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The one program I have considered for electronic review and mark up of PDF
documents is Re:mark from Ambia Corp. Check out their web site at http://www.ambia.com/.
IMO the electronic review route is not a good choice. I've had requests for
it, and it may have its place, but I prefer the kill-a-tree paper approach.
My primary reason is that I believe the quality of review is better for
paper docs. Due to screen resolution, and other such things, the readability
of online documentation is 30% of paper docs from what I recall. I don't
know where I read this, but it might have been from a quoted source in one
of William Horton's books. I've noticed this myself as I can proof hardcopy
far better than I can proof online; I catch more errors on the hardcopy.
Another caveat with online review distribution is that of control. It's
fairly easy to e-mail the PDF to someone not on the distribution review list
such as a colleague (bad), potential customer (worse), or a salesman
(worst). Because it is more difficult to photocopy the hardcopy, the
hardcopy provides a built-in illegitimate-copy deterrent. A draft softcopy
is more virulent than a draft hardcopy.
These are just two cons to online review. There may be several other pros
which I'm not considering. Your reasons for reviewing online could very well
outweigh these paranoid little disadvantages.
David Neufeld
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"no matter where you go..... there you are." -- Buckaroo Banzai
