Finally! A Solution for Using Word 6.0 to Produce Long, Multi-Chapter, Technical Documents

["Bob Lord, DTN 522-6614," <lord -at- CXCAD -dot- ENET -dot- DEC -dot- COM>]

Jean Richardson wrote:

>If you have been able to get Master Doc to work on a project that has more than
>150 pages and more than 10 files, I'd like to hear from you.  How'd you do it?
>What's the magic incantation?


Faced with a management edict to use Word for Windows as our tool, and after
almost a year of frustration with Word's built-in features for producing long,
multi-chapter tech docs, our documentation team finally came up with a solution.

We took most of the features you'd normally find in a REAL tech-doc tool and
implemented them in Word, using a combination of macros and field codes. One of
the contractors on our team, a wiz with WordBasic, did the macros and most of
the implementation. Basically, we junked Master Document and Word's
autonumbering systems in favor of ones that work!

Our goals in developing the process were that it be easy to learn, stable, and
that it produce documents with a high level of maintainability. The process
enables you to produce long docs in individual chapters, linked together by a
file that builds the book.  Paragraph, chapter, appendix, figure, table, and
example autonumbering are all included, and the process supports all kinds of
cross referencing.  Naturally, you can develop your own templates to get the
"look" you want.

If you're faced with using Word to make robust books, and you're interested in
the process and the macros, contact our WordBasic wiz at:

Stephen Nay
NAY -at- PEAKS -dot- ENET -dot- DEC -dot- COM
w) 719.548.2488


Regards,

Bob

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Bob Lord
Technical Writer
Digital Equipment Corporation           "Kindly Practice Random Acts
LORD -at- CXCAD -dot- ENET -dot- DEC -dot- COM                      of Senselessness"  b.l.
719.548.6614
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