Re: Single Sourcing

["Brierley, Sean" <Brierley -at- QUODATA -dot- COM>]

I respectfully disagree:

I think of single sourcing as using as many tools as necessary to make only
one document the source for many output formats.

In my idea of single sourcing, the document cannot be modified to meet each
format because this creates multiple sources. The number of tools is
unimportant provided the single, source document is not changed for each
format.

Thus, a document I write using product X is then converted to an online book
with product Y and online help with product Z. Regardless of the output, the
document itself is not edited or changed. I see a few ways of doing this,
using databases, setting up specific templates that tools Y and Z would use
to change the look of the original document.

In my single sourcing document scheme, if there were changes I would apply
them only once to the source document.

If I understand Xiang, changes must be made in two source documents: the
online help document and the printed document.

One way to accomplish this might be to write the printed version in Word and
then convert to online help using RoboHelp, provided that the source
document did not need an edit along the way.

I use FrameMaker 5.5.6 to create printed output, Acrobat to create an online
book, and WebWorks Publisher 5.02 (about $600) to make online help. If I
make changes, I only change the FrameMaker document. Then, I push a button
in Acrobat (actually, Acrobat is integrated into FrameMaker but you get the
idea) and the online book is made with no changes being made to the source
document. Then, I push a button in WebWorks Publisher and the online help is
created with no changes being made to the source document.

All the best

Sean
sean -at- quodata -dot- com

.
>>>-----Original Message-----
>>>From: Xiang Li [mailto:xli -at- FEDERALAPD -dot- COM]
>>>Sent: Wednesday, June 30, 1999 4:17 PM
>>>To: TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU
>>>Subject: Re: Single Sourcing
>>>
>>>
>>>Gail:
>>>
>>>(I think it might be a good idea to send to the list so that
>>>others can
>>>share)
>>>Sorry that I could not reply to your message yesterday. I
>>>was busy with
>>>work.
>>>
>>>
>>>The idea of single sourcing is to produce one source and obtain many
>>>outputs so that you do not need to maintain two or more
>>>products which is
>>>not quite possible now. What I did was to develop online
>>>help with Robohelp
>>>7.0, and generate manual out of the help source files.
>>>However, it took me
>>>a long time to modify the manual because I have to implement
>>>different
>>>styles for help and manual. For example, in online Help you
>>>use links, when
>>>it is converted into manual, the links will not
>>>automatically converted
>>>cross references, you have to manually define the cross
>>>reference. I still
>>>have to maintain the manual and help depending upon what kind of
>>>maintenance it is.
>>>
>>>The advantage of doing this is that I do not need to go between two
>>>programs (previously our help is in Robohelp and manual is
>>>in FrameMaker).
>>>After I generated manual from Robohelp, it is a word
>>>document, and Robohelp
>>>works with MS word.
>>>
>>>Another way to do single source is to use FrameMaker to
>>>produce the manual
>>>first, and use a special program to convert the manual into
>>>online Help.
>>>Sorry that I forgot the name of the program or who makes it.
>>>It will cost
>>>you around $300.
>>>
>>>Let me know how you decide to implement single sourcing.
>


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