This Newsletter Contents

On the Home Front
Poetry Update
eBook Toolkit Update
eBook Toolkit - Latest Winners
Online Course Update - XML?

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On the Home Front
Hi everyone, this year is certainly dissapering fast and there is a lot happening. This newsletter is the first since February, and I am almost finished with my first fantasy novel, but more about that next time.

Currently I am in the USA, and then off to London, Singapore and Australia in August to do some research, finish my novel, and catch up with old friends. Thank goodness I have a laptop, which means I can facilite my online training course, continue my education, and still work despite where I am on the planet!

Despite all the modern gadgets we have at our disposal though, there still never seems to be enough time in the day - recently I read that there is more information released each day than the average person can read in a lifetime - now that makes you wonder.
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Poetry Update
I have added more poems to my Authors Den site, check it out at http://www.authorsden.com/carollarsen

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eBook Toolkit Update
The 'eBook Publishing Essentials Writers Toolkit' has been updated again with all the latest information, and can be found at my website at http://www.digiknowhow.com

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eBook Toolkit Winners

The winners since the last newsletter are:
Nicole Dicenzo - USA
Bill Keir - Australia
Paul Jackson - Canada
Kaliannah Shirah - USA
Eduardo de Guzman - Philippines
Desiree de Fluiter - Australia
Martin Stange - Australia
Carynne Corvaia - USA
Mohamedhusein Somji - Tanzania

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Online Course Update
The eBook Publishing course is available worldwide through institutions providing online training. I love developing and teaching online courses, you get to meet people from all nationalities and walks of life, and the questions are terrific. I had one about XML, which I thought I would share with you - the answer explains the benefits of XML in plain English.

XML Question:

What is XML? Also, I don't know what media independent publishing has to do with XML. Where do I find the info about creating content for my eBook (or anything else) in XML formats?

Answer:

XML supports the concept of media independant publishing because it is a standard that allows you to produce a manuscript that is not locked into a particular delivery or storage medium.

Basically, XML is part of the 'Smart Content Revolution', which redefines the 'life-cycle' of digital content. Smart Content can provide substantial cost savings, increase productivity, interactivity, and longevity.

In yesterday's content life-cycle, proprietary content was static, immobile, and destined to remain isolated on the content islands of its creators. In the new content life-cycle, content flows, evolves, and never becomes redundant.

This new paradigm defines content by what it contains rather than how it appears. Content is always available and any technology, process, or person can interact with it. When content changes like this in response to surrounding conditions and interacts with other content, it is called smart content.

Smart content is reusable, repurposable, and can be generated dynamically. It is structured, manageable, and based on open standards. It also incorporates logic and rules that identify how content reacts to changes in environments, user interaction, or data input. Smart content is a living, intelligent application that can dynamically produce infinite content by-products.

XML is at the core of smart content as it enables content that is structured, manageable, and based on open standards. XML allows content to be stored in its purest form - data. XML separates content from the presentation layer, which allows content to be output to any presentation format. XML can describe many types of content, including text, numbers, vector graphics, layout, 3D graphics, audio, and animation. In addition, any technology, process, or person can interact with this data.

By leveraging XML, smart content can be easily shared throughout the enterprise and across the world. It can also be seamlessly integrated into any workflow or any technology infrastructure.

The key with XML (extensible markup language), is that XML capabilities will be automatically incorporated into professional software products without you having to learn anything new. Most products will support and convert their content to XML, and information on specific product updates to support XML standards can be found on that product's website.

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I hope you enjoyed this newsletter, and I look forward to the next.

best wishes, Carol.

Carol Larsen
Author - eBook Publishing Essentials Writers Toolkit;
eBook Publishing Essentials Online Training Course;
and co-Author of Jim Stoodley's Private War, 2nd Edition.
http://www.digiknowhow.com