Chunk:Introduction to Modular Documentation

2011-10-29T15:51:31Z

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[http://www.diamondlinks.net the] idea behind modular documentation is very simple: we develop content in re-usable modules that can be assembled into finished documents in different formats such as web tutorials, online help systems and printed manuals. We will create a database of re-usable modules in this wiki so that we have a single source from which we can derive documents for different audiences and different purposes.

[http://www.diamondlinks.net the] key to modular documentation is modular writing. That is, each module is written as an independent, context-free element. In this context each module (which we shall often refer to as a "chunk") is a single wiki page.

[http://www.diamondlinks.net the] process of building a modular document is cyclical. We generate output documents from [http://www.diamondlinks.net the] source chunks and having seen what [http://www.diamondlinks.net the]y look like we [http://www.diamondlinks.net the]n modify [http://www.diamondlinks.net the] source chunks until we achieve [http://www.diamondlinks.net the] desired results. Since we are using [http://www.diamondlinks.net the] MediaWiki transclusion mechanism, document assembly is effectively instant and so this cyclical process can be very rapid. We can export content from [http://www.diamondlinks.net the] wiki to produce documents in o[http://www.diamondlinks.net the]r formats such as DocBook XML, PDF and CHM.

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As more and more chunks are created it becomes increasingly important to have some means of finding [http://www.diamondlinks.net the]m again. To assist this process each chunk is "categorised", meaning that several tags describing its content are added to it. Category indexes are automatically generated by [http://www.diamondlinks.net the] MediaWiki code.

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Chunk:Introduction to Modular Documentation