atw: Re: SEC: UNCLASS Are you content to be a 'content provider'?

>
> I know that some technical writers are happy to confine themselves to
> 'content' and leave the formatting and presentation to others, so I
> suppose I shouldn't be too judgmental. After all, skill with words seems
> to be becoming a rare commodity. But for me the separation of content
> and presentation is intolerable. I want documents (and web pages, etc)
> to look how I've set them up to look, so I can be sure the material is
> clear and easy to read and navigate. For me, the 'deliverable' is *not*
> an ASCII string with some accompanying images, but a formatted document.
>
> I'm rallying for supporters here. Do I have anyone with me in this fight
> (in principle, at least)?
>
> Howard

Well ... from a different perspective ...

I started my current position as the only writer, set up writing standards,
presentation standards, etc, etc...  Now I've been told that everyone else
needs to be writing their own content.  Lucky for me I *always* separate
content from presentation, so these new 'writers' have the job of delivering
ASCII strings (XML) with accompanying images.  I have kept control of
presentation so that we keep a standard look and feel across the department. 
They ask for changes but not many are implemented.  Of course I tell them why
its a bad idea to use 30pt fonts for level 3 headings...

If I wasn't still writing 65% of the time I would be concerned about my
longevity...

Cheers,
Geoff


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