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In case those of you who have previously been kind enough to answer my queries are wondering -- yes, they keep switching my projects around. That stuff I was asking about earlier, they want that next year now. So on to the next one...
This week's question is about that ultimate form of single sourcing, a database. I thought this had been discussed on the list previously, but my search of the archives turned up very little other than advertisements, so I'm turning to your collective wisdom (again!).
Has anyone overseen a change from traditional (multi-source?) docs to a database-driven single-sourcing solution, and would be willing to share what they have learned from the experience? Did you use a commercially-available tool(s) or grow your own? How big is your department? How long did the conversion take, and how long was it before you started seeing benefits? Are there printed resources we should consult?
We are a small department, of three going on four writers, and we are (rather suddenly) being asked to produce miracles of interactivity and document reuse that strongly suggest our future lies in this direction. I don't think it's going to happen overnight, but maybe we can lay some groundwork as we go about our current projects?
Rebecca Stevenson
We can do this.
Technical Writer
Workscape, Inc.
> 508-861-3059
AIM: RJSWriter
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