In practice, single-sourcing is either a success or a failure. There seems to be no in between.
In order to make single-sourcing a success, two different disciplines must come together to make single-sourcing work: writers and engineers.
On the writing side (Ament, Hackos, Rockley), nearly all of the existing literature is theoretical in nature. Most books on single-sourcing contain advice about planning, managing, and creating modular projects and documentation. At this, they are very good. Unfortunately, the single-sourcing literature is aimed at managers or writers, and they're only half of the equation.
On the other side, the programming literature has the same problem. The XML programming books tell you how to write XML and how to process it: They do not tell you how to make XML work in a single sourcing environment.
Ament says it best: "Single sourcing is a methodology, not a technology". XML is a technology, not a methodology. Bringing the two together is not obvious or well-defined, but it is the goal of this lens.
The Single-Sourcing Triangle
All three sides must work together to make single-sourcing work.Side #1 - The Theory Side: The Information Management Consulting Companies
Side #2 - The Technology Side: Programming Nuts and Bolts
Side #3 - The Product Side: Vendors and Application-Specific Specialists
Successful single sourcing requires competence and execution on all three sides of the single-sourcing triangle. First, the information itself (the content) must have real structure. Information management consulting companies can help your various writing groups organize their content and think about it in new ways that promote single-sourcing activities. Second, you need software engineers and IT folks to make sure that both the hardware and software infrastructures support single-sourcing activities. In addition, these folks must work closely with the vendors (Side #3) chosen through rigorous requirements matching, to make sure that all the different systems play well together. Over-engineering your triangle (excessive customization) will produce systems that prevent you from extending your single-sourcing system to interact with other business entities, essentially stifling any future process innovation.
Single-Sourcing Blog
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byWhere to Learn about Single-Sourcing
- Beyond Theory: Making Single-Sourcing Actually Work
- This paper is a case study of a single-sourcing implementation that worked. Attempting to do it with information from only one side of the triangle is a recipe for disaster.
- Computer Documentation
- There's more to computer documentation that just the traditional technical documentation we've all come to love and hate.
- Applying IT to Process
- Once you've done single-sourcing, you've opened the door to serious process innovation opportunities.
- Center for Information Development Management
- Lead by JoAnn Hackos, this group has a lot of resources for documentation projects just starting out. They are focused on the theory/information management side of the triangle, but they can provide a lot of guidance when selecting a product or a vendor. You're on your own for side #2.
- Crane Softwrights, Ltd.
- G. Ken Holman is a world-leader in the development and successful deployment of XSLT and XSL-FO.
- The Rockley Group
- They focus more on content management these days, but that's an important part of the puzzle.
- Resources page at Single-Sourcing Solutions, Inc.
- Online links, books, papers.
Books to help you make single sourcing work available at Amazon.com
Single Sourcing: Building Modular Documentation
Amazon Price: $41.35 (as of 07/05/2009) 
Developing SGML DTDs: From Text to Model to Markup
Amazon Price: (as of 07/05/2009)
Definitive XSL-FO (Charles F. Goldfarb Definitive XML Series)
Amazon Price: $36.49 (as of 07/05/2009)
Definitive XSLT and XPath
Amazon Price: (as of 07/05/2009)
Managing Enterprise Content: A Unified Content Strategy (Voices That Matter)
Amazon Price: $29.69 (as of 07/05/2009)
Charles F. Goldfarb's XML Handbook (5th Edition) (Charles F. Goldfarb Definitive XML Series)
Amazon Price: (as of 07/05/2009)
Definitive XML Application Development
Amazon Price: (as of 07/05/2009)
XML: A Manager's Guide (2nd Edition) (Addison-Wesley Information Technology Series)
Amazon Price: (as of 07/05/2009)
Learn XSLT, XPATH and XSL-FO
Crane Softwright's schedule of upcoming classes available here.
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- Legacy Data Conversion Center
- Legacy Data Conversion Center. Convert proprietary Formats to SGML and XML. Supported formats: Interleaf, FrameMaker, Word. Supported output formats: DocBook, DITA, MIL-STD-38784, S1000D, IETMs.
