Q: Do you translate any of your docs, and if so, does Flare provide ways to streamline this, so that you do not send content for translation more than once?
A: Good question. Yes, we localize some of our help files and documentation. 13 languages for two OEM partners. I just recently switched to MadCap Lingo to help aid me in the localization process--specifically the estimation process. I switched localization providers and saved quite a bit of money using MadCap Lingo.
Q: I have never seen the colored blocks before; what are they?
A: Those indicate which conditional tags are applied to each topic. You can select which color you want to display for each tag, and no color indicates no tag. In our case, red = print only; blue = online only; orange = do not use at all. So if I'm creating online help, I exclude the red. If I'm creating print files, I exclude the blue. And I always exclude the orange. Topics that are not tagged with conditions appear in our help files but not in our print docs. It's a little bit complicated, no doubt.
Q: Do you have any problems putting out help files to Blackberries?
A: Yes, I have a Blackberry, and WebHelp Mobile throws a Javascript error on it. Not cool.
Q: Do you use two different stylesheets for Help and print?
A: No, just one stylesheet for both. Flare now supports separate styles per medium in the same style sheet.
Q: At our company, Flare is a bit slow when working with bigger projects stored on the network. How's the performance of Flare when using a SourceSafe at your company?
A: We use SourceOffSite as remote employees to connect to our corporate SourceSafe repository. It's ok. If you're on a LAN (versus a WAN), SourceSafe is a great option because you can check-out/in topics at the topic level.
Q: When does a project get too big? Is there any guideline about number of topics, targets, conditions, TOCs?
A: The only items of concern for me are conditions, just so I can manage the logic of them. I tend to get lost when I get beyond 3 or 4 conditions. But I don't have any problems managing gobs of topics, targets, or TOCs. In fact, the more topics you have, the more reuse options you have.
Q: Can you show how you put together a single Help topic from all of these smaller content files?
A: Our Help files are topics. It's topic-based authoring. Each one can stand on its own, or it can be assembled into a longer logical flow.
Q: Any suggestions or best practices for beginning to single source? Thoughts on how best to write chunks for multiple use?
A: Focus on what the user does. Write topics that capture a single task in a single time for a single person. Read up on use cases if you want to understand that better. The book I found most helpful is "Applying Use Cases, Second Edition: A Practical Guide" by Schneider and Winters because it's more straightforward in its approach to use cases. But I've read many on the topic, and I definitely recommend some background in the area for anyone in technical communication.
Q: Can you please explain more about your Content folders? Do you have copies of the same topics in different folders? Can you open some Content folders?
A: No copies--duplication is death.
Q: How do you handle the variables in your projects when you use the same target file for your HTML Help deliverables?
A: Our variables tend to be global and not target-specific.
Q: If you are not using conditions in your topics, does this mean you are not using any web-only formatting, such as div tags?
A: Right, I don't like to have target-specific styles or conditions. We have a few, but we try to limit it.
Q: Does your group have a 'formula' for the way you write topics so they can be reused? For example, concept/task/reference?
A: Yes, precisely. Each one of those types of content is a separate topic. My formula is the Google formula: 'Focus on the user and all else will follow.' Try as best you can to walk in the shoes of your customer and understand what they might need. That may require you to visit and/or talk to real life people.
