Re: [doc-mgmt] Standardized XML format for OASIS documents or document metadata

[John Kemp <john.kemp@earthlink.net>]

Matt et al,

On Wednesday, Jun 4, 2003, at 19:13 US/Eastern, Matthew MacKenzie wrote:

> Norm,
>
> Even at 100 elements, many people I've spoken to won't give up using MSFT word.  I've even had someone claim that it (word) was a "more open" solution than DocBook...

We use a modified version of Simple DocBook at Liberty, and provide a template and guidelines for our editors. It has been difficult to make them all do the same thing the same way, but now that they are used to emacs with psgml-mode, I think they prefer this to MS Word, for specification authoring at least, and as long as the XSLT does its job, all the specifications come out looking largely the same. And one advantage I forgot to mention yesterday - with DocBook and XInclude, you can include other documents within a specification, which allows you to write code fragments as separate files, assemble them into a complete schema, and maintain them in their own right, whilst NOT having to also maintain code sections in the specification itself. 

Anyway, it's easy enough to simplify the Simple DocBook DTD further (or add items to make it more complex). 

But they are all engineers, and we are mostly writing XML-based protocols, both which things lend themselves more towards use of DocBook than they do towards use of Word. 

> I say we just hit all these people with a stick until they comply, but I'm sure that is against the TC rules... :-)

In addition, I think we should mandate emacs+psgml as our "WYSIWYG" DocBook editing tool :)

- JohnK



> -matt
> Norman Walsh wrote:
>
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> > / Matthew MacKenzie <matt@mac-kenzie.net> was heard to say:
> > | I'm a big fan of  using something like DocBook XML to author specs,
> >
> > I'm a fan too, which should come as no surprise. :-)
> >
> > | and have the OASIS system manage all of the XSL to dynamically deliver
> > | the document,
> >
> > That could be done.
> >
> > | but to do this sort of thing requires OASIS to provide a
> > | license to some sort of WYSIWYG tool to all OASIS editors.
> >
> > Yes, that's an issue.
> >
> > | I've tried and failed to get various OASIS'ers to use docbook, they
> > | always complain that it is to complicated...and it is too complicated
> > | for 90% of us.
> >
> > Have you looked at Simplified DocBook? It has only about 100 elements
> > (and if you ignore all the table and bibliographic metadata ones,
> > considerably fewer).
> >
> > Be seeing you,
> > norm
> >
> > - -- Norman.Walsh@Sun.COM    | The years teach us much which the days never
> > XML Standards Architect | knew.--Emerson
> > Web Tech. and Standards |
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________________________________
John Kemp / john.kemp@earthlink.net
(+1) 413.458.9053    /    frumioj@AOL
Coordinating Editor   /   Project Liberty

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