Mary first learned to speak structured markup languages in 1992, while working for Butterworth Legal Publishers. Immersion is always the best way to learn, and with the guidance of a knowledgeable mentor, she learned the nuances of document analysis, DTD development, structured editors, content management systems, and the many personality types to be dealt with during an implementation. Today, as Senior Vice President and Principal XML Technologist for DMSi, she helps her clients avoid all the pitfalls that she first encountered as an early adopter through project management, needs analysis, requirements definition, product selection, schema development, application customization, training and support. For the past year, her efforts have been focused on developing Smart Document Solutions for Microsoft Office 2003. Sandwiched in between, Mary was the Manager of Sales Support for Xyvision (now XyEnterprise), focusing on SGML/XML content management solutions. In her spare time, Mary is a textile artist and an editor for Quilting Arts Magazine.