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Structuring Information for Single-Sourcing and XML
Single-sourcing is the next big thing in technical communication but, ironically, it isn't new. If you used RoboHelp to create WinHelp and convert it to hard-copy in 1994, you were single-sourcing. What is new is the complexity of today's single-sourcing decisions. What are your goals for single-sourcing? How do you define single-sourcing? Does it have to involve XML? (And what is XML anyway?) How do your plans fit the larger corporate effort? Is there one? (Is there more than one and, if so, what are the politics of the competing efforts?) Do you have to bring in a consultant or can you do the work in-house?
This two-day seminar is aimed at documentation managers or developers who need to bring structure and control to their material in anticipation of a single-sourcing effort, or simply to bring their material under control. The seminar has two major sections. The first covers high-level strategic, organizational, political, and managerial issues. The second covers detailed issues of material structure and design, along with coding and writing issues. This is a very detail-oriented seminar whose purpose is to let you leave with three specific things:
- A clear understanding of what single-sourcing is.
- A clear understanding as to whether single-sourcing makes sense for your company.
- A detailed action plan to help drive your single-sourcing effort, supported by information structure forms and a documentation spec template.
There are no specific prerequisites, but experience on at least two online projects, or project or group management experience, is helpful. You'll also be asked to read a case study before arriving, and to bring samples of existing material for use in a document structuring exercise.
| Introduction |
| This Seminar |
| The Online Documentation Environment |
| Definitions |
| Overview of XML |
| The Role of the Consultant |
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| Strategic Issues |
| Do You Need Any of This? |
| Output
Format Definition |
| Consistency
Issues Across Output Formats |
| Maintenance
Issues Across Output Formats |
| Other
Factors |
| Goal
Definition and Metrics |
| Defining the Strategic Fit |
| Standardization |
| Tool
Standardization Issues |
| Tool
Categories |
| Keeping
Up |
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| Organizational and Political Issues |
| Organizational Issues |
| Source
of the Effort and Its Organizational Effects |
| The
Team |
| Political Issues |
| Ego |
| Realism
vs. Political Posturing |
| Turf
Issues |
| Management
Support |
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| Management Issues |
| The Legacy Material Question |
| Identifying
Legacy Material |
| Prioritizing
Legacy Material |
| Documentation Specs |
| Definition
and Purpose |
| Ownership |
| Attributes |
| Contents |
|
| Structuring the Information |
| Purpose of Structure |
| Define your document types. |
| Define the document type conversion direction. |
| Define each document type's overall structure. |
| Define the individual information types |
| Define the information types' structures. |
| Define the information types' appearance. |
| Plan for semantic tagging. |
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| Coding and Writing Issues |
| High-Level Coding Issues |
| Low-Level Coding Issues |
| Writing Standards |
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| What's Next? |
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Seminar Outlines
- Creating HTML Help Using RoboHelp HTML X5 (also X4.1 and X3)
- Creating WebHelp Using RoboHelp HTML X5 (also X4.1 and X3)
- RoboHelp XML
- Creating Simulations and CBT Using Captivate
- XML and XHTML Concepts for Technical Communicators
- Structuring Information for Single-Sourcing and XML
Neil Perlin
Hyper/Word Services
101 Emily Road
Tewksbury, MA 01876
Phone: 978-657-5464