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A Publisher’s Guide to Choosing the Right XML Editor
- 1. Wednesday Webinar Series
A Publisher’s Guide
to Choosing the
Right XML Editor
August 4, 2010
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.rsuitecms.com
- 2. Webinar Agenda
Welcome, Overview, Introductions
Online Poll
Editing Solutions for XML Publishing Environments
Q&A
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 3. Who is Really Strategies?
Founded: 2000
Consulting Services to Publishers
Specialists in XML-based Content Management Solutions
2007, 2009
Project/Program Management
Workflow Analysis and Reengineering
Content and Metadata Modeling
2004 - 2009
Technology Assessment and Roadmaps
Much more…
A content management system for 2006, 2007, 2008
publishers.
The first SaaS XML content management 2007, 2009
system
A publishing service from authoring
through production, where you pay only for
the final pages produced. 2004, 2005, 2007
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 4. Serving over 100 companies
STM Educational Media Tech Pubs
4
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- 5. Webinar Presenter
Lisa Bos
CTO and Co-founder
Really Strategies, Inc.
5
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 6. ONLINE POLL
6
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 7. Topics
Editing Options
3 Primary Factors in Choosing
Ideal Choices for Your Factors
Other Factors to Consider
Best Practices
7
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- 8. Choices
XML doesn’t always show up at the start of your
business process
Lots of choices before and after XML
8
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 9. But First
Why Are We Talking About This?
User resistance to native XML editing
Users not technical enough for XML editing
Users not under my control
Real Issue:
Creative process
vs.
Structuring and classifying
9
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 10. Common Choices
Quark XML Author inside
Microsoft Word with Microsoft Word
Creative
custom conversion or InCopy/InDesign as an XML
a tool like eXtyles
authoring + editor
InCopy/InDesign with
conversion oXygen Author
conversion
Arbortext
XHTML editor like
WYMeditorto use
Easy XMetaL XML Editing
Native
browser controls
Wiki software Serna
Custom XML FrameMaker
Native XML
control/forms software
like Ektron controls Xopus
browser
eWebEditPro+XML XML Mind
Developer IDEs like XML
Spy
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.rsuitecms.com 10
- 11. Two Approaches for Conversion
from Word
Copy edit codes, like
<head1> or head1:
and/or Conversion
Styles and formatting scripting (XSLT
from Word’s XML,
Perl from RTF, …)
Our favorite for
simple content
Interactive conversion
More than a tools like: Best for complex
icPlugIn
conversion content
tool
11
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 12. Interactive Conversion from Word with Ictect icPlugIn
Prepare
Clean-up and pre-
process input document
Intelligent Content
Mark-up entire document
or selected parts
Check
Customizable checks for
quality control
Format
Transform document to a
desired output format
Integrate
Incorporate changes or
supplements into the
base document
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.rsuitecms.com 12
- 13. Browser Controls
There are
fewer XML
editor
plug ins.
There are lots of
good plug in
XHTML editors.
This one is
open source.
Both are great options for
small documents that are
highly fielded or very simple
(XHTML)
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.rsuitecms.com 13
- 14. Native (Standalone) XML Editors
Creative
authoring/production
merged with
All the standalone XML editors are
structural editing to large
great options for small
documents of any content type and can
be highly customized
Has an Standalone Browser-based
open XML editing
source XML editing
option
14
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 15. The 3 Biggest Factors
Users
Content
Business Process
15
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- 16. Targeting Editing Solutions to Users
Intuitive, controlled Less tightly controlled
solutions solutions
Non-technical Technical
Yes, but more importantly:
You can’t dictate to (including You can dictate to (and train)
software installation)
You can’t communicate directly You can communicate with
with (or just too many to be directly
practical)
Imply the level of customization required
as well as which product to choose
16
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 17. Targeting an Editor to Content
(or a Content Model to an Editor)
Standards-based (XHTML, DITA, DocBook, NLM)
If you want to use DITA, don’t choose a browser plug-in
If you want to use a browser plug-in, don’t choose DITA
Special content types (math, complex tables,
media assets, …)
Editor integrations/features matter
Document length
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 18. Targeting an Editor to Workflow
Create Edit Produce/
Publish
XML
Early
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 19. Targeting an Editor to Workflow
Create Edit Produce/
Publish
XML
Late
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 20. Targeting an Editor to Workflow
Other Tasks
Create Edit Produce/
Publish
XML in
the
