ditawriter

March 23rd SDIG Meeting/Webinar: Specializing for Simplicity, DITA for Hardware and How Much Do You Need an Information Architect?

The March SDIG meeting/webinar (happening today, March 23rd!) will be an open discussion on these topics: • Specializing for Simplicity • Can you really use DITA for Hardware? • Do you really need an Information Architect? The meeting will start at 8:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time. Phone bridge: 916-356-2663, Bridge: 2, Passcode: 4718579 Live Meeting:Read More

Contact Info for Next SDIG Presentation

The next free Semiconductor DITA Implementers Group (SDIG) talk, “Create once, Approve Once, Re-Use many Times!” from presenter John Walker will happen Wednesday, February 23, 2011 starting at 10:00 am and running until 11:30 am (both times EST). Here’s the contact information for attending this virtual presentation: Location: https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/freescale Toll-free: +1 (800) 867-1147 Participant code: 3230710Read More

Next SDIG Talk on Reuse Challenges

Here’s information on the next Semiconductor DITA Implementor’s Group (SDIG) talk, scheduled to take place on February 23rd: Title: Create once, Approve once, Re-Use many times! Abstract: Once of the biggest challenges in the digital era is how to get consistent, current and correct information to the customer on-time and in multiple channels. For semiconductorRead More

DITA Constraints Presentation

For reasons relating to work and incidentally for a presentation I am working on for the Baltimore DITA conference in April, I am trying to learn the practicalities of implementing DITA constraints. (For a list of the reasons why constraints are good, see this nice summary on Tagsmiths). Am currently plowing through the pertinent sectionRead More

Book Review: DITA 101, 2nd Edition

First of all, I need to say that this book is not aimed at me. I have been using DITA XML as a technical writer and manager now for over five years, so I am well past needing a “101” lesson in DITA. That said, I think I am qualified to comment on whether aRead More

Semiconductor DITA Implementor’s Group (SDIG) Webinar this Wednesday

While aimed primarily at those working within the semiconductor industry, the Semiconductor DITA Implementor’s Group (SDIG) hosts good (and free!) Webinars aimed at writers and managers who are already using DITA in production. Better yet, we’re not trying to sell you anything – just trying to share experiences and talk about emerging best practices. I’llRead More

DITA 1.2 Specification Ratified

In an announcement that could easily be missed in all of the hubbub of the impending holiday season, I just saw the announcement made yesterday that the DITA 1.2 specification has officially been ratified. The press release is rambling (with “a status that signifies the highest level of ratification” mentioned twice in the same paragraph)Read More

DITA Europe 2010 Conference Closing Talk

JoAnn Hackos gave the closing talk at the conference, and made the observation that DITA has not taken off in Europe as it has in North America. That was pretty much my impression as well, after talking to a number of people here. One tech writing manager I met had her ROI argument for gettingRead More

“DITA Implementation in a Geographically Dispersed Team” Presentation

After JoAnn Hackos’ brief introduction, this was the first talk I attended at the DITA Europe 2010 Conference in Vienna. As I am also dealing with issues surrounding working with DITA in what could also be called a “geographically dispersed” team, this seemed like it was right up my alley. The presentation was given byRead More

Presentation(s) at DITA Europe 2010

I’ll be doing one, maybe two presentations at the DITA Europe 2010 Conference happening in Vienna, Austria next week. The presentation titled “(Almost) Four Years On: Metrics, ROI, and other stories from a mature DITA CMS installation” is basically an update to the presentation I gave at the DITA Conference in Santa Clara earlier thisRead More