Advice for a document management system

[Mike]

On Fri, Feb 6, 2009 at 8:46 AM, Aaron Vegh <aaronvegh-Re5JQEeQqe8AvxtiuMwx3w at public.gmane.org> wrote:
>
> 2. LaTeX or DocBook XML, while clearly a respected choice by this group, is
> also to be approached with great caution. The assumption being that
> non-technical users will balk at it. I get that, for sure. But I still
> wonder if, with the right template design, a LaTeX or DocBook expert
> couldn't put together a sample document, and arrange for training of the
> staff who will use this. I think once people saw this text-based file on the
> one hand, then saw a single command given and boom! instant, perfect HTML
> and PDF versions -- they would find that very persuasive. Perhaps persuasive
> enough to actually learn and use this thing.
>

One of the top items in the collective DocBook / DITA etc. wish list
seems to be reliable "round-tripping" templates and stylesheets for
MS-Word (or for OO, for that matter).  If I could give DocBook XML to
people with Word, have them edit it and return it to me in DocBook, I
would be very happy.

As far as systems such as Alfresco are concerned, I think they are
quite useful and capable, but they do not address the problem you've
posed - they still involve the same (old) tools for authoring and
typesetting all in one interface.

Bigwigs such as J.G. Ballard and Robertson Davies have long railed
against the modern word processor for some of the design reasons that
are starting to complicate matters for people trying to build and
maintain large documents in a consistent manner. Too much typesetting
complexity and control in the same interface in which you're supposed
to be composing and editing text - prose - information, is killing
both the quality of writing and of typesetting. But don't take it from
me. Check out what Ballard and Davies have to say ;-)

Mike
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