About the Book

Robert's Rules of Order have been around since 1876, when Henry Martyn Robert published the first edition of his book, which was then known as the Pocket Manual of Rules of Order for Deliberative Assemblies. The book based its outline on the House of Representatives' meeting procedures and adapted these methods for use in society as a whole.

Since these rules debuted, they have become the most commonly adopted parliamentary method in the United States, with approximately 95 percent of all clubs, organizations, and governments practicing them. When the copyrights of the original editions expired, many other Robert's Rules of Order began to surface. Today, many of these books are the same - with one apparent problem: a lack of focus on current trends, specifically the Internet.

However, The Complete Guide to Robert's Rules of Order Made Easy emphasizes this fact and stresses how society has changed due to the advent of the Internet. Clubs, organizations, and societies need to know how to meet and communicate online, and this book provides the answer. In this book you will learn about technology, conducting meetings online, communicating online, teleconferences, Web conferences, and Web seminars. You will also learn the proper ways to address and send e-mails, as well as how to communicate using instant messenger software.

The Internet has transformed the meeting space, and you need to incorporate these changes into your meetings. Additionally, you will learn about all the more traditional rules, including such things as quorum, abstention votes, votes of no confidence, friendly amendments, proxy votes, executive sessions, points of privilege, parliamentary inquiries, and debates. You will also learn how you can adopt Robert's Rules of Order, how to qualify as a legal meeting, how to follow the standard order of business, how to handle a motion, and how to nominate and elect officers.

Also included is a discussion of the various motions, including privileged, incidental, subsidiary, main, and unclassified, as well as the basic by-laws and the required paperwork, such as minutes, treasurer's reports, and committee reports. The Complete Guide to Robert's Rules of Order Made Easy will serve as your guide to conducting orderly and fair meetings in the 21st century. The rules for using the Internet as a meeting and communication space are clearly defined, easy to understand, and simple to apply.

Atlantic Publishing is a small, independent publishing company based in Ocala, Florida. Founded over twenty years ago in the company president's garage, Atlantic Publishing has grown to become a renowned resource for non-fiction books. Today, over 450 titles are in print covering subjects such as small business, healthy living, management, finance, careers, and real estate. Atlantic Publishing prides itself on producing award winning, high-quality manuals that give readers up-to-date, pertinent information, real-world examples, and case studies with expert advice. Every book has resources, contact information, and web sites of the products or companies discussed.

About the Author: Rita Cook is a writer/editor who specializes in a variety of subjects, from travel to weddings, from fashion to autos, and from entertainment to business. She most recently began investigative journalism and has more than 1,000 articles to her credit from her past 10 years of full-time freelance writing. Ms. Cook is the Editor-in-Chief of Celeb Staff Magazine in Los Angeles and began her career in Chicago as the Editorial Director of Insider Magazine while also working at the Chicago Sun Times for famous newspaper columnist Irv Kupcinet. Currently, she writes full time, hosts a segment of a radio show called The Insider Mag.com, teaches an online travel writing class for Gotham Writer's Workshop, and is a member of the Texas Auto Writer's Association and the North Texas Film Critics Association, of which she just became president. Working in the film industry with a number of films to her credit, she also had the chance to work with Robert's Rules of Order as the President of Women in Film/Chicago, Los Angeles' Cinewomen President, VP of Reviews for The Film Advisory Board, and Treasurer in both Los Angeles and Chicago for the National Writer's Union. This is Ms. Cook's seventh book published and her fourth fully credited print book in addition to a romantic novel titled Angel's Destiny, and several non-fiction titles including Vows and Toasts and Gardner's Guide to Producing Independent Films. Ms. Cook is married and currently splits her time between Los Angeles and Dallas.