Choosing a content management system is one of the most important decisions in technical communication. As a layout and typesetting program, it has some potential for various forms of desktop publishing. But is this also the case for technical documentation? In the following blog post, we talk about when it is worth using InDesign in technical documentation, where this system’s strengths lie, and where it has its limitations.
The name says it all: InDesign is particularly appealing as a content management system if you consider high quality graphical processing of content to be of great importance. It enables you to prepare the layouts for multi-page documents with texts, graphics, and images. It is also possible to integrate other Adobe applications, such as Photoshop, Illustrator, or InCopy, making it suitable for creating content that has particular visual appeal.
InDesign is also a useful tool for individual documents that can only be edited by just one or a handful of authors. It enables you to produce the finished document as a PDF file or in printed format, and is also particularly suitable for technical writing if there are only a few variants that need to be maintained. This is because, with output media and content changes in the document, InDesign has its limitations when it comes to variant management.
In a nutshell, the system is worth considering if a small technical writing team seeks to fulfill high demands for graphics and design and if the aim is to produce document-based products. If you also work on a manageable number of projects whose content is easy to manage even without the benefits of versioning, InDesign could be the right content management system for you.
The reality of a lot of technical writing is often very different. Long-term projects that require the creation and maintenance of complex documentation are part of everyday business. As a result, the standardization of documents and resources - for authoring processes - and the purpose - for user-friendly products - outweigh the need for an individual design. For a successful larger project, a number of technical writers must be able to work together.
It is therefore worth investing in a content management system that is better suited to the requirements of technical writers than InDesign: You need an overview of versions and variants, for example, for effective translation management. To avoid having to make changes to content in lots of different places, you also need re-utilization mechanisms.
To keep up with digitization, both now and in the future, you also need to classify information appropriately, and manage it in, for example, modules, rather than at document level. These days, the authoring process also includes the separation of layout, structure, and content of a document. This information is closely interwoven in InDesign, which prevents the flexible use of content for different forms of provision. In contrast, a modern content management system, such as SCHEMA ST4, enables mobile use of your documentation as well as the option to publish it in PDF format.
The usual rules apply: take time to identify and consider your objectives when deciding on a content management system. Ask yourself how you want to work and with whom, and what results are important to you. If your main focus is on how documentation looks, InDesign could be the right choice for you. Otherwise, you should also consider more efficient alternatives, such as SCHEMA ST4.
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