Re: Engineering Textbook: Word MasterDocs vs FrameMaker vs ... ???

Subject: Re: Engineering Textbook: Word MasterDocs vs FrameMaker vs ... ???
From: Keith Soltys <keith -at- soltys -dot- ca>
To: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Date: Wed, 20 Oct 2021 10:02:21 -0400

Word is quite capable of handling large documents but you have to be VERY careful about your formatting. You need to use a good template that uses multilevel lists and never, ever use the formatting toolbar for numbered and bulleted lists. In my final job at the TSX, I used it for documents > 300 pages with few problems, but I was the only author working on the document so I had complete control over formatting.

As for master documents, I avoided using them. When I had to create a document that had content from more than one author, I created a shell document for the front matter and added the individual files using RD fields. I edited only in the individual files and made sure they all used the same template. The only problem with this approach is that page numbering can be complex to manage (I used chapter-page numbering).

If you do use master documents, the most critical thing is to make sure that all the documents use the same template. And then backup, backup, and backup some more.

If the document has complex formatting and uses many images, you may want to consider importing the content into InDesign, as another poster has suggested.

Regards
Keith


On 10/20/2021 8:16 AM, Nina Rogers wrote:

Good morning, Techwhirlers,

My company has developed an engineering textbook, and Yours Truly is to do
all of the editing and formatting. It's a great opportunity for me, but
I've never been on a project like this.

There are four authors who have been using Word MasterDocs for the book,
and they just sent me the files yesterday. I have not used Word MasterDocs
since, oh, 1998 or so. Back then, even though I was an "expert," I still
found it very clunky and unpredictable, particularly in the areas of
cross-references and indexing.

I would think that Word has improved its capacity to handle large documents
(this doc will be about 400 pages), but I don't know. I use Word all the
time, but not for things like this. I am wondering if it would be better to
put the book into FrameMaker--partly because I know FrameMaker is made for
this kind of document, and partly because I use FrameMaker all the time for
technical manuals.

I realize these are both older tools and there are probably many newer
tools available. I'd be interested in knowing what's out there and may
be better for this project, but at the same time I'd like to stick with
what I know/what software the company already has.

Any input/advice all of you have would be appreciated. Thanks!

Nina Rogers
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Visit TechWhirl for the latest on content technology, content strategy and content development | https://techwhirl.com

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References:
Engineering Textbook: Word MasterDocs vs FrameMaker vs ... ???: From: Nina Rogers

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