Word to DocBook conversion and applying XSLT

[Donna Saporito <dsnyder7427@gmail.com>]

Hi everyone,

 

I am still in the process of testing different ways to convert Microsoft Word docs to DocBook. I have also tested some good commercial tools, but I still want to learn about XSL stylesheets.

 

One conversion method I tried was to use OpenOffice to save a Word file as either an RTF or HTML file, and then save that file as DocBook XML. As I expected, the output needs to be cleaned up considerably.  Some people have suggested that I write an XSLT stylesheet to clean up XML sources from Word documents so I can convert them directly to DocBook. I read about DocBook roundtripping and XSL stylesheets to use for conversion from WordML to DocBook at the following Explain website:

http://www.explain.com.au/oss/docbook/

 

That website lists stylesheets that transform WordML to DocBook. I am a newbie, so I am unsure of where I would apply these stylesheets. Do I use OpenOffice’s XML Filter Settings dialog box to edit the DocBook file? I see a
Transformation tab in OpenOffice’s XML Filter’s dialog that has options for DocType, DTD, XSLT for export, XSLT for import and Template for import. (I should also mention that I need to create DocBook 5 output, not DocBook 4, which is the default DocType in OpenOffice.)

 

What is the best resource for a newbie to learn about writing or editing XSLT stylesheets?  Would the book, “DocBook XSL: The Complete Guide” by Bob Stayton explain this, or is that book more useful for advanced DocBook users? (I have a little bit of DocBook experience by editing files in Oxygen XML Editor. I have never written an XSLT.)

 

Thanks.

Donna