The History Window: An Unlucky Discovery

[Dr. Rick Smith]

In the wee hours of the morning, I was putting the finishing touches on a 
30-page report that was slightly past due. I was literally on the final page, 
when the History window unexpectedly popped up. Honestly, I didn't know that 
Frame 9 had a history window. I was vaguely aware that it probably worked in 
conjunction with Undo and that it probably behaved like History in 
Photoshop - you could roll things back, and return them to normal to observe 
the results of changes. 

But I didn't really care because I wanted to finish my report. But for some 
reason the History window interfered with my typing. It wasn't exactly covering 
the text I wanted to change, but I couldn't enter text any more. 

 So I clicked on the go away icon in the window corner, expecting it to 
disappear into the palette on the right. It didn't. I got annoyed and did some 
more random clicking. After all, it was hours past bedtime, I was getting 
drowsy, and I was ready to be finished.

This is always a recipe for disaster, but I didn't worry. I'm good at 
periodically saving my work, and Frame's autosave has retrieved me from 
disaster countless times before.

My random clicking seemed to upset Frame - it replied with the swirling circle, 
which usually means Go away, I'm rebuilding a book, or I'm dead now. More 
clicking brought up the ominous Windows alert: Framemaker is not responding, 
do you want to wait it out, look for help with the problem on-line, or take it 
out of its misery?

I thought briefly about aborting Frame - I'd lose the last 20 minutes' or so of 
work, but I'd get going again. On the other hand, maybe this would all clear 
itself up in another moment.

Sure enough, the swirling icon disappeared and Frame was back in control. I 
quickly hit Save before it tried to crash again. 

That was my big mistake.

My attempts to make the History window go away had apparently rolled back all 
my edits since the last announcement of We're discarding the history now. 
This was apparently several hours earlier. All earlier saves and autosaves were 
discarded - my most recent save had made the rollback permanent. 

So today I'm reconstructing all that writing that seemed so brilliant last 
night as I nodded closer and closer to the keyboard. And I've also been told 
that the customer no longer really needs the report due to the results of a 
meeting yesterday. At least I'll still get paid as long as I send them 
something reasonable.

What I find especially weird is that last year I finished a seven-hundred page 
manuscript using Frame 9 and never once encountered the HIstory window and its 
tender mercies. Just lucky I guess.

Rick.

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The History Window: An Unlucky Discovery

[Dr. Rick Smith]

In the wee hours of the morning, I was putting the finishing touches on a 
30-page report that was slightly past due. I was literally on the final page, 
when the "History" window unexpectedly popped up. Honestly, I didn't know that 
Frame 9 had a history window. I was vaguely aware that it probably worked in 
conjunction with "Undo" and that it probably behaved like "History" in 
Photoshop - you could roll things back, and return them to normal to observe 
the results of changes. 

But I didn't really care because I wanted to finish my report. But for some 
reason the History window interfered with my typing. It wasn't exactly covering 
the text I wanted to change, but I couldn't enter text any more. 

 So I clicked on the "go away" icon in the window corner, expecting it to 
disappear into the palette on the right. It didn't. I got annoyed and did some 
more random clicking. After all, it was hours past bedtime, I was getting 
drowsy, and I was ready to be finished.

This is always a recipe for disaster, but I didn't worry. I'm good at 
periodically saving my work, and Frame's autosave has retrieved me from 
disaster countless times before.

My random clicking seemed to upset Frame - it replied with the swirling circle, 
which usually means "Go away, I'm rebuilding a book," or "I'm dead now." More 
clicking brought up the ominous Windows alert: "Framemaker is not responding, 
do you want to wait it out, look for help with the problem on-line, or take it 
out of its misery?"

I thought briefly about aborting Frame - I'd lose the last 20 minutes' or so of 
work, but I'd get going again. On the other hand, maybe this would all clear 
itself up in another moment.

Sure enough, the swirling icon disappeared and Frame was back in control. I 
quickly hit "Save" before it tried to crash again. 

That was my big mistake.

My attempts to make the History window go away had apparently rolled back all 
my edits since the last announcement of "We're discarding the history now." 
This was apparently several hours earlier. All earlier saves and autosaves were 
discarded - my most recent save had made the rollback permanent. 

