We tend to look the other way when content gets replicated, thinking nothing of duplicating assets in our content management system in the name of content re-use. And yet this same practice would be ridiculed in software engineering circles, where the technique of refactoring was developed precisely to address gratuitous duplication [Fowler, 1999].

This paper discusses methods of content re-use that lead to fewer cases of content duplication. The methods are presented using the technical reference documentation for a function library as a case study. The demonstrates that a careful application of these methods requires a certain amount of user re-education, but results in less content duplication, thereby side-stepping many of the issues associated with content anomalies. This can lead to a more consistent documentation set, reduced workflow, and leave the editorial staff to do editorial work, instead of enforcing either content or presentational continuity.