[NTG-context] Re: creating a printed book

[Henning Hraban Ramm <texml@fiee.net>]

Am 12.10.24 um 19:59 schrieb Hans Hagen via ntg-context:
> On 10/11/2024 10:16 PM, Hraban Ramm wrote:
>> Am 11.10.24 um 18:19 schrieb David Roderick:
>>> I have created 22 MSword files mainly text with embedded PNG 
>>> diagrams.  I am seeking to have these converted to Context and to 
>>> redo the (simple) diagrams.  I was thinking of using MetaPost.  I am 
>>> seeking to pay a typesetter to assist me in this task.  I would be 
>>> willing to pay for your time or for the time of a colleague you could 
>>> direct me to.  I am seeking to have typeset a book.  The MSWord files 
>>> have already been professionally proof-read, and the subject matter 
>>> is political economy from the 18th century and how this translates to 
>>> and may contradict conventional wisdom within the field of modern 
>>> economics.
>>>
>>> Other typesetters I have contacted have suggested running pandoc to 
>>> create a LaTeX file and use Tikz for the diagrams.  But I have spent 
>>> 3 days reading on advancements in the ConText side of the industry 
>>> which I suspect is far more advanced.  I would prefer to use better 
>>> tools as a longer term solution.  Can you advise me?
>>
>> Hi David,
>>
>> I would take your order, but you can also try it yourself with my tools:
>> https://codeberg.org/fiee/context-tools/src/branch/master/docx2ctx
>>
>> Pandoc can also generate ConTeXt code; try which you like better.
> 
> I'd never go that route when, as mentioned, a high quality document is 
> needed which can involve control (for which one can e.g. use instances 
> for specific components). Coding in TeX speak is not that bad. Also, one 
> is more likely to get answers for specific problems on the list.

I don’t suggest using DOC(X) to directly create PDF via Pandoc and 
ConTeXt, just converting DOC(X) to ConTeXt for further processing.

The direct approach works only with simple and/or very consistently 
styled documents.

For my youth novel, I’m writing in LibreOffice, convert ODS to DOCX, 
convert that to ConTeXt with my script and finalize the code with an 
additional script, so that it doesn’t need further tweaking. This works 
only because I control the source and the converter.

My script is not trying to keep the layout, just the structure and some 
formatting.

It can extract embedded images (again, since I fixed the bug) and 
creates an \externalfigure, but that usually isn’t enough. Similar 
situation with embedded tables (the conversion is not good, I’ll 
probably enhance it a bit as soon as I need it).

Hraban
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