TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:RE: Single-sourcing DIDN'T work for me just now From:Goober Writer <gooberwriter -at- yahoo -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Fri, 19 Sep 2003 06:34:18 -0700 (PDT)
> But this raises the question -- if it IS NOT that
> simple, is true single-sourcing worth all the
> overhead?
Nice question!
Well, yes, IF your docs projects allow for it. For
example, if you're producing one-off guides, it's best
to just keep them one-off. But, if you write and
maintain guides from version to version and/or have
enterprise level applications to support, then yes,
the time you spend planning and developing your
single-source infrastructure is time well spent.
I believe Sean Brierley and Sarah O'Keefe put together
(individually) some actual numbers supporting
single-sourcing. Basically, if you define a workflow
and all its requirements and adhere to them 100%, you
can spend minimal time maintaining the deliverables
from version to version (and deliverable to
deliverable) and focus on content.
Same philosophy as properly planning a project from
the beginning. If you plan ahead, you have a lot of
initial overhead, but it'll dwindle as the project
goes on and everyone will work more productively along
the way. If you don't plan, you'll have a hefty chunk
of overhead throughout your project's lifecycle, thus
everyone will be less productive for the duration of
the project.
=====
Goober Writer
(because life is too short to be inept)
"As soon as you hear the phrase "studies show",
immediately put a hand on your wallet and cover your groin."
-- Geoff Hart
__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! SiteBuilder - Free, easy-to-use web site design software http://sitebuilder.yahoo.com
NEED TO PUBLISH YOUR FRAMEMAKER CONTENT ONLINE?
?Mustang? (code name) is a NEW online publishing tool for FrameMaker that
lets you easily single-source content to Web, intranets, and online Help.
The interface is designed for FrameMaker users, so there is little or no
learning curve and no macro language required! See a live demo that
will take your breath away: http://www.ehelp.com/techwr-l3
---
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.