So today I'm reconstructing all that writing that seemed so brilliant last 
night as I nodded closer and closer to the keyboard. And I've also been told 
that the customer no longer "really" needs the report due to the results of a 
meeting yesterday. At least I'll still get paid as long as I send them 
something reasonable.

What I find especially weird is that last year I finished a seven-hundred page 
manuscript using Frame 9 and never once encountered the HIstory window and its 
tender mercies. Just lucky I guess.

Rick.

-- next part --
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Re: FrameMaker's 25th Anniversary

[Dr. Rick Smith]

OK, so I had to dash off my own Happy Anniversary posting: 
http://cys.me/node/286

Rick.

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FrameMaker's 25th Anniversary

[Dr. Rick Smith]

OK, so I had to dash off my own Happy Anniversary posting: 
http://cys.me/node/286

Rick.

MIFs, Frame 7 and Frame 9

[Dr Rick Smith]

Here's an example:

I did both the writing and compositing on my previous book, published with a 
different publisher. My current publisher insists on using their own 
compositor. The one they hired uses Frame 7. So I've taken my Frame 9 files, 
saved them all as Frame 7 MIFs, including the book file, and submitted them to 
the publisher. I also took the MIFs and re-imported them to ensure that I still 
have the same content.

Till I watched discussions here, I hadn't realized how many folks still stand 
by Frame 7.

For all I know, the compositor is on this discussion list.

Rick.

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MIFs, Frame 7 and Frame 9

[Dr Rick Smith]

Here's an example:

I did both the writing and compositing on my previous book, published with a 
different publisher. My current publisher insists on using their own 
compositor. The one they hired uses Frame 7. So I've taken my Frame 9 files, 
saved them all as Frame 7 MIFs, including the book file, and submitted them to 
the publisher. I also took the MIFs and re-imported them to ensure that I still 
have the same content.

Till I watched discussions here, I hadn't realized how many folks still stand 
by Frame 7.

For all I know, the compositor is on this discussion list.

Rick.

Re: Frame Light, what's the potential market?

[Dr Rick Smith]

I admit I'm astonished that any software product manager could ask about the 
market for a Light version of their product.

I thought the industry had already proven - time and again - that such things 
never thrive.

If they want to expand the market for Frame, why not bring back the Mac/Unix 
versions?

Moreover, they could focus on the benefits Frame carries over the competition, 
like numbering and cross references that by-golly work, and work reliably. This 
fills an important niche in tech writing, especially for those of us who don't 
have the patience to fix such things by hand.

And it would definitely improve my own workflow if I could create a 
printer-ready PDF directly from Frame, instead of having to re-edit my simple, 
if numerous, diagrams in Illustrator. But then I wouldn't need to buy a copy of 
Illustrator. 

I'm a one-man outfit, so I doubt they care what I want.

Rick Smith.

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Frame Light, what's the potential market?

[Dr Rick Smith]

I admit I'm astonished that any software product manager could ask about the 
market for a "Light" version of their product.

I thought the industry had already proven - time and again - that such things 
never thrive.

If they want to expand the market for Frame, why not bring back the Mac/Unix 
versions?

Moreover, they could focus on the benefits Frame carries over the competition, 
like numbering and cross references that by-golly work, and work reliably. This 
fills an important niche in tech writing, especially for those of us who don't 
have the patience to fix such things by hand.

And it would definitely improve my own workflow if I could create a 
printer-ready PDF directly from Frame, instead of having to re-edit my simple, 
if numerous, diagrams in Illustrator. But then I wouldn't need to buy a copy of 
Illustrator. 

I'm a one-man outfit, so I doubt they care what I want.

Rick Smith.

Re: Question

[Dr Rick Smith]

First of all, good for you for asking such a basic question - I wonder how many 
other people get emails from this list and don't understand how the process 
works.

This discussion list runs entirely through email. 

When you send a question to framers@lists.frameusers.com, it goes through 
email to everyone on the list. If someone is inclined to answer, they send the 
answer to that same email address. Then everyone on the list sees the answer.

You might get fifteen answers to your question, or you might get none, 
depending on who is busy and who knows the answer.

If you yourself know the answer to a question, you email a reply, usually with 
REPLY ALL, so the framers email address receives the response. Any email sent 
to framers goes to everyone on the list.

If you omit the framers email address from your reply, then it only goes to 
the person who asked.

