Jack: The comments by Rich Nute are right on the money. I would like to throw in another two cents worth.
The pursuit of publishing has many direct benefits to the creating individual, although some may take time to surface. 1. The process of generating a written communication that will be read (and judged) by your technical peers forces you to be sure of your facts and/or state any reasonable limits on their applicability. This implied requirement sharpens your thought process, makes you double-check your information sources or research, and builds your confidence in your interpretation of technical data. 2. The same process improves your communication skills by the sheer practice of ferretting out the main points you wish to make, and by testing your grammatical skills. 3. If you take the "conference paper" route, you will gain experience in presenting to a technical audience. This experience will help you to prepare for and present your future ideas to corporate managers. All of these factors benefit your professional growth, which should ultimately be recognized in many ways, including financially. Hope this makes sense to you, Mike Conn Owner/Principal Consultant Mikon Consulting
