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Subject:Re: Online docs in oil & gas From:Ruth Markham <Pmar8899z -at- AOL -dot- COM> Date:Thu, 25 Feb 1999 18:44:45 EST
Karen:
I am also a lone technical writer at an oil refining & marketing company
(although we are soon to be just a refining company). As a company, we do not
explore or drill for oil. To this point, I've developed only online help
(WinHelp) using RoboHelp.
I just returned from the WinWriters conference and the industry is definitely
going towards HTML. It is my understanding that WinHelp is no longer being
supported. Whether HTML is ready for prime-time is another question entirely.
I'd refer you to the excellent post I just read on this list about the
problems one writer encountered when converting to HTML. Most of the speakers
I heard at the conference back up what this writer encountered during her
conversion. It is not stable and can be very quirky.
I attended a session on the types of graphics that can be developed for
browser-based help such as HTML help. You can do some really nifty things
using products such as MacroMedia's Director and Flash (although they have a
relatively learning curve in and of themselves). It was my feeling that a lot
of people are people are taking a "wait and see attitude" over the next 6-12
months in regards to HTML. Ultimately, this would depend on your needs.
Hope this helps.
Ruth Markham
Sr. Tech Writer
Clark Refining & Marketing
