Re: Suggestions for new tool option

[Andrew Plato <intrepid_es -at- yahoo -dot- com>]

"Field, Kristin" <KField -at- LSAC -dot- org> wrote 
> 
> I started a new job in a newly created position, Technical
> Communicator/Proofreader, about 2 months ago.  My main function is to create
> hard copy end user manuals and online help for our proprietary software
> application.  I inherited this project from one of the programmers.  The
> hard copy manual was created in Microsoft Word.  It is more than 500 pages,
> and needless to say, I am having a difficult time managing a document of
> this size in Word.  I chuckle nearly every time I read a posting specifying
> a problem with Word.  

There are NUMEROUS ways to avoid these problems with Word. I've done 10 or 20
500 page documents in Word without any problem. Allow me to elaborate.

1. Word is not a desktop publishing tool, its a word processor. You cannot use
it like Frame or Pagemaker. It will give you problems. 

2. No master documents. Master documents does work, you just have to be very
diligent in keeping your documents clean. 

3. Get Word 2000 and upgrade to SR-2.  Many problems are resolved when you have
the latest version. See www.officeupdate.com to get the latest patches. 

4. Work on Windows 2000 with Service Pack 2. See www.windowsupdate.com to get
the latest service packs and patches.  Win9x/Me is a waste of time. You need a
real OS that can handle true business applications. You would be WAY WAY WAY
better off to spend $200 to get Windows 2000 then spend $1000 and get Quark. 

5. No linking graphics. All graphics should be placed in-line as metafiles. The
easiest way to do this is to run ALL your graphics through Paint Shop Pro (PSP)
6.0 or greater. Open them in PSP, copy the portion of the graphic you want to
the clipboard, then paste the image (IN-LINE!!!) into the document. Don't put
the images into frames or floating things. These just create problems. Word
loves metafiles. It can eat them very nicely. It loathes linked images and it
really hates GIF and JPG images. At my office, we library all images in the
native PSP format and copy/paste them into Word as needed. It is hands down the
simplest and least breakable method to putting graphics in Word. 

6. If you get images as JPGs, GIF, or any other format - convert them to a true
color, compressible format. TIF is always good.  In general, JPG and GIF are
meant for web sites and you should avoid these formats like a Pauly Shore
movie. 

7. Build a bullet-proof template. Word's templates are actually quite powerful
- once you learn the quirks. Build a template that has adequate styles to
handle all your text. 

8. Keep those headers and footers simple. These are the most breakable area of
Word. Keep them simple. 

9. Manage those files. Don't allow 97 different versions of a file to
intermingle.   Always work from a pure copy of your file. A copy that never
leaves your computer and its environment. When other people open your file,
they can write their own filth into it. After 19 people open it, its full of
macros and crap from other people. 

10. Want to merge data from a database? Access 2000 + Mail Merge is a beautiful
thing. We use it ALL the time for large collections of data. And it takes about
3 minutes to set up. Do you're merging off-line in another documents and then
copy the content over. That way your doc doesn't become diseased with broken
links. 

11. No FRAMES! Frames are nice when you're laying out flyers and such in Word.
But they are worthless in large documents. 

12. NO DRAWING! Word's drawing features are nice for simple documents and
morons that can't use Visio. Use Visio for diagramming. 

13. NO EMBEDDED CRAP! Don't embed Visio files, excel spread sheets, etc. Drop
in Excel stuff as a Word table and make images out of Visio diagrams. The
easiest way is to run all your Visio diagrams through Paint Shop Pro and turn
them into images. 

14. Organize your document. Just because its easy, doesn't mean you can just
throw text here and there. Use section breaks and headers wisely. 

15. Learn to copy/paste. An enormous amount of work can be saved when you
embrace the awe and power of copy/paste. Want to create a new section that's
exactly like the previous - copy the previous section, paste it where you want
the new one and start changing the text. 

A new tool won't make life easier. It will merely give you new problems. 

I remember a client who had problems with Word so all the writers went on a
crusade to get Frame. They got it and then spent 9 months farting around
building templates and playing with the tool. All this time they missed their
deliverables and released crap documents. They would have been a lot better off
just staying with Word - but that would have meant actual work and not "fun
work" of playing with templates. 

FrameMaker, Quark, and PageMaker ALL blow up and GPF too. They just have a
different set of problems. At the end of the day - its all the same. 

I say before you run out and spend a lot of money and time on a new tool, see
if you can get the old one to work. 99 times out of 100 it isn't the tool - its
the user and the document. 

Andrew Plato 




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