Moving to Modular Documents  

Lam’s software-controlled robotic etchers demanded multi-disciplinary manuals that were time-consuming to write. Since both software and hardware changes required a six-month re-write, manuals lagged behind product. Dividing manuals structurally into modular books enabled separate updates, as most urgently required. Modular engineering approaches to ongoing etcher development later drove a different modular design; but the approach enabled quick documentation of rapidly changing product. Company growth and product proliferation now combine with computer technologies to drive development of increasingly smaller modules of information, leading to a database model for books that may someday match individual machines.

Snavely, Deborah. STC Proceedings (1996). Articles>Content Management>Writing

Single-Sourcing from FrameMaker 5.5.6 to ForeHelp Premier 2000

This article centers on a single-source documentation process that involves authoring structured, chunked documentation in Adobe FrameMaker 5.5.6 and converting it 'just in time' to a WinHelp online help system using ForeHelp Premier 2000.

Snavely, Deborah. InFrame (2000). Articles>Software>Document Design>Adobe FrameMaker