Welcome to EpiDoc!

If you are reading this page, we hope that you are considering launching an EpiDoc project.

Whether this involves 3 inscriptions or 300,000, we would very much like to know about it; please do get in touch with us via the Markup List

http://epidoc.sourceforge.net/resources.shtml#markup

The EpiDoc guidelines are still evolving: see the history of the projec, at

http://epidoc.sourceforge.net/index.shtml#about

At present new users need to be prepard to participate in that process, by testing and commenting on the guidelines, noting lacunae, etc. Our aim is to establish guidelines which, in due course, can be readily used by all epigraphers: we therefore welcome comments not only on practical issues, but also on the clarity of our descriptions.

Before starting with EpiDoc, you need

1. To get to know XML

http://www.w3.org/XML/

and to obtain a decent XML editor with which you can work comfortably

2. To get to know the TEI consortium

http://www.tei-c.org/

its structures and its principles. If you launch a project, you should plan to subscribe to the TEI.

Then, read this introductory page which explains how recording your information in EpiDoc can help you.

After that, take a look at some example EpiDoc files, comparing them to the type of information that your project will record, and looking for similar information that you can copy or reuse. Try out some XSLT files to render your documents, too.

Lastly, put a couple of your EpiDoc files up on a website somewhere, tell the list and invite review of your markup. Expect some iteration as you develop a markup style that suits your project and as people share hints and tips (much easier with concrete examples to discuss). By then you are ready for larger scale data entry - and you are also no longer a beginner!