Solicitation for opinions on an XML WYSIWYG (was: xml/docbbok editors)

["Cheryl Bryant" <acherylb -at- hotmail -dot- com>]

Greetings,

I may have stumbled onto a solution that removes the XML burden from writers 
who don't want to be bothered with it. (Some do, some don't.) To determine 
if it has any merit, I'd like to hear opinions about authoring XML-ized 
documentation.

For those with strong opinions, here's the layout:
  - Background
  - Train of thought
  - Proposed solution
  - Question
  - Conclusion


Background
------------------
I'm a technical lead and senior programmer-writer. My development background 
is rooted in databases, text parsing, and structured object-oriented 
programming. (Not a typo.) I'm a *staunch* user experience and human factors 
advocate. For years I struggled with the practicalities of implementing XML 
within a documentation development environment.


Train of thought
------------------
- A raw XML data file is nuthin' but an ASCII text, hierarchical,
 stand-alone database.
- XML technologies (XSLT, XPath) are the means by which raw XML data
 is transformed into renderable content (browsers, print, etc.).
- API documentation is mostly data-based (perfect for database
 storage/retrieval and output to XML).
- Authoring processes for conceptual and procedural content types are
 fluid, not data-based.
- Current XML documentation systems force writers to:
   Author in a raw HTML-like manner (using XML tags, instead of
   HTML tags), in a highly structured (SGML-like) fashion.
   ---OR---
   Purchase an immature WYSIWYG tool (plus training costs/learning
   curves), and you still don't get the precise control you need
   e.g., whitespace, indenting, etc.).


Proposed solution
------------------
I recently engineered a design for an XML- and SQL-based system for 
content/documentation development and production. This would allow writers 
to write, edit, and tech review using their favorite authoring environment 
and established processes. There'd be virtually no change to the way you 
think, express, or process your content. You wouldn't need to purchase, 
learn, or integrate any new tools in your authoring environment.

Yet you'd still have great control over your XML-ized output. And if you 
want to, you can integrate any of the pre-fab DocBook XSLT stylesheets and 
DTD.

Better still, you can integrate application software content (such as UI 
element names, like the name of a UI button) into your authoring 
environment, without programming anything. When you generate the docs, the 
UI element names are automatically updated in the output.


Question
------------------
Based on your experience with XML documentation systems (or your need to 
move docs toward an XML-based solution), what's your reaction to such a 
proposed solution?
  - From a user's (writer's) perspective.
  - From a manager's (business case) perspective.
  - From a devil's advocate perspective.


Conclusion
------------------
The system I propose is in design. There is no "product" (yet). As a user 
advocate, I am very interested in hearing reactions to this, especially 
strong opinions for or against such a system. I will build this feedback 
into the design. (Why build a system nobody wants to use?)

You can either email me off list (cheryl -at- bryantent -dot- com), or via the 
listserv.

Thanks in advance.

Cheryl Bryant
Technical Lead/Programmer-Writer
Black Diamond, WA
mailto:cheryl -at- bryantent -dot- com


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