I read a blog post the other day that I can’t stop thinking about. In the Myth of Single Sourcing, Michael Hiatt writes, The main issue for me is between authoring static in-house documents using single-sourcing methods before publishing, or capturing information sources dynamically after publishing from online social networks, linked data sources, and knowledge mashups. The myth of single-source authoring is that it actually … more »

Tech Comm Toolbox

Author-it launched a blog today. You can view it at http://author-it.com/blog. I had a sneak peek of the blog about a week ago and contacted Kathy Howes for an interview about it. The questions I asked her are below. Why did you decide to start a corporate blog? We see blogging as an essential part of an organization’s content strategy, and a great opportunity to … more »

Mad Hatter :: Conferences Help Authoring Tools :: DocTrain East Conference currently taking place.

Recently the Hat Matrix Blog (aka, the Mad Hatter) published the results of a tools survey that included 590 participants. The respondents were asked what authoring tools they used on a regular basis. They answered as follows: Flare: 40% Framemaker: 33% RoboHelp: 27% Author-it: 13% Dreamweaver: 13% HTML Help Workshop: 12% Madpak: 12% WebWorks ePublisher: 11% helpware FAR: 7% RoboHelp for Word: 7% Adobe Tech … more »

Mad Hatter :: Help Authoring Tools :: HATT Survey Results

The Help Authoring Tools survey in my blog’s sidebar has been the source of no little controversy, and I’ve left it up there for a reason. I’ve been telling myself that when 1,000 people participate, I’ll officially analyze the results. (So far 784 have voted.) However, Char James-Tanny announced a new help authoring tools survey, this one sponsored by the HAT-Matrix (not to be confused … more »

Help Authoring Tool Survey: Who, What, and How

[Audio clip: view full post to listen] Download MP3 (right-click and select Save Target As to download) Duration: 60 min. Flare 4 was just released today by Madcap Software. In this podcast, I talk with Sharon Burton — product manager at Madcap Software — about all the main features of the Flare 4 release. Flare 4 topics we discuss include the following:

Madcap Flare is one of the most advanced, functionally robust online help tools for technical writers who want to single source their content. When you use Flare to create an actual project (rather than just experimenting with a trial version), you come to know the ins and outs, the major benefits and the quirks, its usability and learning curve, the things you love and the … more »

For a long time, I looked at help authoring tools in terms of their single sourcing ability — creating the source material in the tool, and then outputting to online help, print, and other targets. However, I’ve given up on the ideal, at least for now. I’m convinced that the new vernacular, as a SXSW podcast called it, is audio and video. If faced with … more »