A reminder of the basic instructions appear at the bottom of every framers 
email. If you want to quit the list, you use the unsubscribe email address 
described there.

RS.


On Jan 7, 2011, at 10:08 AM, Karyn Goldstein wrote:

 Good morning:
 
 I've never belonged to a list like this before, so excuse these elementary 
 questions.
 
 
 1.   How do I see the list? My email and password doesn't work in the 
 administrator password area. Is there another thing I'm missing?
 
 2.   If I have a question, so I send to this address and not post it on 
 the list itself?
 
 Since I can't see the list, and I'm not sure how I receive my answers, can 
 you please email me directly?
 
 Thank you,
 Karyn
 
 --
 Karyn Goldstein
 Sr. Technical Writer
 +1 831 419 3305
 
 ___
 
 
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Question

[Dr Rick Smith]

First of all, good for you for asking such a basic question - I wonder how many 
other people get emails from this list and don't understand how the process 
works.

This discussion list runs entirely through email. 

When you send a question to "framers at lists.frameusers.com," it goes through 
email to everyone on the list. If someone is inclined to answer, they send the 
answer to that same email address. Then everyone on the list sees the answer.

You might get fifteen answers to your question, or you might get none, 
depending on who is busy and who knows the answer.

If you yourself know the answer to a question, you email a reply, usually with 
REPLY ALL, so the "framers" email address receives the response. Any email sent 
to "framers" goes to everyone on the list.

If you omit the "framers" email address from your reply, then it only goes to 
the person who asked.

A reminder of the basic instructions appear at the bottom of every "framers" 
email. If you want to quit the list, you use the "unsubscribe" email address 
described there.

RS.


On Jan 7, 2011, at 10:08 AM, Karyn Goldstein wrote:

> Good morning:
> 
> I've never belonged to a list like this before, so excuse these elementary 
> questions.
> 
> 
> 1.   How do I see the list? My email and password doesn't work in the 
> administrator password area. Is there another thing I'm missing?
> 
> 2.   If I have a question, so I send to this address and not post it on 
> the list itself?
> 
> Since I can't see the list, and I'm not sure how I receive my answers, can 
> you please email me directly?
> 
> Thank you,
> Karyn
> 
> --
> Karyn Goldstein
> Sr. Technical Writer
> +1 831 419 3305
> 
> ___
> 
> 
> You are currently subscribed to framers as rick at cryptosmith.com.
> 
> Send list messages to framers at lists.frameusers.com.
> 
> To unsubscribe send a blank email to
> framers-unsubscribe at lists.frameusers.com
> or visit 
> http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/rick%40cryptosmith.com
> 
> Send administrative questions to listadmin at frameusers.com. Visit
> http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.
> 

Re: Convert table to text?

[Dr Rick Smith]

I've been doing that a lot recently - I have tables of terms that I need to 
de-table to put into sorted list.

I simply select all the cells I want, and paste them into a text editor. My 
usual choice is TextPad, though it may also work with NotePad.

The cells turn into text with tabs between cells.

Rick.


On Dec 1, 2010, at 11:21 AM, Linda G. Gallagher wrote:

 All,
 
 FM 8, unstructured
 
 I have a couple of tables with content that I've formatted just the way I
 want, but I need to take the content out of the tables.
 
 Am I missing it, or does FM not have a convert table to text option?
 
 I tried running it through Word to convert, but I lose a lot of formatting
 that I'd rather not have to redo.
 
 Can I convert a table to text in FM?
 
 Thanks!
 
 
 ~
 Linda G. Gallagher
 STC Fellow
 TechCom Plus, LLC
 lindag at techcomplus dot com
 www.techcomplus.com http://www.techcomplus.com/  
 303-450-9076 or 800-500-3144
 Tutorials, show me demos, user guides, help, FrameMaker and WebWorks
 ePublisher templates
 
 RMIMA Secretary
 www.RMIMA.org http://www.rmima.org/  
 
 
 
 
 ___
 
 
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Convert table to text?

[Dr Rick Smith]

I've been doing that a lot recently - I have tables of terms that I need to 
de-table to put into sorted list.

I simply select all the cells I want, and paste them into a text editor. My 
usual choice is TextPad, though it may also work with NotePad.

The cells turn into text with tabs between cells.

Rick.


