The Society for Technical Communication is an individual membership organization dedicated to advancing the arts and sciences of technical communication. It is the largest organization of its type in the world. Its 25,000 members include technical writers and editors, content developers, documentation specialists, technical illustrators, instructional designers, academics, information architects, usability and human factors professionals, visual designers, Web designers and developers, and translators - anyone whose work makes technical information available to those who need it.

The STC Toronto Chapter was founded in 1959 (then the Society of Technical Writers) and is the largest chapter in Canada.

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December Meeting Report
AuthorIT: A Single Source Solution
by Susan E. Webb

STC members - particularly single-sourcing aficionados - enjoyed an evening of “funda” (Zulu for “learning”) at the December meeting, courtesy of the affable Mike Levey, an AuthorIT Certified Consultant and founder of FundaMedia (www.FundaMedia.com).

Mike introduced us to AuthorIT, an enterprise content management system that pairs beautifully with single-sourcing. An off-the-shelf application with an interface similar to that of Windows (including virtual folders), AuthorIT requires no customization; it can be installed easily and used immediately. Permission levels can even be set if desired.

Further, documents can be authored, managed and published simultaneously. The workflow system also allows monitoring and recording. Link directly with translators using the AuthorIT localization manager contained in its project management system. Because only the updated content is translated, translation costs are reduced.

Maximize the reuse of content by using the version control and histories available. Create just one set of content then output specific content variations. Multiple output publishing to HTML, XML, MS Word and RoboHelp is a breeze. Documentation output can be multiplied and multiple authors can work on it at the same time. Mike described publishing to other outputs as a running commentary of conversion happenings as the conversation is in progress.

AuthorIT can handle and reuse a wide spectrum of applications from policies and procedures to e-learning and help authoring. Author the document once then reuse the content in multiple documents and multiple formats so they emerge perfectly every time. Web, Print and Help outputs all come from a central source. Every other document using this content changes instantly if some text, a graphic or a link is changed. For instance, User B can drag and drop a portion of User A’s content into his/her own document and presto - the entire content of User B document’s updated automatically.  

AuthorIT is a unified content strategy providing an out-of-the-box solution. It is true single-sourcing authoring – content is written once and used many times. It can be changed and maintained in a single location. With AuthorIT in place, up to 30% of project time can be spent fruitfully, instead of wasting it tracking down content. No external software is needed; versioning is easy. Reuse the documentation at the component level; use it in many different contexts without duplication.

Writers can work remotely or while travelling by “checking out” content from the “library” provided by the offline authoring module; the content cannot be updated until the completed work is “checked in”, quashing fears of overwrites.

AuthorIT streamlines HTML, edit history and XML. The expanding text in HTML output provides a choice of different styles. Variables can be placed directly into the HTML AuthorIT references and treated exactly as variables in AuthorIT (appearing in angle brackets). Edit history can be viewed and compared within AuthorIT objects, as history items exist through the project life cycle. Thanks to powerful XML architecture, the format-neutral documentation is future-proof, allowing AuthorIT to continually support new formats including the new MS Longhorn.

Benefits of AuthorIT include reduced work and time expenditure as well as easier document maintenance. Support is available through the Web and certified consultants, while full onsite training aids workflow setup and implementation. The active user group welcomes queries. Check out the free online demo, at www.author-it.com for more “funda”!

Susan Webb is a technical writer, editor and Adult ESL instructor. An active STC member, she recently received a chapter award for her contributions to this newsletter. Her experience includes working on privacy compliance and related documentation. In addition, Susan leads Adult ESL learners on an engaging, fun-filled journey through Canadian English at the Toronto District School Board.