TruView Publisher^TM

The TruView Publisher^TM is an advanced, state of the art Interactive Electronic Technical Manual (IETM) publishing system. It provides a simple, easy to use interface to guide the user through the assembly, transformation, and preparation of the SGML or XML documents to be viewed in Internet Explorer, using the latest and greatest web technologies available.

The TruView Publisher^TM is comprised of the Publisher Core and at least one System Interface. The Publisher Core contains all transformation software necessary to get source SGML/XML data to a format viewable in Internet Explorer. The System Interface portion is the customized front-end that details all documents on the desired system and guides the user step by step through the automated publishing process. To ensure the highest levels of accuracy possible, the system provides appropriate error reporting that will be used as a reference for making corrections to the original baseline SGML/XML files.

The TruView Publisher^TM may be customized to accomodate each customer's unique requirements.

The TruView Publisher^TM core is comprised of six components: SGML/XML validation, reference validation, auto generation, IETM generation, graphics validation, and IETM system packaging.

SGML/XML Validation parses the authored SGML file against the appropriate DTD. The validating editor (Epic) should first do this, but the publishing core does a final check. The SGML file must first be confirmed as a valid file before any processing can occur. Any error occurring in the originating SGML file will be propagated in all further processes.

Reference Validation checks all references that are located externally to the SGML/XML file. At this point it is not checking the existence of the external reference, it is confirming whether or not the external reference is referencing valid information. The reference validation program can verify valid external document references. An external reference may or may not be valid even if it is located on the current system. During final rendering, the system will determine if the external reference exists for the particular IETM system.

Auto Generation will vary depending on the document type / DTD. Auto-build elements are elements in the SGML that are a compilation of information from other places in the SGML file. For example, if acronyms are appropriately marked up (tagged) in the baseline SGML file, then the acronym list in the front of the manual can be automatically generated without author intervention. As part of error checking, any references to structural elements that have been deleted will be identified for author correction. At the end of the auto generation process, all information relating to the SGML/XML file can be assembled together into a complete file.

IETM Generation applies the rules from the DTD that have been programmed and creates, segments, and builds the infrastructure for the final IETM system. At this time, the system validates / identifies any external references that will not be part of the distributed system. These external references will be appropriately displayed to the IETM user as not being available to the system.

Graphics Validation will verify that all SGML files selected in the system interface can locate the appropriate graphic files on the system. It will create a list of the missing graphics files. It will also generate a list of graphics that exist on the system and are not being used. This helps to identify naming errors and assist in the cleanup of inactive graphics, which in turn reduces the size of the IETM distribution package.

Packaging Process will pull all generated files, graphics, graphic hotspots, and all system and common files together to create the final distributable IETM system. At this point the system is ready for quality assurance to check the new or revised technical content for accuracy and completeness.