Incompatibility is the problem of 2 items being so opposite that they cannot co-exist in the same environment or location. 
Humans are often said to be incompatible, but relationships aren’t the only incompatible elements we deal with.
In my time at Worthwhile, I’ve run into the following incompatible situations:
- The table I created in MS Word won’t copy over into the CMS window. (This is often couched in terms of “your CMS,” as if we were the ones not letting them do it.)
- I’ll just send you those files in an MS Word document or MS Publisher file.
- Will it be ok if I send you a .pdf file of the full design for you to develop?
- (honorable mention) Since, MS Office upgrades every 2–3 years, sending/receiving incompatible versions can be a challenge as well, depending upon update and re-formatting plugins.
People often misunderstand the nature and purpose of a CMS. This software was never intended to allow you to fully format a text article in Microsoft Word and to paste that over into a CMS article window. These are essentially incompatible environments once you get beyond text and minimal formatting (bold, italics, etc.) For instance, you can’t “draw” in a Web CMS environment like you can in Word. The CMS also doesn’t contain the full array of fonts or formatting options.
The moral of this story is that in whatever you are trying to do, the Web must dictate how you go about it. So, every Web project must be at least a 3 step process. First, decide what you want to accomplish. Second, figure out how that is accomplished on the Web and according to Web standards, and third, implement your material in the way the Web requires.
The Web is your friend, but you have to play by its rules. After all, the Web is bigger than you.
