Using DITA for multi-manual Production

[Melissa22946312uwbx]

Hello, 

Our company manuals often reference one another and I am wondering if it is possible to use DITA to make an overarching book with multiple books within it (which would be all our company manuals) so that variables and references change at the top level and then everything is updated automatically throughout our other manuals?  Basically a map of our company manuals within one book....or books within a hierarchical book?  Any information would be helpful, even though this process is down the line, so that we can start thinking in that direction.

Thanks!

[Matt-Tech Comm Tools]

Of course!

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

I'm already a "master book of books" user in the Unstructured world. I've got 1 master book that contains 46 or 47 sub-books, each of which holds 5 .fm files.

[Melissa22946312uwbx]

Any tips on how to get something like this started?  We're in the very early planning stages for streamlining our companies many documents.  Is DITA the way to go for "books within books" so that certain references in one are updated throughout all of them?

Thanks!

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

Are you already doing Structured authoring in FM? The master "book of books" concept is just an organizational tool in FM (like using folders to create subsections). If you're referring to generating multiple forms of output out of Structured component content, then that's a completely different topic.  

[frameexpert]

With DITA, you create topics and then assemble them into maps (ditamaps) for each deliverable (publication). DITA topics can be used within any number of maps, which facilitates content reuse. Maps can contain other maps, which is similar to books within books. But you essentially work with maps and then create books from them with FrameMaker's tools.

As far as getting started, you usually begin by doing some content analysis to figure out how to break your content down into topics. Then you figure out which DITA mechanisms to use to facilitate reuse, localization, etc.

[Matt-Tech Comm Tools]

It sounds like your question is "Should I move to DITA?" and "How do I move to DITA?"

I suggest you check out the Adobe webinar I gave recently

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tGPIPUBw-4&list=PLJL3v-Ayk9rR3MoHoCt_vDpqMCj3f_DvM&index=1

And if you need help learning about authoring DITA with FrameMaker, consider my online course

https://techcomm.tools/auth-dita

It shows you how structured Fm is significantly different from what you might be used to, and quickly gets you authoring and publishing with DITA topics and ditamaps.