Re: DOCBOOK-APPS: best tool for docbook?

[Bob Stayton <bobs at caldera dot com>]

I'd just like to add to this discussion that the beauty
of XML is that you can use *any and all* of these editing
tools to work on your XML files.  8^)

With Word and FrameMaker files, you have to use Word and
FrameMaker to write and edit.  With XML, I can use a
graphical tool like XMetal to write the bulk of a document,
and then make minor editing changes later using vi, or
even Notepad if it's on a Windows box.  This freedom of
choice means each user can select the editing tool that
suits their needs (within the bounds of cost, of course).

The graphical tools are not WYSIWYG, but they do assist the
mind in sorting out the markup from the words, and the
styled presentation can help a lot.  I've certainly
internalized the structural paradigm of XML, and I still
prefer a graphical editor for most of my writing.  The two
areas I find a graphical editor helps the most are in
tables and complex nested lists.  Once you have used a
table editor for XML tables, it's hard to go back.  8^)

bobs
Bob Stayton                                 400 Encinal Street
Publications Architect                      Santa Cruz, CA  95060
Technical Publications                      voice: (831) 427-7796
Caldera International, Inc.                 fax:   (831) 429-1887
                                            email: bobs@caldera.com

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