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Re: Using Word as an Authoring System

Subject: Re: Using Word as an Authoring System
From: "Peter Neilson" <neilson -at- windstream -dot- net>
To: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Date: Tue, 28 Nov 2017 16:11:50 -0500

On Tue, 28 Nov 2017 15:05:14 -0500, Cardimon, Craig <ccardimon -at- m-s-g -dot- com> wrote:

At my company, we are drifting away from our old authoring system and moving toward using Microsoft Word.

Do you knowledgeable folks have any advice, suggestions, tips, or tricks for me about using Word for product documentation?

Maybe some of the troublesome items are fixed by now, but I would suggest:
- Do not allow your SME to edit the real version of the document. Instead, fold in SME's changes (perhaps rewriting them as you go) so that you retain your set of rules for "How To Use MS Word With Slightly Less Pain."
- See if you can avoid using Master Documents. AFAIK that trick never works. Bullwinkle: "This time for sure!"
- Measure, if just for the fun of it, the amount of time you spend making Word work as opposed to the time you are doing other parts of tech writing. If it's over 50% consider changing to writing poetry or being a circus clown or some other job more pleasant.
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Using Word as an Authoring System: From: Cardimon, Craig

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