Muliple Volume Documentation Set for Multiple Site Locations

[nancy carpenter]

I use standard FrameMaker 7.

I also publish multiple-volume sets for multiple locations.  I document 
software so the documents contain a system introduction, description of 
customization and a description of every screen in the application.  The 
screens are grouped into menus.  A screen can be included or not, 
customized or not.  Customization can be very slight or great. 

I mimic the software organization in my document, so the document is 
grouped accordingly into chapters for each main menu item such as 
Operations and Inquiries, and separate section for each screen in that 
menu item.  Sometimes, a menu item has so many screens that I put it in 
its own volume.  I divided the volumes into separate files such as General 
Introduction, Description of Customization, Introduction to First Menu, 
Screen1 in First Menu, Screen2 in First Menu, etc.  I use text insets for 
paragraphs that are used in more than one file.  I also use conditional 
text for paragraphs that apply only to one location and I never overlap 
conditional text.  I had a lot of trouble with that because we had 
negative conditions and positive conditions.  So instead, if a paragraph 
appears for 10 locations, I copy it and apply the individual condition to 
each one. 

The screens are imported by reference.  If a screen is customized for any 
location, I put it in a folder called Spec_screens.  I store the custom 
ones in screen folders that are specific to each location.  Then when I 
generate a book for a specific location, I copy the appropriate screens to 
the Spec_screens folder. 

Then I build a different book for each location.  About 85 to 90% is the 
same for every location.  The introductions to the book and to some 
chapters often are customized because I use them to tell the reader what 
is customized for that location.  When I customize a section for one 
location, I include a note in the generic section to tell myself the 
location for which the customization is done.  This way, if I change the 
generic section, I look at the custom section for each location to see if 
the change applies. 

It's working, but is a tad complex and can be confusing and might not work 
if you have more than one writer, so I am open to a better way and am 
looking at alternatives. 

Hope this helps you. 

Nancy Carpenter
Lead Technical Writer
GENCO Distribution System
100 Papercraft Park
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15238





Stuart Rogers <srogers at phoenix-geophysics.com>
Sent by: framers-bounces+carpentn=genco.com at lists.frameusers.com
10/16/2006 12:34 PM

 
        To:     kgrace <kgrace4715 at aol.com>
        cc:     framers at lists.frameusers.com
        Subject:        Re: Muliple Volume Documentation Set for Multiple Site Locations


kgrace wrote:

> My initial thought was to develop these documents and make extensive use
> of variables (for the purpose of inserting the various plant names where
> required) and conditional text to put information that is specific to
> the particular plants. 

I don't have a lot of experience with this problem myself, but I've read 
enough posts to know there can be a lot of issues with conditional text 
when there are a lot of conditions and/or overlapping conditions. So you 
might want to weigh the pros and cons of using conditions in a single 
document set versus using text insets in multiple document sets. In 
other words, one approach is to create a single document set and use 
variables and conditions to handle differences. The other approach is to 
create multiple different document sets and use text insets to handle 
similarities. If there's a lot of differing content, or many instances 
where info is common to several but not all sites, then using insets 
might be the better strategy.

HTH,

-- 
Stuart Rogers
Technical Communicator
Phoenix Geophysics Limited
Toronto, ON, Canada
+1 (416) 491-7340 x 325

srogers phoenix-geophysics com

"Developers explain How the Product Works.
Technical writers explain How to Work the Product."


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