Hefty documents

Neil Morgan · 03-06-2009, 02:09 PM

Hi guys

I was wondering what Warriors use for creating hefty documents such as ebooks, documentation etc that has loads of graphics, tables, diagrams where management of the layout is as important as the content.

Microsoft Word?
Open Office?
Microsoft Publisher?
Adobe Pagemaker?

Thanks!

Neil

Neil Morgan · 03-06-2009, 02:25 PM

Quote:

The end result is usually the same anyway

True, but I was referring to the process, not the end result.

CmdrStidd · 03-06-2009, 02:31 PM

Not that it will help much but I have Adobe CS2 which includes InDesign. This is the same software that I used in my printing business and once the book is complete, I can export it through Adobe Acrobat straight into a pdf. The thing is this software is expensive. I think I payed over $1000 for it at the print shop.

Neil Morgan · 03-07-2009, 05:45 AM

Thanks for that pointer about InDesign.

It is expensive but as a registered Pagemaker 6.5 user, I can get an upgrade to InDesign for $199 which seems like a good deal to me.

Again, thanks.

Cheers,

Neil

jacktackett · 03-07-2009, 09:24 AM

Neil,

On a personal front I typically use Open Office and MS Word when creating ebook content. They have sufficient lay out capabilities for text based projects. I would stay away from bitmap graphics and use jpgs, png, etc. to cut down on the size of the pdfs, but for decent looking projects both are fine.

Typically I'll outline and then flesh out the outline. I'm the author of several physical books so I pretty much follow the process I learned with them - of setting up and using various styles in a dot file (doc template) to indicate things like figures, tables, notes, call outs etc. The difference is I just embed the images directly in the word document and format the various items too.

Both programs also make peer reviews and feed back easy to gather an implement since its done within the document.

All this content I then convert to PDFs for distribution, just relying on the underlying word processor for layout.

On the more mainstream side, I've worked with several publishers from Que, John Wiley and Sons, and others. They almost always rely on MS Word to create the content with directives to indicate tables, call outs, graphics and screen shots.

Most do no want you to embed or try to format such things in the content. They use the word processor just to create the text and indicate formating. You simply use the document templates they provide and apply the indicated styles to your text.

Later, after the editing process, this material is imported into a layout program - typically Quark Express or Page Maker. For the IM group - these programs are probably overkill for most content packages - but if you're proficient in their use and own them I don't see why folks should not use them.

Its been a very long time since I've used them, and found them great for page layout, but not great word processors, but again - I'm not very proficient in those types of programs.

cheers,
--Jack

dave147 · 03-07-2009, 12:37 PM

word , open office and the gimp

03-06-2009, 02:09 PM	#1
Neil Morgan Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Lanarkshire UK Posts: 2,487 Thanks: 98 Thanked 314 Times in 223 Posts Social Networking	Hefty documents - best editor? Hi guys I was wondering what Warriors use for creating hefty documents such as ebooks, documentation etc that has loads of graphics, tables, diagrams where management of the layout is as important as the content. Microsoft Word? Open Office? Microsoft Publisher? Adobe Pagemaker? Thanks! Neil
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03-06-2009, 02:31 PM	#3
CmdrStidd HyperActive Warrior Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Cincinnati, OH, USA Posts: 323 Thanks: 68 Thanked 37 Times in 31 Posts	Re: Hefty documents - best editor? Not that it will help much but I have Adobe CS2 which includes InDesign. This is the same software that I used in my printing business and once the book is complete, I can export it through Adobe Acrobat straight into a pdf. The thing is this software is expensive. I think I payed over $1000 for it at the print shop.

03-07-2009, 05:45 AM	#4
Neil Morgan Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Lanarkshire UK Posts: 2,487 Thanks: 98 Thanked 314 Times in 223 Posts Social Networking	Re: Hefty documents - best editor? Thanks for that pointer about InDesign. It is expensive but as a registered Pagemaker 6.5 user, I can get an upgrade to InDesign for $199 which seems like a good deal to me. Again, thanks. Cheers, Neil
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03-07-2009, 09:24 AM	#5
jacktackett Socrates: I drank What? War Room Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: Cary,NC , USA. Posts: 1,378 Blog Entries: 1 Thanks: 777 Thanked 450 Times in 253 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: Hefty documents - best editor? Neil, On a personal front I typically use Open Office and MS Word when creating ebook content. They have sufficient lay out capabilities for text based projects. I would stay away from bitmap graphics and use jpgs, png, etc. to cut down on the size of the pdfs, but for decent looking projects both are fine. Typically I'll outline and then flesh out the outline. I'm the author of several physical books so I pretty much follow the process I learned with them - of setting up and using various styles in a dot file (doc template) to indicate things like figures, tables, notes, call outs etc. The difference is I just embed the images directly in the word document and format the various items too. Both programs also make peer reviews and feed back easy to gather an implement since its done within the document. All this content I then convert to PDFs for distribution, just relying on the underlying word processor for layout. On the more mainstream side, I've worked with several publishers from Que, John Wiley and Sons, and others. They almost always rely on MS Word to create the content with directives to indicate tables, call outs, graphics and screen shots. Most do no want you to embed or try to format such things in the content. They use the word processor just to create the text and indicate formating. You simply use the document templates they provide and apply the indicated styles to your text. Later, after the editing process, this material is imported into a layout program - typically Quark Express or Page Maker. For the IM group - these programs are probably overkill for most content packages - but if you're proficient in their use and own them I don't see why folks should not use them. Its been a very long time since I've used them, and found them great for page layout, but not great word processors, but again - I'm not very proficient in those types of programs. cheers, --Jack
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03-07-2009, 12:37 PM	#6
dave147 Platinum Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: AU Posts: 2,699 Thanks: 473 Thanked 326 Times in 265 Posts	Re: Hefty documents - best editor? word , open office and the gimp
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