On Dec 1, 2010, at 11:21 AM, Linda G. Gallagher wrote:

> All,
> 
> FM 8, unstructured
> 
> I have a couple of tables with content that I've formatted just the way I
> want, but I need to take the content out of the tables.
> 
> Am I missing it, or does FM not have a convert table to text option?
> 
> I tried running it through Word to convert, but I lose a lot of formatting
> that I'd rather not have to redo.
> 
> Can I convert a table to text in FM?
> 
> Thanks!
> 
> 
> ~
> Linda G. Gallagher
> STC Fellow
> TechCom Plus, LLC
> lindag at techcomplus dot com
> www.techcomplus.com   
> 303-450-9076 or 800-500-3144
> Tutorials, "show me" demos, user guides, help, FrameMaker and WebWorks
> ePublisher templates
> 
> RMIMA Secretary
> www.RMIMA.org   
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ___
> 
> 
> You are currently subscribed to framers as rick at cryptosmith.com.
> 
> Send list messages to framers at lists.frameusers.com.
> 
> To unsubscribe send a blank email to
> framers-unsubscribe at lists.frameusers.com
> or visit 
> http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/rick%40cryptosmith.com
> 
> Send administrative questions to listadmin at frameusers.com. Visit
> http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.
> 

Frame on the Mac

[Dr Rick Smith]

On Jul 23, 2010, at 9:31 AM, boe...@gedok.com wrote:

 Hi, there,
 
 we here were working as long as possible with our old Framemaker 7 on the 
 mac. Adobe got us on the wrong foot with discontinuing Framemaker on the 
 mac... :-(


Brag: I'm using Frame 9 on an Intel Mac Pro
Admission: It's running on Windows 7 using VMWare Fusion.
Another admission: I'm a technical geek. I also have two separate displays and 
enough RAM to run two operating systems. 

In any case, let me ask how others are running PC versions of Frame on the Mac. 
For a while I wondered why so many people still use Frame 7, but I assume it's 
because lots of people still run it on a Mac. 

My own solution might not work for everyone. Installation is nasty, since you 
have to install VMWare, Windows, and Framemaker, and keep Windows up to date as 
well as OS X. 

Once it's running, it is as if I am using two separate computers with the same 
keyboard and mouse. One display shows Windows and the other shows OS X. I find 
it easiest to keep each OS on a separate display. 

I have no performance complaints. There are practical disadvantages since I am 
essentially running two separate computers, each with its own hard drive. I use 
Microsoft's free SyncToy to keep an up to date copy of my files on the Windows 
hard drive and in the OS-X file system (where Time Machine backs it up). 

VMWare also has a mode called Unity in which the PC applications appear in 
their own windows on the Mac desktop. I tried that briefly, but found it 
confusing. Others might have better luck.

Rick Smith.


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Re: Frame on the Mac

[Dr Rick Smith]

On Jul 24, 2010, at 8:53 AM, Steve Johnson wrote:

 VMWare ... what? Player? Workstation? Server, etc?

VMWare Fusion. It's a 'player' that runs on the Mac.

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Frame on the Mac

[Dr Rick Smith]

On Jul 23, 2010, at 9:31 AM, boenat at gedok.com wrote:

> Hi, there,
> 
> we here were working as long as possible with our old Framemaker 7 on the 
> mac. Adobe got us on the wrong foot with discontinuing Framemaker on the 
> mac... :-(


Brag: I'm using Frame 9 on an Intel Mac Pro
Admission: It's running on Windows 7 using VMWare Fusion.
Another admission: I'm a technical geek. I also have two separate displays and 
enough RAM to run two operating systems. 

In any case, let me ask how others are running PC versions of Frame on the Mac. 
For a while I wondered why so many people still use Frame 7, but I assume it's 
because lots of people still run it on a Mac. 

My own solution might not work for everyone. Installation is nasty, since you 
have to install VMWare, Windows, and Framemaker, and keep Windows up to date as 
well as OS X. 

Once it's running, it is as if I am using two separate computers with the same 
keyboard and mouse. One display shows Windows and the other shows OS X. I find 
it easiest to keep each OS on a separate display. 

I have no performance complaints. There are practical disadvantages since I am 
essentially running two separate computers, each with its own hard drive. I use 
Microsoft's free SyncToy to keep an up to date copy of my files on the Windows 
hard drive and in the OS-X file system (where Time Machine backs it up). 

