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XML for the Smaller Publisher: The Right Choice?

Tuesday, January 27, 2009 from 11:00-12:30 PM Eastern Time

The Society for Scholarly Publishing in collaboration with the Association of American University Presses presents another great web-based seminar on a hot topic. With shrinking travel budgets, it is becoming harder and harder to get to the big meetings, but in troubled times it is more crucial than ever to make informed decisions.

With SSP web seminars, you don’t have to leave your office to learn. All you need is a telephone and a computer with Internet access. Invite as many staff as you like to participate using a single speakerphone and projector. Why not use the seminar as the basis for your own brainstorming session? You can submit questions to the speakers using your computer, and there will be plenty of time for discussion.

After over a decade of experimentation, XML is finally becoming an integral part of all publishing workflows. Larger publishers are taking advantage of the flexibility that an all-XML production process offers to drive down costs and generate new online and print revenue. Off-the-shelf software tools and vendor services are now bringing the same opportunities to leverage content to smaller publishers, enthusiastic about the opportunities XML offers but previously unable to afford or manage wholesale workflow change. Whether you are a university press or a scholarly society, a journals or book publisher, the XML advantage may finally be within reach. But will the benefits of changing to an XML workflow outweigh the costs for the smaller publisher? What knock-on effects must be anticipated in other publishing functions? Is there such a thing as a “hybrid” workflow, or an “incremental” approach, or is wholesale transformation the only way to go?

In this seminar, two leading publishers with XML implementation experience will discuss the opportunities and challenges facing smaller publishers, and a technical expert will be on hand to address practical issues.

Join us if you want to:

  • Clearly understand the benefits and challenges of using XML in the publishing process, both for journals and books.
  • Discover the surprising XML capabilities of commonly used software like Microsoft Word and Adobe InDesign.
  • Explore the concept of “hybrid” workflows and possible ways of taking a stepping stone approach to XML introduction, rather than reinventing your whole process.
  • Learn first-hand from scholarly publishers who have successfully deployed XML in their own small to medium-sized organizations.

Moderator:

  • Greg Suprock, VP & General Manager, Content Services, Cadmus Communications

Speakers:

  • Bob Kelly, Director, Journal Information Systems, American Physical Society
  • Andy Williams, Academic and Professional Production Director (Europe) and Manager of Content Services, Cambridge University Press