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To: FrameUsers List <Framers@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, Frame List <Framers@xxxxxxxxx>
Subject: New Tool?
From: Kevin McLauchlan <KMcLauchlan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Tue, 16 Mar 1999 10:35:26 -0500
Sender: owner-framers@xxxxxxxxx
G'day Framists. Maybe it's old hat to some of you, but I just heard about it and it looks interesting, so I want the full background poop from anybody who knows. There's a product [currently] called Coptech Webcheck, (now available from SWSolutions) which says it does a bunch of useful things with respect to documentation, distribution, doc control, updates, etc. It appears to use functions that we've all met elsewhere (web-page auto-updating and similar browser-related annoyances), but it gathers and formalizes them in what, at first glance, seems to be a useful way. Here's some advert-blurt text from one of their PDFs: <blurb> The Coptech WebCheck(tm) Plug-in allows you to publish self-updating documents on CD (or by e-mail, intranet/internet, etc.). What is a self-updating document? A self-updating document (sales presentation, technical manual, price list, corporate policy manual, training materials, software manual, databook - literally anything you might publish) that automatically updates itself whenever a new version of the document is loaded on the Internet. How does it work? >From the user's perspective, it works seamlessly. The user opens the documents as usual. If the documents are published on CD, for example, this could be by following a link from a table of contents page, opening a file after executing a search query, or using any other type of interface you may have created for your documents. Whenever a user opens a self-updating document, Coptech WebCheck(tm) checks the Internet to see if a more current version exists. If one does, Coptech WebCheck(tm) notifies the user and provides an option to download the newer version. If the user clicks "Yes", the newer version is downloaded and displayed. If the user clicks "no", the original (older) version on the CD opens. If the user elects to download the updated version, the next time he or she opens the original file on the CD, Coptech WebCheck(tm) offers to load the updated version on the hard drive instead. If the user says "yes", the previously downloaded document opens instantly from the hard drive. If "no", once again the old version on the CD opens. [snip] </blurb> It is said that this product was "proven" at Philips and ASA -- which I take to be NV Philips of the Netherlands and the American Standards Association. In other words, I gather those organizations participated in the beta. Anybody got any thoughts. Anybody seen this in action? This is all third hand for me, but I understand it would cost us $5000 for unlimited license. Works with Acrobat 3. The notion looks appealing for user docs, data sheets and other externally published items that are subject to update. But it also looks like a really good idea for in-house stuff like policy-and-procedure manuals. It appears to solve the problem of getting things updated when they need to be, but overcomes the limitations of "push" technology by using "suck" :-) technology. Hmm? Speak, O wise ones. Re-packaged snake-oil? Other products that do the same thing (or better)? /k ** To unsubscribe, send a message to majordomo@omsys.com ** ** with "unsubscribe framers" (no quotes) in the body. **