Newsletter of the Society for Technical Communication, San Francisco Chapter
April/May 2006
| Newsletter of the Society for Technical Communication, San Francisco Chapter April/May 2006 |
At the January 2006 chapter meeting, Chris Muntzer and Rolfe Dlugy-Hegwer described how they have implemented AuthorIT as a "single source content management tool" that manages data from a single location and distributes it to many users worldwide for simultaneous editing and maintenance. AuthorIT has become a driving force in the creation of systems that provide a single source for documents in a wide variety of formats ranging from print files, such as MS Word and PDF, to Web tools including HTML, XHTML, and XML.
Traditional content management has become a static method for authors; not only must they write the text, they are also responsible for all types of formatting of the documents. Thus, the writers must control all three basic system components: 1) input, 2) processing, and 3) output. When these documents are sent to other end-users, different fonts, styles, colors, and languages are needed for the other users to understand the information. This decentralized system results in a slow and costly process due to the many copies required. AuthorIT has streamlined this process by using a database environment to manage information. The user simply writes the words, adds images and hyperlinks, and after choosing an output format, such as print, help or Web, the document is ready for publishing.
At this point, AuthorIT provides the formatting -- the heart of the software's success. User-defined templates, along with object locking and unlocking systems, make it possible for different parts of the document to be edited simultaneously by many users. Even when a topic is in use (locked mode) and can only be edited by one user, it's still available to all other users in read-only format. When the user is finished, the topic becomes unlocked and available to other users. AuthorIT's success lies in the editing of components rather than the entire document, giving authors and editors the freedom to change other components as they see fit without concerning themselves with managing the whole book. By keeping information in one source, all changes can be made very quickly, thus making documents reusable and eliminating the need for complete rewriting.
Of the six modules in AuthorIT's product suite, Chris is most impressed with Localization Manager, which translates source content through language memory tools -- much like an electronic thesaurus. After translation, the material is sent back to AuthorIT for final review before it's published. Chris says, "As we enter new territories, our formats need to be truly multilingual. This is especially important regarding our Asian markets, where clear language conversion is vital."
AuthorIT's object-oriented database system enables users to author and change content all in one place and easily reuse all types of print, help, or Web documents, thereby eliminating duplication, reducing mistakes, and elevating global productivity. Chris and Rolfe have proven AuthorIT to be a powerful multi-user tool that is making single-source management solutions the standard for business and commercial content.
For more information about the company, its products, and audio presentations, visit their Web site at AuthorIT.com.
Josh Berman is an STC member and a longtime retail business owner. He earned his bachelor's degree in Information Systems from the University of Phoenix in September 2005.
Copyright © 2006 by the Society for Technical Communication, San Francisco Chapter (www.stc-sf.org). This article may be reprinted in another STC publication under the provisions of the chapter's copyright policy.