atw: Re: XML- a requirement for a TechWriter looking for Work?
- From: peterm_5@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
- To: geoffrey@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx, austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Wed, 10 Sep 2008 10:45:01 +0800
Geoffrey:
You wrote:
>
>
>---- Original Message ----
>From: geoffrey@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>Subject: RE: atw: Re: XML- a requirement for a TechWriter looking for
>Work?
>Date: Wed, 10 Sep 2008 12:06:51 +1000
>
>>Peter,
>>
>>If you were intending to answer Nikki's question (Is XML becoming
>part of a
>>requirement for a Tech Writer who is looking for work?) then I would
>have to
>>disagree with you. The overwhelming majority of technical
>documentation
>>projects involve no XML at all. My company has placed scores of
>technical
>>writers over the last few years, and not one of our numerous clients
>has
>>insisted that the contractors we provide have XML skills.
>>
Although, of course, it's likely they'll shortly require you to know
about Word 2007,
with a default XML output format. And there's the start of a
trail... after all, Microsoft just got approval for their own subset
of XML for use in "open" documentation.
Somehow I think they intend to try to use it a bit. And when they
do.... (see next bit).
>>Further, you don't need to know a whiff of XML "to write and format
>material
>>for the web". Get a grip on Dreamweaver (or one of its competitors)
>and
>>that's about as much as you need to create a decent intranet or
>web-help
>>system.
>>
Hmm Yeah. True. Until Dreamweaver or your other WYSIWYG tool stuffs
up (known to happen, particularly with Dreamweaver... I found it
buggy... ).
Or let's just say a file gets truncated and loses two characters at
the end...
:-)
Tools do go wrong -- even documentation tools.
Helps to know what the error messages in your browser mean, and how
to fix things quickly. Or how to fix the stuff-ups that Word used
to create with things like:
"<i><b>this<\i><\b>" ...
(Some sites do use Word to write HTML, poor sods.)
Not essential ? Maybe. Helpful? You bet.
Perhaps essential if you want to save time. Some of us need to.
>>The tools TWs use (MS Word and Adobe FrameMaker) can generate XML,
>that is
>>true; but that doesn't mean companies are all screaming out for XML.
>And
>>even with the niceties of DITA, the ROI on converting documentation
>>methodologies to DITA-based structured authoring is usually not
>there for
>>any but the largest organisations (of which there are few in
>Australia).
>>
Maybe it's just that I keep on running into IBM, Adobe, Compuware and
a few others, even out here in Australia.... And I'm finding quite a
few that have converted the corpus of their documentation to DITA
XML, or are in the process of doing that.
And if you want translation of your docs to Chinese (and who doesn't,
these days), there's a BIG potential saving in the use of XML,
particularly structured XML.
>>So, for all you members of austechwriter relatively new to the
>profession of
>>technical writing, don't be alarmed if you don't know much about XML
>and
>>structured authoring. There is plenty of work around for you. Do
>read up
>>about it, as it is certainly interesting; but don't lose sleep if
>you
>>haven't.
>>
Meanwhile, if you happen to be one of those documentation people who
have trouble digging information out of SMEs who are very busy (and
sometimes reluctant) to dump their knowledge to you, it's good on
occasions to be able to come up with either information or pointed
questions that arise from a trawl of a bit of XML code you found
lying around on the site... Configuration data, message formats...
all kinds of stuff buried in there.
+Very+ relevant yesterday here :-)
>>-----Original Message-----
>>From: austechwriter-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>>[mailto:austechwriter-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of
>>peterm_5@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>>Sent: Wednesday, 10 September 2008 11:46 AM
>>To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>>Subject: atw: Re: XML- a requirement for a TechWriter looking for
>Work?
>>
>>Nikki:
>>
>>1. The latest HTML is a sub-set of XML (as in XHTML). If you want
>to know
>>about how to write and format material for the web, you need to
>understand
>>at least the basics of XML.
>>
>>2. XML is the basis for a whole series of other communication
>protocols, so
>>if you have a need to understand and write about many systems, it
>would be
>>really handy to understand what everyone's talking about. For
>example, B2B
>>operations and databases are increasingly using XML as the format
>for
>>messages via net and interprocess connections.
>>
>>3. XML is now the basis for a whole wad of documentation
>applications, Word
>>2007 and FrameMaker 7 and 8 and AuthorIT amongst
>>them. Key sub-sets of XML involved here include Docbook and DITA
>>XML. Because of the need to convert between different
>>documentation formats, there often is a need for XML to be used as a
>common
>>or intermediary format to be used in conversion processes.
>>
>>
>>That's basic starters. Meanwhile, for learning about basic XML and
>>some of its key sub-sets, don't go past http://www.w3schools.com .
>>It's pages are free, structured for learning, and have lots of
>examples.
>>
>>--Peter M
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>>If you have some time, I would like some feedback on this
>>presentation supplied to the QLD >Tech Writers group.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>>I just thought it rather interesting that "Learn XML" is becoming
>>part of a requirement >for a Tech Writer who is looking for work.
>>
>>
>>
>>>Please can you let me know your thoughts on this and why you think
>>XML is essential to >being a Tech Writer.
>>
>>>I am looking to write a post for my blog and I am want to poll
>>several technical writers >to see what their thoughts are as part of
>my
>>research.
>>
>>
>>
>>>I want write about 'how' XML fits in the techwriter role, provide
>>some practical examples >where possible, what books are the best
>books to
>>learn XML, what courses are available.
>>
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