Re: [docbook-apps] Where to start?

[Thomas Schraitle <tom_schr@web.de>]

Hi Craig,

welcome to DocBook! :-)

On Samstag, 21. April 2007, Craig White wrote:
> [...]
>
> The objective:
> We have approximately 600 page 'manual' consisting of mostly static
> text, some forms and a small amount of graphics. These are mostly in
> individual Microsoft Word documents (ugh!) 

> Final formats would likely 
> be html (for most usage including filling out forms)

The DocBook XSL stylesheet can create this and even more.


> and PDF (for printing hard copies).

... this too. You create an intermediate format (XSL-FO) first and convert 
this into PDF with a XSL-FO formatter. There are open source (FOP, 
xmlroff) and commercial (XEP, AntennaHouse, ...) formatters available.


> My platform is primarily Linux and my thinking 
> is that I will probably use subversion for this project.

That's a very good idea! I use Subversion for my own project too and I 
can't live without it. ;)


> 1. I have looked at the web pages for several programs but the ones
> that seem to be of interest are Oxygen and Serna. Oxygen seems to have
> more features and Serna seems to be WYSIWYG. Recommendations?

I use oXygen and I like it. It has a lot of good features.


> 2. If I am starting now, should I just go to Docbook 5 and relaxng?

Hmn, I think for the first time you should go for DocBook 4.5. If you get 
used to it and need additonal functionality you can still switch to 
DocBook 5. There is a stylesheet that can convert version 4 documents 
into version 5. Apart from the namespace and additional elements and 
attributes DocBook 5 is pretty the same as DocBook 4.


> [...]


Best wishes,
Tom

-- 
Thomas Schraitle