#14962
Help Authoring Tools: a Comparison 
The purpose of this article is to give a rough evaluation of the various help authoring packages.
Conroy, Gary. GaryConroy.com (2002). Articles>Documentation>Software
#20883
Help! Tips for Working in Dreamweaver MX
Before starting work in Dreamweaver, sketch out basic screen layouts, a site map, and a system of navigation. Knowing everything you want to include and how you want it to look before starting to build your site will save time and frustration.
Agena, Kate. Purdue University (2003). Articles>Web Design>Software>Dreamweaver
#20884
Help! Tips for Working in Flash MX
Before starting work in Flash, sketch out basic screen layouts, a full storyboard, and make notes about any interactivity you want to include. Knowing everything you want to do and how you want it to look before starting to make your movie will save time and frustration.
Agena, Kate. Purdue University (2003). Articles>Multimedia>Software>Flash
#20882
Help! Tips for Working in Photoshop 7
A 'quick start' guide to creating graphics using Adobe Photoshop 7.0.
Agena, Kate. Purdue University (2003). Articles>Graphic Design>Software>Adobe Photoshop
#12963
The idea behind Open Source is simple: everyone should have the freedom to copy, distribute, and change source code. The implications, however, overturn the conventional high-tech business model. When software is no longer intellectual property, everything changes. Development is quicker because more people are involved. Bugs are caught more quickly. Instead of being passive consumers, customers can become partners in development. Instead of selling software, companies sell hardware, services, or added value. Internally, companies become more interactive and more loosely structured. If Open Source continues to gather speed, high-tech workers will discover that it is not just a development model, but also a new model for corporate life. For writers, the approach of Open Source could be especially important. How documentation is viewed and used, how writers interact with developers, and what tools are used--all of these and more could be affected by the Open Source movement.
Byfield, Bruce. TECHWR-L (2000). Articles>Software>Open Source
#27190
How Can I Insert Special Characters, Such as Dingbats and Accented Letters, in My Document?
Many Word users don't realize how easy it is to insert special characters. There are at least four ways to do it: through the Symbol dialog, using shortcut keys, automatically with AutoCorrect, or by direct keypad entry.
Barnhill, Suzanne. Word MVP Site, The (2005). Articles>Word Processing>Software>Microsoft Word
#27207
How Can I Recover a Corrupt Document or Template – and Why Did It Become Corrupt?
Saving when resources are low can cause corruptions. If you notice Word start to slow down noticeably it's always best to quit and restart Word immediately; to close any other applications that are open; and to clear the clipboard, by selecting any character and copying it.
Rado, Dave and John McGhie. Word MVP Site, The (2005). Articles>Word Processing>Software>Microsoft Word
#19140
How Do People Really Use Text Editors?
Keystroke statistics were collected on editing systems while people performed their normal work. Knowledge workers used an experimental editor, and secretaries used a word processor. Results show a consistent picture of free use patterns in both settings. Of the total number of keystrokes, text entry accounted for approximately 1/2, cursor movement for about 1/4, deletion for about 1/8, and all other functions for the remaining 1/8. Analysis of keystroke transitions and editing states is also presented. Implications for past research, editor design, keyboard layout, and benchmark tests are discussed.
Whiteside, John, Norman Archer, Dennis Wixon and Michael Good. ACM SIGCHI (1982). Articles>Usability>Software>Word Processing
#29943
How Microsoft Lost the API War
Microsoft's crown strategic jewel, the Windows API, is lost. The cornerstone of Microsoft's monopoly power and incredibly profitable Windows and Office franchises, which account for virtually all of Microsoft's income and covers up a huge array of unprofitable or marginally profitable product lines, the Windows API is no longer of much interest to developers. The goose that lays the golden eggs is not quite dead, but it does have a terminal disease, one that nobody noticed yet.
Spolsky, Joel. Joel on Software (2004). Articles>Technology>Software>Microsoft Windows
#26109
How to Change All Font Sizes in a Document at Once
Many people want a facility in OOo to enlarge or reduce the size of all fonts in a document at once, preferably by clicking on an icon. Although I do not know any way to do that, I have found a workaround that provides a similar result. It takes a bit of setting up but otherwise works quickly and easily.
OpenOffice.org (2004). Articles>Word Processing>Software>OpenOffice
#26112
How to Choose a Good Instructional Book about OpenOffice.org
If the success of an open source project can be measured by the number of third-party books about it, then OpenOffice.org is thriving. Not only is OpenOffice.org represented by a dozen books and pieces of training material on Amazon.com, but interest in OpenOffice.org is widespread enough that each of the books is geared to a slightly different audience. This article gives an overview of four of the current OpenOffice.org books, ending with a suggestion of which to buy for your own needs.
Byfield, Bruce. IT Manager's Journal (2004). Articles>Documentation>Software>OpenOffice
#26753
How to Create Different Page Numbering Formats
Large documents often require several page number formats in the same document. In this article, we describe how to setup different page numbering formats.
