Can I Use My Old Extraction?

Most extractions can be used or repurposed for use with WriteRAP.

The WriteRAP workflow includes a Quark plug-in called BatchXPort Pro (soon to be an InDesign add-in called BatchXSLT). This software is used to extract both the design (for the template) and contents from the chapter. It is absolutely required that a template created from a Quark or InDesign design file must use this software.

But for content - the chapter files you are actually working with - most extractions can be used or reworked for use in WriteRAP.

Traditional extractions preserve ETM (or XID) style names, include XML tags, and normally drop art and features to the end of the file. WriteRAP extractions also preserve style names, but they contain no XML tags, and they normally have the photos and features inline. Macros are provided to vendors that will remove XML tags from traditional extractions, and, if style names exist, will clean them up. Features and photos are moved into place during the layout of a chapter.

An extraction that is provided as raw text with no styles can still be used - but the vendor will need to style all the content. In this case, you might want to get a quote from the vendor to determine which approach will be less expensive - generally, simpler books can be styled quickly and easily, and with no more effort than creating a new extraction. But for a complex book with a lot of styles, the vendor may be able to save some time by doing a new extraction.