DTI layout

Has anyone used (or is using) DTI? We just switched over to it a few weeks ago, and it has been sheer hell. Granted, we didn't have much time to get adjusted to it (one night of a dry run before being thrown into the water), but while it has some positives, it has killed our production time. The old system we used was more copy editor friendly, but the company who made it is no longer.

Any thoughts? Does it get better or is this a spawn of Lucifer?

 

No, Alfa is the spawn of Lucifer.

 

I take it the coding is causing all the holdup? Make sure to create quick keys.

The good thing about DT is that more than one person can work on a page at the same tme.

 

DTI=Damn Terrible Idea.

Can't speak to any of the newer versions, but the vintage versions of DTI (mid-'90s) are pure hell. And while you can use the coding to your advantage once you get used to it, the bugs are nothing short of torture. Print jobs will flush on you, and nobody can tell you why it flushed. Do something wrong, and you'll have to sit through a long error message -- on deadline -- for a minute or so. Miss a tag, and you'll have issues. Don't save a photo exactly right, and God help you.

Fortunately, we're dumping it for a different front end system based on InDesign here in the next month or two.

 

Dammit, that's the line I always use when someone asks a DT question.
When you get the hang of DT, it is the superior program, but it has a steep learning curve.

 

I liked DT, for the most part. The biggest problem at my former shop was that the computers didn't support it well. That's what contributed to about 95 percent of all the glitches, not the program itself. Once you get over the shock of not being able to make any "on-page" adjustments, it's easy to use.

 

I had no problem with DTI once I got to understand it.

The learning process can be long and intensive, but again once you master it the program can be very easy to work with.

To be honest, I actually prefer some of the features of DTI to InDesign (what we currently use) because on DTI I was able to manipulate things more to my liking because of the coding.
I often refer to InDesign as the Microsoft Word of layout programs - it does what it thinks you want it to do, not what you tell it to do.

 

DTI has an incredibly steep learning curve with the tags and coding, but after a month or two things start to get better and in six months you'll actually get to where there's things you like about it. The main problem is that new design hires usually aren't useful for at least a few weeks because it's very different from systems like Quark...

 

There's a steep learning curve to become proficient at it. But you can learn basic design stuff very quickly.

 

According to the DTI Web site, the newest version of Pagespeed is 6.2. We're still using 4.3. I have fewer complaints about it over Quark because it's the first pagination system I ever used. That being said, it's still frustrating as hell to use.

 

The later versions of DTI aren't bad. You can get the basics down pretty quick, but getting to a point where you feel comfortable with everything takes at least a month or so of working on it all night, every night.
Kind of depends what programs you're using for design and editing, as well.

The earlier versions of DTI (before 5 or so) are god-awful, unless you've had a few months to get used to it. Even then, it's jacked up, but you understand it.

 

Using DTI 6.2 for the past two years or so (started on 6.0 and updated to 6.2 some time ago) In an environment where multiple "bureaus" use it, so sharing photos, stories, content, etc. amongst offices interconnected on same network. That's the great part.

But everyone else is right. the "learning curve" is horrendous because of all the little nuances. Word to the wise. Create THOROUGH libraries, paragraph styles and character styles, and you'll be good to go. And teach yourself (or learn) how to "attach" things to certain stories within InDesign.... it's a tough setup for sure though, and the biggest problem, it bogs our network down LIKE CRAZY, so it runs really slow. Good idea. Mediocre (at best) execution.