TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:Re: To XML or to UI From:"Mark Baker" <listsub -at- analecta -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Thu, 19 Feb 2004 16:48:50 -0500
> XML -> Database -> Single Sourcing
I'll reiterate my point on this one. XML is a simple technology that can be
applied to many complex problems. Single Sourcing involves changing the way
authors create content and the way they build documents. In order for single
sourcing to work, authors have to be able to do the right things and do them
efficiently. These are UI issues. Think of it as:
UI -> Authoring Interface -> Single Sourcing
To compare the difficulty of the various components involved in creating a
working single sourcing solution I would rank it about like this:
XML 5%
Database 10%
UI 85%
And, as I said before, DTD/Schema design is a UI design activity. Thus the
UI training is the most important training you could take if single sourcing
is your goal.
