Looking through my Programs folder, I see many programs I use to work with XML documentation.

• Altova XMLSpy
• Arbortext (PTC) Epic
• EditPlus Text Editor
• Microsoft NotePad Text Editor
• SyncRO Soft Oxygen XML Editor
• SynText Serna
• XMLMind XMLEditor

Not to mention (and I won’t again):

• Microsoft Word for XML
• Adobe structured FrameMaker

Which one is my favorite? Well, that depends on the size of my project, the size of my budget, and the file I am working on.

Small personal projects with small or no budget require the free edition of XMLMind XMLEditor for my content files and NotePad or some similar text editor for the .bat, include, and ditamap files.

Proprietary projects for small to medium companies with small to medium budgets require the professional edition of XMLMind, SyncRO Soft Oxygen, SynText Serna, or Altova XMLSpy for content editing and EditPlus or a similar more robust text editor for the .bat, include, and ditamap files.

Larger companies, like HP and Salesforce, with large amounts of user documentation require an XML editor like Arbortext Epic, which can handle references to content within other xml files (conrefs), includes, and tables easily and display the content in a WYSIWYG format accurately. Files needing text editors require EditPlus or a similar more robust text editor.

When assessing a new editor I look at the following:

• How tables are built and maintained
• How conrefs and includes are built and maintained
• How graphics are inserted and maintained

As writers get comfortable with XML, they get comfortable with the editors they use. Often a new editor with all the bells and whistles is less efficient than an older editor known by your writers.

I am interested in your experiences as a writer or an administrator. Which editors are you using? What would you improve in your editor? What would make you switch editors?