Arbortext Epic Editor is a purpose build XML editor. It handles a broad range of applications and does a good job of providing an editing interface for XML content. The user interface is good, but not at all like the standard WYSIWYG document editing environment. Like Adobe FrameMaker, it is a groupware product that is specifically optimized to provide for:
Out of the box, Arbortext Epic Editor works with file systems, WebDAV-enabled repositories, and features configurable adapters for Documentum, Oracle CM SDK (formerly named iFS) and FileNet Panagon Content Services. Arbortext's other repository partners provide adapters to Epic Editor, including BroadVision One-To-One Enterprise, empolis SigmaLink, Progressive Information Technologies Target 2000 and XyEnterprise Content.
Arbortext offers separate products for content conversion and publishing. The Enterprise E-Content Engine (E3) converts content from Microsoft Word, Adobe FrameMaker and Interleaf documents to XML, and publishes dynamic content to print/PDF and Web/wireless. To publish to CD-ROM, Arbortext offers the CD-ROM Composer.
This E-content engine is an off-the shelf parser that can be used to automate many different kinds of legacy chunking operations. It does not work miracles: nothing will correctly parse badly formatted Microsoft Word files - that requires human intervention and exercise of good judgment. It does provide to the enterprise a tool that is the equal of or better than many learning content parsers, which typically require a much higher investment for the same return.
Arbortext Epic Editor is the best of a series of editors that have attempted to get the most out of XML structure, which still allowing the user to see a visual representation of their output content. Given that the designer is highly technical, understands XML and the learning content, Epic can run circles around FrameMaker as a tool for importing and creating new content. The Epic editor is very often imitated by LCMS vendors that work in structured document formats.