Let me begin by saying that my primary use for CD-R is not that of most others. Before I bought my first writer, I defined what I wanted to do with it and how. The result has been (through September 2000) twenty-one CD-ROMs pressed for me and distributed through the Internet to a small but appreciative 'market'. This note traces the logic leading to the selected format(s) and suggests tools for following that lead.
My objective has been to make files in various formats easily accessible to users with limited computer skills. I quickly reduced the options to two: Adobe Acrobat's PDF and HyperText Markup Language - HTML, the language of the World Wide Web. Acrobat offers several distinct advantages: well-defined formatting with esthetic values such as multicolumn text, explicit placement of graphics and full-text search. It shares with HTML the ability to link elements and to operate freely across platforms. HTML won out for me for several reasons, notably the ability of the user to run a browser she already knew and the flexibility to adapt that browser to her particular needs. If she is running a monochrome display, monochrome options are at her fingertips; if she needs larger type, she may simply set her defaults. In addition, creating and editing HTML is easy with tools of moderate cost and ready availability and, perhaps most telling of all, one can easily embed a PDF into an HTML file, but not HTML into PDF. Finally, PDF would have required the user to acquire a reader and to install it onto the computer; I wanted a self-contained, machine-independent configuration.
Because I want my discs to read on as wide a range of platforms as possible and with the least limitation on personal configuration, I use only the most primitive forms of HTML. Fonts are set with H1-H6 rather than by specifying them. There are no frames and very few tables; in fact, inline and background graphics are used to supplement text instead of to replace it. As a result, a user can browse any site or CD-ROM I create with virtually any browser and retrieve from it whatever her tools support. Another plus for HTML is that if a format begins to be supported, I can add it to my 'site' and the user can get it on her own for her platform. In a word, I can deliver the product we both want without requiring the user to adapt to my means of delivery.
To create the HTML, I use HoTMetaL Pro, a powerful language processor which implements far more than I need. One of its virtues is controllable enforcement of rulesets. I can pick the flavor of HTML I want to use and have the program enforce it as I write or after the fact. You will not be surprised to find that I use the most limited ruleset available and keep it on at all times. If you prefer a less costly approach, such as the shareware HotDog, that's fine, too. However, I do not recommend that you use HTML export or authoring from programs not dedicated to the purpose. They tend to produce code which looks just right to you - and fails miserably when seen on another system. In fact, they throw away many of the advantages which attracted me to HTML in the first place. They often implement the specific font choices you made when you wrote instead of leaving options open for the user. I want to create an open shop with its wares laid out for all visitors to see and to use; those programs tend to organize the shop into the specific pattern you see on your screen and to force visitors to see it your way.
Unlike a site on the WWW where a few megabytes are stored, the CD-ROM offers 650 MB and needs careful organization. My discs are organized with a home page that provides direct access at the top to the major components, technical and legal information as required, and advice at the bottom on special needs for configuration and helpers. Because I work on a PC and most of my customers are on PC's, I develop first for that machine and then through beta test verify operation on other hosts (both Mac and Unix). However, I do nothing that I can avoid which would keep a user out. On my latest discs (read about them here), I do require MP3, which is not built into all browsers.
I include on each disc everything needed to get up and running. For a novice on a PC (running Win 95 with Autorun ON), the disc is inserted into the reader and autoruns. I bought a royalty-free license for I-View, a compact and flexible browser designed for use off-line. I obtained permission from the authors to include freeware not only for WinAmp but also for a suitable Mac browser and helper. A Mac user can run an existing browser (or may look at a MACREAD.TXT file in the root) to install the included browser and helper on his own machine. Of course, if the user prefers another browser and is willing to add the MP3 or other helpers required, that option is also open. Again, everything is kept as simple as possible; elementary menus are used instead of frames or tables; the user is given the greatest possible flexibility.
With HTML, cross-referencing is my job before I create the disc, but that access is easily supported. Suppose I want a record of my family's history and have video clips, still photos and audio recordings prepared for inclusion. I can supply a page of Uncle John with a portrait and text and with links to sound and video clips and to scenes in which he figures prominently. I can link to that page from a page with the family tree or from each page of narrative text in which his name is mentioned. I can even take a family picture and provide a link from his area of the photo to 'his' page. Note that the same page or the same file may be linked from each point where it seems fitting to me.
On three of my CD-ROMs, I incorporate the history of my primary WWW site. That is easily done by taking the individual pages that have been posted and linking them either chronologically or by subject. The result is a large, instantly accessible site on the CD-ROM. Note that I have to be careful because of the way most browsers operate. For example, I use playlists of MP3 files, but neither MSIE nor NN will play them from the disc. I-View has no trouble doing so because it is designed for the purpose; to make a conventional browser work, it would have to know where to find the CD-ROM. The usual browsers load the playlist into the TEMP folder, then look for the referenced files there when they are acutally on the CD-ROM. On a PC, they want the letter of the drive (which, of course, I do not know on the user's machine); on a Mac, they could use the volume label, but for some reason they do not. Only by testing can those cases be found and even there you need to be sure to use a variety of hosts and of configurations to be confident. (I goofed on one disc and some files are only playable on machines with more than 32 MB of RAM; I made a change which imposed that requirement after testing was complete and have been embarassed by the awkward workaround for the finished discs.)
My way of building the disc relies on my own system hardware and preferences; yours may vary. I start with an outline of what I want to do on that disc and an overall map of its organization. I break that down into pages and groups of pages to be written. As I prepare material for each page, I write the supporting HTML and check it on that level. I store the pages on a Jaz and periodically make a CD-R copy for backup. (Typically, I have several projects in development and dedicate a Jaz cartridge to each. Then I can work on that project simply by selecting the appropriate cartridge.) My home page for the disc is built in outline form; fleshing it out is the last step and exploits what I have from previous efforts.
Periodically, I run HTML Power Tools to verify my linkages. I skipped that step on my prototype; as a result, it has both duplicate files and broken links. When I have a viable version of a new project, I send it out to testers who are knowledgable in the computers they use and the subject matter. While they evaluate the work, I write the home page and work on other projects. As the testers feed back, I return to the job with a fresh eye and make changes as appropriate. That is also a time when I may add another cross index or additional text, but not additional files unless I'm prepared to ask for retest. I also contact the person who will press the disc and prepare the graphics and other materials needed for production. When the process is complete, I again run HTML Power Analyzer to verify the layout, then burn a couple of CD-Rs to check yet again on my PCs. Finally, I drop the discs into the mail to the pressing plant and erase the Jaz. I interact with my broker, Digital Bim, by e-mail and by telephone. About a month after mailing the masters, the finished product is delivered and ready for distribution. For your information, the cost of having discs pressed is roughly $600 for 500 copies, $850 for 1000 copies.
E-mail me at cdrecording@mrichter.com
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