Klariti (2005). Articles>Software>Word Processing>Microsoft Word
#26752
How to Create Macros in Microsoft Word
A macro is an action, or a set of actions, that automate tasks. Macros are recorded in the Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) programming language. You can use the macro recorder to record a sequence of actions as a macro, or write VBA code in the Visual Basic Editor.
Klariti (2006). Articles>Software>Word Processing>Microsoft Word
#23675
How To Generate A Table Of Contents in Word
Using heading levels and styles in Microsoft Word, you can automatically generate a table of contents. It is useful when doing a long document that needs a table of contents and generating a table of contents is much faster than doing one manually.
Austria, Arden Paul. MetroVoice (2003). Articles>Word Processing>Software>Microsoft Word
#22591
How to Open a PDF With Highlighted Words 
The goal: to launch Acrobat Reader from an external application, automatically highlighting some words.
PDFzone (2003). Articles>Document Design>Software>Adobe Acrobat
#27208
How to Recover a Master Document
Notice how this article starts off with the cheerful assumption that you want to 'recover' a Master Document? I bet you were hoping that we would tell you how to 'fix' one! We can't. If you are having a problem with a master document, the problem is the master document. Any attempt you make to repair one will inevitably make your problem worse.
McGhie, John. Word MVP Site, The (2005). Articles>Word Processing>Software>Microsoft Word
#26751
How to Recover Lost Word Files
Microsoft Word will 'lose' documents in certain situations. For example, it may lose a document if Word is forced to quit unexpectedly, if your computer has a power interruption while you're writing, or if you close the document without saving changes. In this article we explain different ways to recover these lost documents.
Klariti (2006). Articles>Software>Word Processing>Microsoft Word
#26746
How to Reduce Microsoft Word File Size
Bloated file sizes are a real problem. No-one will deny this. But, in the course of creating some long documents in MS Word, I've learned a few small secrets.
#27237
How to Remove Manually Typed Numbering from a Document
You can use the old Word 2 command: WordBasic.ToolsBulletsNumbers Replace:=0, Type:=1, Remove:=1 This command is particularly useful for removing manually typed numbering from Headings in a document you have been emailed, prior to applying List Numbering.
Rado, Dave. Word MVP Site, The (2002). Articles>Word Processing>Software>Microsoft Word
#27186
How to Save Yourself Hours by Using Outline View Properly
Word's Outline View is wonderful for long documents and – used properly – can cut the time taken to write a typical report, proposal, thesis, or dissertation by as much as 50%.
Rado, Dave. Word MVP Site, The (2005). Articles>Word Processing>Software>Microsoft Word
#18492
How To Select the Right CAT Tool Solution
This article lays out a framework for selecting the right Computer Aided Translation (CAT) tool solution based on a number of characteristics of the translation environment.
#31473
How to Select Your Web Conferencing Tool
New conferencing and collaboration solutions are being announced at the pace of one or more tools per week. New versions and upgrades are promoted even more frequently, and in this avalanche of "this is the best, don't look anywhere else" claims, it is hard to distinguish the good from the average. How should you select your web conferencing tool? Which companies are more reliable and how do you find out? How can you be sure you will not be disappointed? These are tough questions to answer, as there are a million vendors out there and an army of supposed experts all claiming to have the best solution while offering different ones.
Good, Robin. Communication World Bulletin (2004). Articles>Web Design>Videoconferencing>Software
#26108
How to Start Page Numbering With a Number Greater Than 1
Follow these instructions to start the page numbering in a document at a number greater than 1.
OpenOffice.org (2004). Articles>Word Processing>Software>OpenOffice
#27206
How Word differs from WordPerfect
WordPerfect considers a document to be a 'type stream.' If you picture WordPerfect sitting on the end of the printer cable, sending characters one-by-one, and every now and again inserting a COMMAND to change what the printer is doing, you'll get the idea. For example, WP sends the commands for 'Arial' font and 'bold'. It then expects the printer to print every character that way until it tells the printer to do something else. Word, on the other hand, considers a document to be a 'container.' Within this container are more containers and, within them, still more. Into each of these containers, Word inserts objects. The objects can be bits of text, or bits of pictures, or complete files created by other applications.
McGhie, John. Word MVP Site, The (2005). Articles>Word Processing>Software>Microsoft Word
#24413
HTML Conversion Tools: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
The Internet has taken the world by storm. It is now one of the most widely used sources of information available. Every day high-technology companies are finding new ways to use the Internet for advancement in their fields. Though getting a perfect conversion without added steps is the dream for all writers, this is not possible. HTML Conversion tools such as HTML Transit 2.0, Web Publisher 1.1, and FrontPage can help decrease the time needed to make great looking paper documents into great looking web pages. The tool a company chooses should be based on its needs, budget, and the time allowed for tweaking.
Laurent, J. Suzanna and Candie McKee. STC Proceedings (1998). Articles>Web Design>HTML>Software
