lookin' for a PDF alternative

["Writer Whirler" <a_whirler -at- hotmail -dot- com>]

I use PDFs along with online help. The PDF graphics, of course, display 
poorly, but in my latest batch of user guides, they also print poorly. I am 
not doing anything different to capture and process them. The source docs 
for the PDFs are Word files.  So, I have two questions:

1.  How much impact does the source have on the finished product? Obviously, 
if the source is poor the screen shot will be poor. But poor quality is not 
the issue here. Can the GUI's design, color choice, etc. affect a screen 
shot?

2. Has anyone ever used a Word document, saved and locked as a form, as an 
alternative to a PDF, for wide distribution? Does locking a document as a 
form keep all formatting intact? Word being Word, sometimes formatting 
changes when another user opens the doc. I want to avoid this. What kinds of 
limitations might using the doc as form impose, besides the fact that the 
user must have Word?

I'm trying to think of alternatives to PDFs. Any ideas, comments, etc. are 
very welcome.  Thanks.




_________________________________________________________________
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Announcing new options for IPCC 01, October 24-27 in Santa Fe,
New Mexico: attend the entire event or select a single day.  
For details and online registration, visit http://ieeepcs.org/2001

 Your monthly sponsorship message here reaches more than
 5000 technical writers, providing 2,500,000+ monthly impressions.
 Contact Eric (ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com) for details and availability.

---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as: archive -at- raycomm -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com
Send administrative questions to ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com -dot-  Visit 
http://www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.