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Subject:Re: HTML Editors and ISO documentation From:Tim Altom <taltom -at- IQUEST -dot- NET> Date:Fri, 22 Mar 1996 21:13:00 EST
At 04:59 PM 3/22/96 -0500, you wrote:
>> Why would you elect to put your ISO docs into HTML and view >with
>Netscape,when a)that lets people save your doc locally, >something you
>definitely don't want to do in an ISO >environment, and b)limits your layout
>options? Why not go >with Acrobat or something similar that can't be messed
>with >andmaintains formatting?
>Our Quality Assurance Dept. has all of ISO procedures and work instructions
>in MS Word password protected files on our network. It's easy to update and
>all our PC and Mac users already have Word on their computers.
>Since the docs are password protected, users can view the docs in read-only
>format or print them. Printed version have a 5 day expiration date on them,
>so the user knows to trash them after that time.
>I realize some of you will probably cringe when you see that we are using MS
>Word; however, it works for us!
Glad to hear that it works. I'd only have two concerns, though. One is that
Word's password protection is a joke, as far as security provisions go. As
we used to say, it keeps out the honest folk. That may not be a problem for
you. But the second problem I'd see with the arrangement is that people may
well ignore the 5-day elapsed period. I've seen people print out a work
instruction and then paste it on a shelving section, where it languishes for
months, being referred to by an entire department, until a savvy manager
sees it and pulls it down. I'm a little surprised that the auditor hasn't
questioned the practice of local printing, to be honest. Most places I've
seen keep a book in a secure place that has all of the instructions in it.
That theoretically precludes the possibility of rogue copies floating around
long after expiration.
