Dynamic related topics using Frame/WebWorks

[Bobbie Dofflemyer <doff -at- MCCABE -dot- COM>]

(Please pardon the cross-post. I'd like to get as much feedback as
possible.)

Hi, everyone!

My company develops several products that can be used alone or in
conjunction with one another. Many features are shared across the
products, so the more products we develop, the harder it is to maintain
the duplicate information. The documentation group would like to reduce
some of the maintenance issues by producing single-source documentation.
In particular, we want to create one general help file that includes all
of the shared information, then separate help files for product-specific
information. It sounds easy enough until you mention related topics --
these would depend on the products the user is licensed to use.

Does anyone know if you can set up variables and markers in FrameMaker
to identify possible related topics? Here is what we were thinking of
doing:

For each topic, we would add a variable to the Related Topics section
that represents the related topics. In each possible related topic, we
would include a marker with the specified variable to signify that this
is a possible related topic. Then, when the files are converted to HTML
or Winhelp, the Related Topics section would list all of the related
topics (pertaining to the products the user is licensed to use).

Even without the license issue, does anyone know if FrameMaker/WebWorks
can do this -- create dynamic lists based on variable markers?

Oh, also, can anyone give me the nitty-gritty on creating Winhelp from
WebWorks? I've hear that it can be a bit of a bear. Currently, we use
WebWorks for HTML-based help and ForeHelp for Windows help.

Since I get the digest, please send your responses directly to me at
mailto:doff -at- mccabe -dot- com -dot- 

Thanks for your help,
Bobbie


--
Bobbie Dofflemyer
Technical Documentation
McCabe & Associates, Inc.
mailto:doff -at- mccabe -dot- com


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