Hi Tim It sounds like you need Char James-Tanny!
Char can help you sort through that brain fog and the frustrations. Documentation consulting is what she does and has been doing for years. And because she's an independent consultant she'll help you determine the most suitable software for YOUR needs. She has lots of experience with converting and importing docs into various software, and she can also train you and help you with templates. Take a look at Char's website (http://helpstuff.com/) for details on her services and her contact details. Rhonda Rhonda Bracey [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.cybertext.com.au AuthorIT Certified Consultant -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Tim Mantyla Sent: Saturday, 6 October 2007 12:46 AM To: Pinkham, Jim; [email protected] Subject: Re: [TCP] Any good free web design software for sales manual? "Pinkham, Jim" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote on 10/05/2007 11:23:54 AM: > Depending on how basic your manual and how limited your scope, you > might even try Access or Publisher, if you already have them as part > of the MS I tried to import a procedures doc in Word w/ callouts and arrows into Publisher and it just deletes the callouts and scrambles up the text into different areas, like Flare did when I imported the same thing. It's a known issue, i contacted Flare support. At this point my brain is so fogged with crisscrossing questions... it seems to me that I can hardly tell what questions are the right ones to ask...because i don't have the conceptual framework in place to figure that out. Also I don't do well w/ these video tutorials with the moving cursors and arrows either, they put me to sleep and cause brain fog. I just need personal interaction and immediate feedback on what I do and don't do wrong and right to learn it. Right here, right now, yes and no---bing bam boom, easy! I'm figuring out that what i really REALLY need is: Hire a consultant to: 1) Evaluate my & company needs and match w/ software that's fairly user-friendly and based on a MS Word-like model or interface 2) Train me and a few others here on basic ability on the software 3) Design a template I can work from and make minor adaptations to My company did it the way we're doing now with enterprise software. By implementing a software ERP or somesuch, Epicor's Vantage, that has caused thousands of dollars and hours and headaches and inefficiency by the sales staff, for whom it seems ANTI-designed. It has a horrible, clunky CRM that everyone hates and has reduced our productivity by maybe as much as 50%! I'm not repeating that if I can help it. Does anyone know of such a consultant? That's what I'm going to recommend to my supervisor. I have serious BRAIN FOG trying to learn too much in too short a time w/o "standing-next-to-me" guidance. Basically, learning software is boring. Writing is fun. Editing is fun. Formatting--boring but necessary, at least I already know how to do it. They're thinking very ballpark 3 months as a starting point w/ knowing the factors involved, it's already 4 weeks into it and I still have NO idea what software to get. With an entire manual to write and docs to import, and format...it's just impossible with the timeframe and my current knowledge/abilities. I feel frustrated! I'm a writer/editor, that's my strength...give me something to write, and I'll learn software slowly along the way... Tim ______________________________________________ Author Help files and create printed documentation with Doc-To-Help. New release adds Team Authoring Support, enhanced Web-based help technology and PDF output. Learn more at www.doctohelp.com/tcp. Interactive 3D Documentation Parts catalogs, animated instructions, and more. www.i3deverywhere.com _______________________________________________ Technical Communication Professionals Post a message to the list: email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, unsubscribe, archives, account options, list info: http://techcommpros.com/mailman/listinfo/tcp_techcommpros.com Subscribe (email): send a blank message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe (email): send a blank message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Need help? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] Get the TCP whole experience! http://www.techcommpros.com
