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• • June 10, 2011 at 10:51 pm #59825
    Edward Sager

    Participant

    Hello All,

    What sort of publication type(s) would best serve the needs of the following two (2) projects?

    Project No. 1:

    Publication will be both print and digital distribution via CDs/DVDs, as well as downloaded from attorney's website.

    The structure will be similar to a magazine layout, and the digital editions will have videos and some interactive content.

    Attorney represents mainly consumer debtors filing bankruptcy in Seattle area, so almost all clients have a computer and high-speed Internet connections. Many have iPhones, but none (thus far) have iPads.

    This publication is informational, so no confidential information.

    Project No. 2:

    Same attorney as above. At the end of the bankruptcy case, attorney desires to give clients a CD/DVD with all case filings (approx. 14-60 separate documents with 2-90 pages for each document), as well as information (such as brochures) as to what to do and expect post-bankruptcy.

    Attorney also desires interactive content, though I am unsure yet what form that will take.

    Confidential information will be in this publication.

    Attorney's office has the Master Collection CS5 to produce publications.

    I have been tempted to just create PDF Portfolios, but I would prefer to design my own Flash-based interface for the portfolio…and this might be beyond my current capabilities. Also, we need a system which requires very few, or no, instructions necessary for the Clients to use publication.

    A Flash projector file with a PDF available for printing seems like a great idea, but some clients may not understand how to use such a thing and not everyone has autorun enabled.

    ePub seems like the easiest way to organize the data, but then we will need to make certain to include an ePub reader on the disk.

    Anyone want to share their opinions as to how they would tackle these Projects?

    All comments are welcome.

    Thank you,
    edsager

  • June 11, 2011 at 1:09 pm #59831
    Anne-Marie Concepcion

    Member

    I would go for PDF for both. A single PDF file, or (in the second example, if one is too unwieldly), one PDF for the case filings, and one or two more PDFs for ancillary/what next type of material. Definitely not a Portfolio. (What would a Flash interface add to this? And why make it difficult for people who don't have Reader 9 or X to access it?)

    Set up both with easily understood bookmarks and set it to open with the bookmarks panel showing. You can add a custom cover and/or section pages with links and buttons to print, search, navigate, a linked list of exhibits, videos, etc.

    I don't see the point of an ePub for this project…and unless the documents already exist as a colllection of linked XHTML files with a CSS file common to all, I'm not sure why you'd think it'd be easier than assembling a PDF. You can easily combine all sorts of different files into a single PDF.

    AM

  • June 11, 2011 at 3:58 pm #59836
    Edward Sager

    Participant

    Thank you very much for responding Anne-Marie!

    As far as why I thought that ePub was the easiest way to organize the data we have, well, I watched your series from Lynda.com on the subject and it just seemed ePubs can very nicely and easily organize the data we have with the appropriate hyperlinks and pleasant display.

    I guess when someone makes something look relatively easy (like in your series), you must be quite good at it.

    The reason for Flash with the first project is to add…well, flash and pizazz to the informational publication. Trying to teach non-bankruptcy experts what is needed, what is expected, and what to expect can be very dry and dull for people who usually are so stressed that reading a page-by-page PDF might be more than they can even think about…even with pizazz and embedded movies.

    We want to pique the cleints' interests visually from the start and make it so that reading the information is so visually stunning that they end up learning without knowing it.

    Regarding the 2nd project, you may be right with the single PDF. It just sounds a little boring.

    After reading some tutorials, it seems as though creating customized PDF Portfolios is not that difficult after all…but maybe it was just explained very well by an expert.

    Thank you again,

    edsager

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