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Subject:Re: graphics size in Word files From:Chris Knight <knight -at- ADA -dot- COM> Date:Wed, 29 Apr 1998 18:20:08 -0700
Laurie Little wrote:
> The graphics must be embedded because the documents are in SourceSafe
> and many people need to access them.
> I've been told that there is no way to link graphics from SourceSafe
> to the Word doc (is this misinformation?)
Let's separate this into two problems, embedded vs linked graphics in
Word, and SourceSafe.
Embedding the graphics guarantees that anyone who opens the Word file
will see the pictures, whereas linking the graphics to external files
means that those files have to travel along with the .doc file. Linking
does however make for MUCH smaller .doc files. That's the trade-off.
If your graphics files are in the same directory as the .doc file,
and linked with no path (just the file name) anyone opening the .doc
file should have no problem--if you can get to the .doc file you can get
to the graphics files. I cannot guarantee this however--Word running on
Windows 95 sometimes loses track of where linked files are (it's usually
a paucity of file handles--don't ask). Under Windows NT, Word runs MUCH
more reliably.
You can guarantee that Word will find the files if you specify an
absolute path to them. However, if you want anyone else to be able to
see them when they open the .doc file, all the files (and thus the path)
had better be on a network file server, where anyone who needs to access
the document can do so.
Now as to SourceSafe: is that a revision-control system? (Never heard
of it.) If it is, and you "check in" and "check out" the Word file from
the library, then yes, you may have a problem if anyone else checks out
a Word file with linked graphics (see previous paragraph).
Run a test. Make a version of your document with linked graphics files,
put the whole collection in a networked folder, and ask you readers to
open the Word file (don't use Sourcesafe at all for this test). If this
works (and it should) repeat the test but add Sourcesafe into the mix.
Hope this helps.
--
Chris Knight
Consultant, Technical Communication Architect
Vancouver BC, Canada
(currently at Applied Digital Access,
E-mail: knight -at- bcg -dot- ada -dot- com Phone: 604-415-5886 Fax: 604-415-5900)
Opinions expressed are my own, not ADA's
