“SCHEMA ST4 is one of the world’s most widely used XML content management systems for modular work methods in technical documentation.”

SCHEMA ST4 provides the user with a large range of functions: modular creation of content, administration and publication in various target formats for print and web, graphics processing, various import interfaces, automatable workflows, translation processes and a range of other possibilities are already available in SCHEMA Standard, making it a flexible and multifunctional tool.

We have developed a proven approach for the introduction of SCHEMA ST4 comprising the following services:

• System integration and project management
• Proof of concept
• Data migration
• Configuration
• Content management concept
• User training and coaching
• Full service beyond the project

Which steps are right for your content management project? Our SCHEMA experts will be happy to advise you>

Introducing a content management system requires time. Time that often cannot be spared in day to day business. We reduce your workload and guide you through the entire introduction process, allowing you to concentrate on your core tasks.

Introduction of a content management system generally entails replacing familiar structures and processes, and introducing and implementing changes. We are familiar with this situation, including from the perspective of the affected users, and will guide all participants through the project, from kick-off to go-live.

In addition to this leadership role, we also assume technical responsibility. As a Gold Partner of Quanos Content Solutions, we will coordinate the IT prerequisites with you, determine which SCHEMA licenses are needed and conduct the system installation, on-premise or in a cloud version, all with first level support from Dokuwerk experts. You can purchase ST4 licenses from Dokuwerk or directly from Quanos Content Solutions.

In the context of a proof of concept, we go through the most important system introduction steps in an example documentation creation process in SCHEMA ST4. We usually create sample documentation which we then use to conceptualise and clearly demonstrate the typical principles of reuse, modularisation and variant management. We then develop an initial publication and use it as an example to demonstrate the translation process. The result serves as the basis for user training sessions and a style guide.

Your content is generally available in proprietary source formats such as Microsoft Word, Adobe FrameMaker or Adobe InDesign. We examine your documents and get them ready for import. This includes cleaning up the paragraph formatting to then migrate the content to ST4. For larger data volumes, we will develop a concept enabling partially automated importing using scripts.

We will edit outdated content that contains inconsistencies, does not conform to current standards or is not available in a sufficiently structured form. This saves you from unnecessary follow-up work in later project phases. We will coordinate the relevant procedure together with you.

For the migration of existing translations, we use the translation process laid out in SCHEMA ST4. After migrating content in the source language, we apply the translation memory provided by you to initiate the translation process.

SCHEMA ST4 offers many possibilities for the organisation of data storage, modularisation and reuse. We will clearly demonstrate which path will be the most sensible and efficient for you. As part of this, we will coordinate with you how data storage in the infopool should be conducted. We will determine the differentiating characteristics and which “grain” should be used for modularisation.

Depending on the stated goals, the question of necessary metadata may also be of central importance – the implementation of variant management can require many characteristics in the form of a hierarchical taxonomy to which content must be assigned. Over the course of a proof of concept, we will identify these requirements with you and establish the foundation for a metadata concept.

In addition to the system configuration, a publication option must also be created. SCHEMA ST4 provides the Page Layout Designer and the Online Media Designer for this purpose, among others. You can use these powerful functions to determine the rules-based layout and the file format of the documents to be published: PDF, HTML, Word and other formats.

If multiple layouts are required, we will establish a master layout. We will use this as a basis to derive further layouts such as for different page formats, document types, OEM documents, etc. This saves time and money both during creation and future maintenance when adjustments are required. We will set up these publication processes for you. Upon request, we will be happy to train you in the use of these tools or take care of future maintenance of the publication process.

To ensure effective use of a content management system in the long term, it is necessary to standardise content generation. This requires you to make many different decisions. In addition to the configuration described above, this also particularly relates to content management and graphics standardisations. We will record these in a style guide or a comprehensive editorial concept. We take it as a given that content standardisation should be conducted in accordance with the functional design method.

The newly established SCHEMA ST4 configuration and the first content in SCHEMA ST4 are the ideal basis for our user training sessions. You will already be working with your own content during the training. We will create specific training documents adjusted to your system configuration. And we are always ready to support you with any important questions, such as regarding your content management process. This reduces your workload and that of all future SCHEMA ST4 users on your content management team.

