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Vol. 10, Issue 8

September 2008

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LEAD STORY

	How our DITA Conversion Saved us 100 Grand, for Starters A Case Study in DITA for Globalization & Localization By Jennifer Linton, CaridianBCT Ever wonder how converting to a DITA/XML content management system would play out in real life? What if you added globalization? What if it showed nearly $100,000 in savings for the first two deliverables (in 9 languages)?

OTHER NEWS
- Is Component Content Management (CCM) for you?
  Ann Rockley's 13 Symptom Test
- The Lazy XML defense vs. the XML Bloat Monster
- 92% of Managers Concerned about their Globalization
  Preparedness

GREAT WEB SITES YOU'VE LIKELY NOT SEEN
Great Minds Speaking Out In Their Own Words

ASIDES ;-)
- Improving Lives with Fun and Games
- And the Winner is...

QUOTE OF THE MONTH

FAVORITES
Popular articles from recent issues

EXTRA
Upcoming conferences

LEAD STORY

How our DITA Conversion Saved us 100 Grand, for Starters
A Case Study in DITA for Globalization & Localization
September 2008: DCLNews
Ever wonder how converting to a DITA/XML content management system would play out in real life? What if you added globalization? What if it showed nearly $100,000 in savings for the first two deliverables (in 9 languages)? This step-by-step plan, by Jennifer Linton of CaridianBCT (formerly Gambro BCT), tells us exactly how it played out for them. In Part One you'll learn how this multi-national, regulated medical device company planned its migration to a DITA CMS by identifying stakeholders and defining personas, establishing a high-level process and system requirements, developing a content model, and figuring out what to do with legacy documents. In an upcoming Part Two we'll cover future concerns, how they calculated cost savings, and the lessons learned.
Click for full article

OTHER NEWS

Is Component Content Management (CCM) for you? Ann Rockley's 13 Symptom Test
August 22, 2008: CMS Watch
Early diagnosis may cure content problems. Examine your organization for the 13 most frequent symptoms of CCMP (Component Content Management Problems). This disorder has common warning signs such as, "People seem to be recreating pieces of content over and over again," or "Legal is concerned about legal liability resulting from inconsistent information in content." Use this handy on-line diagnostic tool by Ann Rockley and get an instant, confidential diagnosis.
Click for full article

The Lazy XML Defense vs. the XML Bloat Monster
September 2, 2008: Mark Logic CEO Blog
Commenting on a GCN article, Dave Kellogg, CEO of Mark Logic, suggests what to do to keep your XML from becoming a "bloated monster that's slowly taking over data storage and forcing too much data through networks during queries." Using a system with smart XML storage can help, but storage space isn't the only thing to consider when getting the most out of your content. Producing content that works for you is really what you ought to be after. And sometimes you can have both - content "that does something," and that won't balloon out of control.
Click here for full article

92% of Managers Concerned about their Globalization Preparedness
July 2008: The Gilbane Group, Inc.
A new Gilbane Group study reports that 92% of respondents are concerned about the risks of not improving content globalization processes. Gilbane first began looking at the challenges facing companies with multilingual communications in 2006 and has since established a formal practice area on the subject. This most recent research, based on interviews with 40 mid-and senior-level managers, shares those challenges and the current state of content globalization within various organizations. Results reveal gaps in what companies want and what they are doing to get there; a lack of interoperability of processes such as authoring/translation/publishing; and an "emergence of formal, organized strategies to address these issues." Download the study for free (with registration).
Click for full article

Structured Writing - it Liberates the Soul
(and Makes for Good DITA)
http://www.dclab.com/structured_writing_dita.asp

DocBook to DITA Conversion Automation -
Improving the Yield?
http://www.dclab.com/docbook_to_dita.asp

Striving for Success in DITA Conversion -
A Quick Reference
http://www.dclab.com/converting_to_dita.asp

EXTRA

Upcoming conferences


DCL will be exhibiting at the ATA e-Business Forum, October 21-23, 2008, InterContinental Hotels and Resorts, Budapest, Hungary

DCL will be exhibiting at the DIA Conference, October 29-30, 2008, Sheraton Philadelphia City Center Hotel, Philadelphia, PA.

Don Bridges will be speaking on "Improving the migratability of your legacy content to DITA XML" at DITA/TECHCOMM Conference 2008, November 3-4, 2008, McKimmon Conference Center, Raleigh, NC

DCL will be exhibiting at DITA Europe 2008, November 17-18, 2008, Holiday Inn, Munich, Germany