Middle And so on…
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 21. Process Complexities – A Closer Look
Magazines
Tech Docs
Textbooks
Reference
Journals
Training
Books
Content and Workflow
News
Complexities Implications
Special content types/complex content X X o X X Conversion to XML especially
models difficult
Irregular content X X X
Lots of hierarchy X X X X
Many cross-references X X X X
Content re-use X o X X Need solutions to convert multiple
* X X o X
times per workflow or ways to
External contributors to whom you can't
avoid conversion such as
dictate
PDF/HTML commenting tools
Content returns to authors after edit X X X X X o X
A lot of online-only content * X o X X X X
Different print and online update and delivery X X * X o X
cycles
Content updated during production X X X X X X X
High (print) design; complex production steps o o X X X XML after print, update of XML
X X X
after composition, or different
Particularly intense deadlines/workload
print and online XML
Real-time collaboration on content production o X X X X
o Sometimes * Becoming a more important factor
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 22. Best Choices Today (Clean Slate)
Magazines
Tech Docs
Textbooks
Reference
Journals
Training
Books
News
Candidates Best choice for …
• Content authored by external authors who work
Word + Conversion to
A+C A+C A+C offline or outside the publishing environment,
XML especially when that content is irregular and/or long
InCopy/InDesign + • Content authored by users under your influence who
A+C A+C
Conversion to XML collaborate on complex, varying layouts
Browser Editor Plugin +
A + C or ACE + ACE + ACE + • Simple, short fulltext content authored online (or
Conversion to XML or ACE
100% 100% 100% 100% pasted from Word)
Native XML
Custom Forms + • Extremely regular content, even if complex, where
ACE + ACE +
Conversion to XML or the documents are short or there is potential to work
100% 100%
native XML with small units (topics)
• Simple, short fulltext content authored online (or
pasted from Word)
Desktop or Browser- • Extremely regular content, even if complex, where
based Native XML the documents are short or there is potential to work
ACE CE ACE ACE ACE ACE CE
Editor (with appropriate with small units (topics)
customization) • Longer documents inside the publishing
environment
• Content being cleaned up after conversion to XML
A = authors C = copy editors/production editors E = editors, specialty editors, production editors
©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 23. Thoughts on All These Conversions
Conversion Type Cost Range (relative) Manual Intervention Needed
Document formats (like Word) to Inexpensive to very expensive Likely, ranges widely with content
XML
XML back to document formats Inexpensive to very expensive Can often be avoided
XML to Web Inexpensive Almost never
XML to print composition (like Inexpensive to expensive Almost never to always, ranges widely with
InDesign) or PDF preview content/layout
Print composition to XML Very expensive Almost always, but with simple content and
disciplined users can be highly automated
Even the expensive costs are justified if:
There’s an ongoing reduction of manual labor
There’s an ongoing time savings that increases revenue
There’s a resulting cultural change that moves you where you
need to be
Understand the model for ongoing costs, and do the math
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©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 24. Other Factors
The larger publishing environment
Content management technologies
Print composition strategy/technology
Willingness/opportunity to change products to
achieve efficiency
Existing licensing
Existing skillsets
CMS
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©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 25. Best Practices
KISS
Add features incrementally based on experience
Make content model only as complex as it absolutely must be
Multiple editing solutions for different users
Lots of user feedback and preparation
Piloting
Early engagement with key users
Beta testing versus traditional acceptance
Training
Appropriate ongoing support and enhancements (staff
and budget)
Internal or at least readily accessible expertise is essential
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©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 26. Closing Thoughts
It is a real challenge to support creative
processes in a structured authoring tool
The efficiency and opportunity gains of an XML-
early editing environment are greater than you
might imagine and worth some compromise in
other areas
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©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com
- 27. A Publisher’s Guide to Choosing
the Right XML Editor
QUESTIONS
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- 28. Upcoming Webinars
Start > Automate > Create!
Pay-Per-PageTM push button publishing
September 22, 2010 | 2:00 to 3:00 PM EST
“It’s not rocket science!” Applying CMS and semantic
enrichment to transform book publishing
September 29, 2010 | 2:00 to 3:00 PM EST
More Information: http://www.reallysi.com/webinars
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©2010 Really Strategies, Inc. | www.reallysi.com