It will rarely ever be possible to cover all day-to-day content management demands and scenarios in training. This is what makes our downstream coaching so attractive. We lend a helping hand when it comes to your detailed questions. We can offer support and guide you towards answers either via telephone or remote access, such as through Teamviewer.

When we install SCHEMA ST4 for you, it goes without saying that we will continue to support you through any issues that may arise. This includes software maintenance with updates and the annual release. Incidentally, we also offer you coaching and support if you have bought the licenses directly from Quanos Content Solutions.

In addition to coaching and support, we naturally also offer you our comprehensive expertise in content management and translation: A team of over 30 employees comprised of experienced technical editors, graphic designers and a translation team provide you with full service following the introduction.

It is hardly possible to give a short description of Quanos InfoCube. Its functions and possible applications are quite diverse – here are the key features at a glance:

Quanos InfoCube functions on the user side

Among other things, the Quanos InfoCube offers users:

• up to date uploads of all content
• a faceted search function enabling detailed content filtering
• content provision for PCs (portal) as well as Windows, iOS and Android smartphones and tablets (with SCHEMA Reader)
• Offline capability: All content is also available offline in the Reader app. Efficient downloading ensures that content remains available even when there is no Internet connection. The content is updated as soon as the Internet connection is re-established.

Quanos InfoCube functions on the operator side

Companies wishing to use the Quanos InfoCube can take advantage of various possibilities including

• User management:
  user logins can define and pre-filter which content should be displayed to each user.
• User analysis:
  A web analysis tool tracks (in an anonymised manner) which content is searched for or called up – and, perhaps more importantly, which content is not (which is not always the case).
• Feedback:
  Feedback functions allow Quanos InfoCube users to directly rate content or record notes that flow back to the party making the content available, in SCHEMA ST4 for instance. This function also helps to even more effectively prepare information for specific target groups.

A main source of material to be made available through the Quanos InfoCube is content from the content management system. However, such content is often not yet sufficiently classified for faceted sorting. We examine existing modularisation concepts in relation to Quanos InfoCube publication requirements and make adjustments if necessary.

For information to be used effectively in the Quanos InfoCube, it must first be made “intelligent” – enriched with metadata – to enable automated distribution in the Quanos InfoCube as well as targeted search and filtering functions.

At the beginning of 2018, the industry association tekom released the first version of a cross-industry standard for metadata that classifies content: the iiRDS, Intelligent Information Request and Delivery Standard. The iiRDS can be imported into SCHEMA ST4 as a taxonomy and used to label content.

The standard not only sets the possible classifications, but also determines the structure of the import data for a Content Delivery Portal. This enables the use of any data source to fill content delivery portals from different manufacturers who have implemented this standard.

In addition to content available in structured form, there are also often large amounts of unstructured data that must also be made available in the Content Portal. Typical examples include supplier documents in PDF format, training materials in the form of PowerPoint files etc. To enable the use of such data in the Quanos InfoCube, it must also be classified and potentially modified. We support you in supplementing your content with the required metadata. With SCHEMA ST4 as your content management system, you can use taxonomies for this.

Quanos InfoCube publications and front end

Quanos InfoCube requires its own publication processes. These can be developed with the SCHEMA Online Media Designer (OMD) and tailored to a specific corporate identity. As a SCHEMA consulting services provider, we have the necessary experts for this on hand. The front end of the SCHEMA portal can also be adjusted and localised.

Additionally, other functions can also be activated for the Quanos InfoCube in HTML, including automatic linking of documents via referenced order numbers, context-specific generation of links from troubleshooting or descriptive content to the corresponding instructions, etc.

Customising the SCHEMA READER app

The SCHEMA READER APP is delivered with a SCHEMA design. The SCHEMA READER can be modified to fit your corporate design in a number of ways using the OMD (Online Media Designer). We can make these adjustments for you or offer support as you make the modifications yourself.

As the name suggests, our customer-specific training sessions are indeed tailored to the needs of each respective client.

Target group and previous knowledge

Typically, SCHEMA ST4 users with limited or no prior knowledge on SCHEMA ST4, or who are generally inexperienced in working with content management systems.

