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.
> I have just been hired to rewrite procedures manuals for a small
> consulting business. They currently use Word 6 but the manuals are long,
> should be more colorful, and are long. I am learning FrameMaker at home
> yet I'm intrigued by Quark and PageMaker from reading reviews. Please
> forgive the basic nature of this request, but I'd like some opinions as to
> what's best, what's the most fun and why.
> Thanks.
> Donna G.
My $.02: FrameMaker hands down, particularly if much document maintenance
and multiple authorship or custody by multiple people are issues. You can
import all the fancy graphics from Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop, etc.,
you want, set up your color separations, have conditional text, manage
cross-references, and do all the usual documentation tasks quite
straightforwardly in Frame.
Quark and Pagemaker are layout/2D design programs; Frame is a doc
management tool. Word 6 appears to be verging on Frame's capabilities in
some areas but is still is just a glorified word processor.
All just MHO, of course,
Phil
--
Phil Sherwood
sherwood -at- mdd -dot- comm -dot- mot -dot- com
Motorola Wireless Data Group, Bothell WA
I don't speak for Motorola in any way, and they don't speak for me.
