next up previous index
Next: Microsoft Word Up: XML and Code Reuse Previous: Using Chunked Content   Index


Tools

This section analyzes some of the common tools that can be used with this kind of XML content reuse repository. It is important to know how easy is it to construct new documents from content obtained from the XML database. It is equally important to know how easy is it to put new content created with this tool into the XML database so that it can be used in the future.

Anyone who grew up in the typewriter age understands how amazing are the layout, page formatting and document management capabilities of the current crop of software applications. As with all technology, there are prerequisites and gotchas. With any system, there are at least three ways to do something:

  1. The RIGHT way - the way originally envisioned by the developer and facilitated by the program.

  2. The WRONG way - the way that someone found to make it work, because they didn't know what the right way was.

  3. The OTHER way - the way that outwits the program and allows you to do something that should not be done, but needs doing.

Unfortunately for anyone who is facing the prospect of converting documents from various formats to XML, there is a considerable amount more WRONG and OTHER than there is RIGHT out there to be converted. Computers are infinitely stupid and must be told precisely what to do. In order for consistent content to result from an automated conversion to XML, consistent base content must be available. Consistency is the use of content creation applications is not a hallmark of most groups of instructional designers. Designers are programmatic and care more about making it work now than about finding out how to make it work right later. It is paradoxical that a less intuitive tool, which requires more instruction and has a steeper learning curve may be used more correctly and consistently than the naturally intuitive tool that everybody figures out for themselves.



Subsections
next up previous index
Next: Microsoft Word Up: XML and Code Reuse Previous: Using Chunked Content   Index
root 2003-07-21