Typical content

We cover the necessary aspects in accordance with your SCHEMA ST4 configuration. Furthermore, we determine the scope, depth and planned duration of the training sessions together with you. The following topics represent typical training components:

• Basic knowledge
  Fundamental principles of a content management system, single-source publishing, application scenarios for metadata in technical content management.
• SCHEMA ST4 basics
  SCHEMA ST4 interface, setup and existing structuring of the infopool, nodes, node classes, resources
• Modularisation in SCHEMA ST4
  Options and examples of the deployed modularisation concept, reuse of nodes and fragments, difference between reuse and content linking.
• Recording content in ST4
  Work processes in the chosen editor(s), introduction to the element catalogue and reuse of the authorised elements according to available guidelines. If relevant, use of variables, various options for working with cross references
• Working with metadata
  Assigning metadata and/or taxonomies
• Publications
  Structure and creation of projects (“suitcase and blue books”), creating publications
• Search options in SCHEMA ST4
• Working with graphics in SCHEMA ST4
  Importing graphics, language-neutral or language-dependent, working with graphics groups
• Functions of the designer (or BasicLine) client
  Retroactive adjustments to the PDF publication layout with Layout Recall.

Basic editorial knowledge on standardisation and modularisation is often assumed. When introducing a CMS, we have found time and time again, though, that it can be very helpful to conduct training not only on the functional scope of the CMS and its range of applications, but also on the basics of content management work.

The functional design method is a widely used standard that is part of the education and training canon for technical editors. The underlying principles are also found in ISO 82079, the standard for the creation of information products. The method is also found in the Schema DTD element catalogue.

Target group and previous knowledge

New editors who want to learn the basic principles of functional design and use them in the future or those who would like to refresh their knowledge of standardisation, structuring and writing techniques.

Content

The training content revolves mainly around the functional design method and the concrete design of an existing style guide that has been developed as the basis of the functional design.

• Quality indicators for technical documentation
• The communicative approach: action is putting words into writing. Linguistic action in manuals
• The four levels of FD: information product, sequence pattern, functional unit, markup element
• Main functional units of the FD
• Fundamental difference between description and instruction
• Supplementary writing rules: active vs. passive, use of modal verbs, etc.
• Possible application in a style guide

The topics are reinforced by exercises. Depending on the scope of the training, we may be able to include examples for analysis and optimisation from your own system. We can cover certain topics in more depth upon request.

No introductory training can effectively incorporate all possibilities and requirements that arise when working with Schema ST4. This calls for training sessions on specialised topics. To make you an ST4 expert yourself!

Target group and previous knowledge

Editors with basic ST4 skills

Possible training topics include:

• Variant management
  We explain and demonstrate variant management at the modular and submodular levels, the use of fragments, fragment groups and graphic groups, the setup and use of taxonomies, working with comprehensive documents and the filter function, and the use of variables. We will also show the possibilities and limits of the various approaches.
• Working with the CallOut-Designer
  The CallOut-Designer is an ST4 function for graphics processing. The typical position lines in inventory graphics (referred to as callouts) can be assigned a text level in the CallOut-Designer. These texts can be translated through the usual translation workflow. This function opens new graphic design possibilities.
  
  In the CallOut-Designer module, we go deeper into the possibilities of graphics processing in ST4. How do I use it to create language-independent graphics? Which options does the CallOut-Designer offer for language-dependent content? What other possibilities does this function provide, and what are its limits? Which typical obstacles should be kept in mind during content generation?
• Translation management
  We demonstrate how you can determine and validate the translation needs for a project and then export and re-import the data. You learn which framework conditions must be considered to ensure that translations run smoothly in downstream translation memory systems. We show the typical hurdles in the translation process, including consideration of the language XML and the translation of autotexts.
• Processing large data volumes
  SCHEMA ST4 offers several import functions for the administration and update of larger data volumes. Typical applications of this include extensive tables with technical data. What is required to enable work with data nodes and the import of content into data nodes? How must import files be procured? We demonstrate the preconditions, but also the limits.
• Working with the PLD/OMD
  The Page Layout Designer PLD is the tool in ST4 that can be used to generate or adjust the publication process for PDF, InDesign or Word. We explain the fundamental principle of the PLD and how to make typical adjustments, such as changing fonts, switching logos, adjusting headers, etc. We also incorporate practical exercises using examples that can come from the participants’ systems.
  
  The OMDis the tool in ST4 typically used to publish content in HTML 5. We explain the basic principle for adjusting and expanding the layout. We conduct tutorials using concrete examples.