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>I've been using Confluence since November. We currently deliver PDFs only.
>It was here when I got here, and has had a series of (now moved-on) tech
>writers working on various versions and various templates.
>
>Our software shop uses lots of Atlassian tools (Jira, Stash, HipChat, etc),
>so the fact that all the tools play well together is attractive.
>
>Built-in PDF export is challenging. Your CSS savvy will be stretched, and
>there's still some black magic under the covers. I'm currently working on
>templates for the Scroll PDF Exporter (eval version), but that seems to have
>different quirks than the built-in PDF, so the jury's still out.
>
>Our engineers and sales/product folks use it extensively for an internal
>wiki. (design docs, release plans, roadmaps, customer wish lists, general
>how-tos, and the like). They've gotten much better at posting things since
>I've jumped in as an active curator -- customizing the dashboard, archiving
>obsolete pages, generally making it easier to find what's current, etc.
>
>They also like collaborating and commenting on the doc sources. I was
>nervous about the collaboration (that engineers would go in mucking up all
>my carefully crafted professional-writer work), but for the most part, they
>use the page and inline comment features and don't edit "my" sources. They
>also like the Comala Workflows plugin I've implemented for review cycles and
>signoffs.
>
>So, with caveats, it's working for us. I still miss Frame (which I lived in
>for 15-20 years) and would love to get a chance to learn Flare. There are
>enough quirks in Confluence's WYSISometimes/SortaWYG (agree on the necessity
>of the source editor) and PDF production to make me hold back on a
>wholehearted recommendation. Lists and nested lists are my nemesis. As are
>pagebreaks. But then, there's a whole community of folks out there who love
>it and think it's the best thing since spell-check. I haven't found the
>Kool-Aid yet, but it's hard to say where to draw the line between my still
>less than expert knowledge and Confluence's real limitations.
>
>FWIW,
>Sharon
>
>PS -- Robert -- I suspect I'd be interested in your pagebreak
>macros/pointers. And thanks for your comments about Scroll HTML exporter vs
>Confluence web delivery.
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: techwr-l-bounces+sharon -dot- metzger=gmail -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
>[mailto:techwr-l-bounces+sharon -dot- metzger=gmail -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com] On
>Behalf Of John G
>Sent: Monday, July 13, 2015 9:45 PM
>To: Laura Phillips
>Cc: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
>Subject: Re: Confluence Usage
>
>We've been using Confluence for our context-sensitive online help for the
>past 18 months or so. We use the Scroll Versions add on to allow us to have
>multiple doc versions (past, present, future releases) which adds complexity
>but provides features we require. We also localize into three languages.
>
>We also use Confluence extensively for internal communications - various
>teams and departments use it to develop and host content.
>
>It's gained wide popularity due to its ease of use. PDF capability is merely
>adequate.
>
>I like using it as I can focus on content and not have to worry about
>formatting.
>
>
>
>
>On Monday, July 13, 2015, Laura Phillips <laurap -at- pluribusnetworks -dot- com>
>wrote:
>
>>
>> Hi there,
>>
>> Are many companies using Confluence as the main tool for getting
>> product information to customers? Since it is collaborative, what is
>> the buy in necessary from the engineering group? Is that crucial to
>> the success or failure of using the tool?
>>
>> Is it worth the effort to learn it and then subsequently maintain it?
>>
>> Just looking for any feedback or experience using Confluence,
>>
>> Laura
>>
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>
>
>--
>Sent from my iPad, please excuse any automatically created mis-corrections
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