Jonathon Blake wrote:

> On 9/7/05, i18n@... wrote:
>
> >Do you feel that there is a blurring of roles here between copy
> editor and typesetter?
>
> Tossing in my tuppence, the author is the only copy editor, and
> proofreader that mass market publishers have.

Maybe....

>
> a) Look at the number of typos in mass market books

I am guessing whatever PTD is working on is not a "mass market book" though.

> b) Look at the absence of copy editing in books --- both fiction and
> "popular" non-fiction.
>
> c) Look at author's contracts. Specific formats required, so the book
> can go straight to press, with no intermediate steps.

Last time I asked about a detail in a contract there was a brouhaha - so
you look at the contracts and give us the specifics. My guess is it
varies by publisher and imprint. But yeah, having a separate person is
expensive...

>
> >but perhaps openoffice (available for free at openoffice.org) will
> allow you to create such a
> macro, *and have it run periodically and automatically*.
>
> Have ever looked at macro programming for OOo? Whilst such a macro
> is possible, it is not trivial to implement.

I think I mentioned that I had *not* looked at OO in complete detail. It
is not "trivial" in word either IMHO - is it comparable?

>
> > but it is pretty safe (I think, again, YMMV) to assume it can create
> the proper Word file, which word can therefore open.
>
> That depends upon how complex the formatting is. Assuming that a
> DocBomb is not accidentally created in the process.
>
> [DocBomb. Document created in OOo, that when opened with Word2003
> gives WinXP SP2 the Blue Screen of Death. (Or any other version of
> windows and MSOffice.)]

Are there known examples? Anyway, I suggested that the formatting not be
completed until a later step using word, so there need not be any but
minimal formatting during the OO stage. Which should be fine.

>
> > Yet another variation, if you were to go the OO route,
>
> OOo only handles Plane Zero of Unicode. If you need anything from
> Plane 1, or higher, you are stuck. [The fix requires a complete
> rewrite of the OOo internal code.]

Worth knowing about...

Still, all the other options would hold for substituting a plane 0
sequence with a plane 1 or higher - perl, or other scripting languages,
or just a decent text editor.

Best,

Barry