Software choice for publishing?

Subject: Software choice for publishing?
From: "Geoff Hart" <geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca>
To: TECHWR-L -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com
Date: Fri, 15 Oct 1999 15:39:56 -0400

Russ Griechen needs <<...to do some technical writing for
one of my projects. I have Microsoft Publisher. Since there is
a lot of layout and strict placement of text...is there a better
layout?>>

Publisher is a decent, entry-level program, but it's a poor tool
for technical writing compared with Word or FrameMaker.
It's unlikely that Publisher provides any layout capabilities
that you can't either accomplish or approximate in Word and
Frame, and you're far more likely to be able to find help (e.g.,
here on techwr-l) solving problems with the use of either
package.

One important note: Check with your client to find out
whether they want you to give them a copy of the project files
once you're done. If so, that may determine what software
you should choose (e.g., if they work in Word, then you
should provide them a Word file at the end of your contract);
you can always do a file conversion at the end of the process,
then redo the layout for the client, but why do two layouts
when you can do one?

--Geoff Hart @8^{)} geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca (Pointe-Claire, Quebec)
"Perhaps there is something deep and profound behind all those sevens, something just calling out for us to discover it. But I
suspect
that it is only a pernicious, Pythagorean coincidence." George Miller, "The Magical Number Seven" (1956)




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