how to use OOo to convert to xml (Docbook)?

wishbone · General User Joined: 31 Mar 2003 Posts: 6

Hi,
I'm trying to use OOo to convert msword documents into xml with Docbook's DTD.

The beta version promises this but is a bit lite on the documentation. Any pointers would be appreciated.

thanx. wishbone.

bartgymnast · Posted: Mon Mar 31, 2003 11:02 pm Post subject:

you mean documentation for Docbook DTD???
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wishbone · General User Joined: 31 Mar 2003 Posts: 6

I'm trying to use the beta version to import a word document and then export it to XML using the DocBook DTD.

Quoting the OOo homepage:

wishbone · General User Joined: 31 Mar 2003 Posts: 6

My goal is to set up an xml content management system based on the DocBook DTD so that I can produce various flavours of documentation, ie. User Guides, Training etc... - both online and offline, using one source : xml files.

To complement this goal I am looking for an easy way for people to be able to contribute content and if the new OO Beta version delivers on the promise to export docbook/xml then hopefully it would be easier to convert these people over as opposed to learning something like XMLSpy or Xmetal.

So far I am very impressed with OO and compliments to the community .... Smile

apostle · General User Joined: 03 Apr 2003 Posts: 6

I have been VERY happy with OOo since the pre 1.0.0 days. As a company we are trying to move to a Docbook based system to help with version continuity problems. An engineer would write a manual for product x. Then product y would come along. To make life easier the engineer would cut and paste content from one manual to the next. A little while later an error would be found in manual x. Then, unless the engineer remembered, manual y wouldn't be updated as well. Doh.

Moving to an xml based environment allows us to have manuals that are automatically "made" everytime source documents are changed. Hence all manuals that contain certain source modules can automatically be published to PDF, HTML etc, hence ensuring one change is propagated to all target documents.

Engineers don't like raw xml/sgml. Let's face it who does. I have been looking at OOo as a GUI "frontend" to editing these document modules. The "promise" of 1.1 being able to output/input Docbook files is of great interest to me. I have downloaded and installed it, however I can't seem to find any docs on how to use Docbook. There is certainly a docbook.jar in the filters directory, but no such option in the open ar save as dialogs. Can anyone out there help me find out how to do it. The old online documents don't appear to bear any relation to the new version of the software.

Many thank.

Mark.

Guest · Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2003 5:38 pm Post subject: Try this link for Docbook info

Haven't tried it myself - but it looks promising....

http://xml.openoffice.org/xmerge/docbook/

wishbone · General User Joined: 31 Mar 2003 Posts: 6

Thanx for the url.

I'll now have a play but as indicated under limitations it may be difficult to map Word/OO styles to specific docBook elements. xICE from turnkey.com.au does this for Word using a rules base.

Andreas Bovens · Guest

The Openoffice.org docbook page mentions Eric Bellot's OOo2sdbk, which is pretty good.
Here's an easier way to use OOo2sdbk.
- Install the Flat XML filter (howto?)
- Download Eric Bellot's xslt stylesheet from http://japanology.arts.kuleuven.ac.be/andreas/ooo2sdbk.xsl (Eric Bellot's link to a zipped version of his stylesheet doesn't seem to work)

- save the sxw-file you want to convert as Flat XML.
- convert the Flat XML file into Docbook XML by use of the stylesheet (and a parser, e.g. MSXML or Saxon).

Guest · Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2003 8:38 am Post subject: