Documentation Quality

Documentation Quality Automated quality checking
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Data quality from the outset

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The entire information production process is optimised if the information content is separated from layout from the outset.

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Layout plays a decisive role, and not just when layout and content are merged for publication purposes.

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When planning multimedia publication of technical information – for instance in print, on CD-ROM, online or in PDF format – it is imperative to tackle the question of data quality at an early stage.

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The main causes of additional desktop publishing work in connection with documentation and translation services are mistakes in the formatting and layout of the original documents.

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By consistently following straightforward principles and using an effective tool, it is possible to prepare information that is free of layout errors and versatile in terms of publishing options.

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Format quality means quality data

Before text is produced, stylesheets should first be defined for the document – and they should then be used and adhered to in the editing process. Otherwise, the subsequent processing or re-use of the content will be complicated by the continual reappearance of formatting errors such as

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the use of series of spaces or tabs one after the other or in combination

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manual line breaks, hyphenation and list numbering

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manual spacing of paragraphs by entering carriage returns

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manual page breaks

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manual entry of cross-references and footnotes

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use of non-typographical characters instead of special symbols

By using proper stylesheets and the strict avoidance of such "pseudo-formatting", tidy documents can be created that can be imported easily by translation memory tools and interpreted without problems by other word processing programs.

Data quality and translation

The effect of data quality is particularly evident when using translation memory technology. Poorly formatted source documents have a substantial effect on the pretranslation results – the filters in the translation memory tools cannot interpret poorly formatted text properly. Since formatting attributes may make passages of text "different" from existing passages in reference sources, significantly fewer 100 % matches and suggested translations will be found.

Formatting errors cause compatibility and conversion problems in word processing and translation, reproduce themselves in multilingual projects and lead to substantial additional work and costs.

So it is all the more important to eradicate formatting errors at source. STAR has developed an automated and user-friendly tool for precisely that purpose that automatically checks the formatting of text files.

Quality management with FormatChecker

STAR's FormatChecker provides assistance with all areas of word processing. It scans a document in a similar way to a spellchecker. It checks whether defined stylesheets have been correctly applied and issues an error message as soon as it identifies incorrect formatting. FormatChecker marks the errors and creates a note containing information about each error and how to correct it. If required, the editor can be given a breakdown of all the types of error found and an assessment of the formatting quality, which can be used as the basis for estimating the amount of work required for correction and subsequent word processing (including in the translation process).

FormatChecker

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helps to ensure tidy and consistent layout of documents,

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increases and safeguards the quality and re-usability of data in the long term,

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reduces time and money spent on laying out different versions of a document,

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increases the compatibility and re-usability of documents, and

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makes it possible to provide clients with documents of a high formatting quality.

FormatChecker can be run either as an automatic scan or an interactive process. The second option enables authors to identify errors and repair documents interactively. Thus FormatChecker is also suitable as a training aid for improving the skills of editorial staff.

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Automated quality checking

Data quality from the outset

Format quality means quality data

Data quality and translation

Quality management with FormatChecker

FormatChecker

STAR Group