to 
sdean@cmp.com

• Articles should be 1200 to 3500 words in length.
• Articles should include two to four illustrations, figures, or tables.
• Graphics should be submitted on a 3 1/2 " floppy in TIFF, BMP, PICT, GIF, or EPS (Macintosh) formats.
• Include a title and caption with each graphic.

       Titles should be brief.
  
       Captions must be complete sentences.
  

• Include a brief biography 15 to 25 words in length.
• Include a hard copy version of text and figures with your disk.

Editorial Sections
On isdmag.com, published editorial is divided into three categories:

• Design and Development Tools
• Custom ICs and Programmable Logic
• ICs and µPs

The categories are intentionally broad and meant to encompass various types of submissions. Please refer to the list below of the types of articles accepted.

Types of Articles
Although contributed articles are typically very technical in nature, some may deal with management issues, such as selecting tool or ASIC vendors, financial payback of tools, or the implementation of particular design methodologies.

• Tutorials Tutorials take a "how-to" approach in providing specific information to help engineers implement the ASIC methodology. They can address such topics as synthesis, simulation, programming an FPGA or PLD, using an HDLin a particular application, developing test vectors, verifying a design, or creating a SPICE model.

• User Case Histories User case histories relate actual experiences of designers in a system development project. They include the decision-making phases, the vendor selection process, the design process, the solution, and hints on how to do it better next time, based on these experiences.

• Technology Articles Technology articles offer in-depth analysis of specific technologies or technical issues. Their purpose is to inform readers about current technical developments related to semiconductors or design tools. Examples may include design of experiments, power analysis, emulation, or formal verification.

• Survey Articles Survey articles present a broad perspective about a given topic. In the course of writing such an article, you should contact a broad range of people who have an interest or a degree of expertise on the topic. For example, if you are writing about ASIC emulation, you should contact vendors of emulation products, users of emulation products, and market analysts who follow this technology. In these articles, it is appropriate to list features of relevant products. Products and companies discussed in survey articles will include not only the company's perspective, but also the users' and analysts' perspectives. They should provide guidance to design engineers and managers regarding technologies to embrace, tools to buy, or strategies to implement.

Writing Tips
Below are some tips to help you develop a successful article.

• Articles should have a beginning, a middle, and an end. Develop a strong lead (such as you find in a consumer magazine) to catch the reader's attention. You may begin with an anecdote. If your article is a problem/solution type article, then present the problem in an interesting or anecdotal way. If it is not possible to develop a conclusion, then provide a summary. Give the reader a clear idea of the subject and the direction the article will take within the first few paragraphs. Tell the reader what the article is about and why the topic is important.

• Use the United States' standard for punctuation rather than the British standard. That is, place commas and periods before end quotes.

       Ex.) Correct..."The British drive on the wrong side of the road."
       Incorrect ..."The Americans drive on the wrong side of the road".
  

• Your style should be friendly and informal. It is fine to use "I" or "you" when appropriate.

• Use the active rather than the passive voice. For example, rather than "the AC characteristics can be ignored," it is better to write "You can ignore the AC characteristics."

• When you use the word "this" to refer to something from a preceding sentence, it should be followed by a noun to which "this" refers.

• When referring to a company in the text, on the first reference, spell out the complete company name and include the city and state. Later references only need the company name.

• Spell out acronyms, abbreviations, and signal names the first time you use them.

• Err to the side of being too explanatory. What may seem obvious to you will be less so to another engineer at another company.

• Use short words instead of long ones where possible. For example, "use" is preferable to "utilize."

• Use short phrases instead of long ones. For example, use "to" rather than "in order to."

From Manuscript to Publication
We are looking for your technical expertise, but we don't expect your manuscript to be letter perfect. Our editorial staff will edit your manuscript for length and grammatical correctness. Then, before publication we will fax you the edited version of your story and your figures for your final approval.