VMWare also has a mode called "Unity" in which the PC applications appear in 
their own windows on the Mac desktop. I tried that briefly, but found it 
confusing. Others might have better luck.

Rick Smith.

Frame on the Mac

[Dr Rick Smith]

On Jul 24, 2010, at 8:53 AM, Steve Johnson wrote:

> VMWare ... what? Player? Workstation? Server, etc?

VMWare Fusion. It's a 'player' that runs on the Mac.

Re: Flakey cross references

[Dr Rick Smith]

Keep in mind that there are two parts to every cross reference: the text that 
refers, and the text referred to. You need both files open to create a cross 
reference and you must save BOTH files to preserve the cross reference. 

As far a I know, you can't create a cross reference to a read-only file. But 
honestly, I've never seriously tried.


 On Jul 20, 2010, at 1:00 PM, framers-requ...@lists.frameusers.com wrote:
 
 From: Layton, Debbie debbie.lay...@xerox.com
 To: framers@lists.frameusers.com
 Subject: Flakey cross references
 Message-ID:
  78ef4e337f3131469c3bb1f11a42d8970d83b...@usa7061ms04.na.xerox.net
 Content-Type: text/plain;charset=us-ascii
 
 I'm using FrameMaker 7.0 on XP Professional. I've got a book with about
 11 chapters in it.
 
 
 
 I continue to get unresolved cross reference messages. I have gone in
 and re-done all of them, since the original files were copied from
 another manual, but when I open the documents again, I get the messages
 again. None of the files have been moved. I have been printing .ps files
 in order to create PDFs of the book. (Somehow that seems to have
 something to do with the problem.) The links in the PDF files are fine,
 and the page numbers are correct. 
 

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Flakey cross references

[Dr Rick Smith]

Keep in mind that there are two parts to every cross reference: the text that 
refers, and the text referred to. You need both files open to create a cross 
reference and you must save BOTH files to preserve the cross reference. 

As far a I know, you can't create a cross reference to a read-only file. But 
honestly, I've never seriously tried.


> On Jul 20, 2010, at 1:00 PM, framers-request at lists.frameusers.com wrote:
> 
>> From: "Layton, Debbie" 
>> To: 
>> Subject: Flakey cross references
>> Message-ID:
>>  <78EF4E337F3131469C3BB1F11A42D8970D83B1CF at USA7061MS04.na.xerox.net>
>> Content-Type: text/plain;charset="us-ascii"
>> 
>> I'm using FrameMaker 7.0 on XP Professional. I've got a book with about
>> 11 chapters in it.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> I continue to get unresolved cross reference messages. I have gone in
>> and re-done all of them, since the original files were copied from
>> another manual, but when I open the documents again, I get the messages
>> again. None of the files have been moved. I have been printing .ps files
>> in order to create PDFs of the book. (Somehow that seems to have
>> something to do with the problem.) The links in the PDF files are fine,
>> and the page numbers are correct. 
>> 

Re: Framemaker 9 vs Microsoft Word

[Dr Rick Smith]

Regarding Frame vs Word, let me explain how I use it: I'm a consultant  
whose vice is book writing. I've been writing books with unstructured  
Frame since version 4. I'm also obliged to use MS Word when writing  
reports for clients.


Rather than list strong points of each, let me list weak points of each:



Weak points of Framemaker

* Hardly anyone uses Frame. There's rarely any point in emailing Frame  
documents to people. Fortunately, both of my publishers have a  
production organization that knows/understands/loves it.


* The vendor doesn't take the product seriously. This is shown through  
lackluster advertising, upgrades, and support. It reminds me of  
Multics under Honeywell, for the oldsters out there.  I'm astonished  
that the program is in as good a shape as it is. I'm always expecting  
another We're dropping Frame announcement.


* Since it's not taken seriously, there are rough edges in the user  
interface. Today, even the simplest text editor software understands  
click and drag. Not Framemaker. When the scroll wheel became a  
common GUI feature a decade ago, Frame required an extra release or  
two before the scroll wheel worked reliably.


* The analytical and statistical tools are weak or nonexistent.  
There's a hokey interface that performs word count, and that's about  
it. There are no analytics of average sentence complexity or grade  
level. While on one level I'm not confident that an algorithmic  
analysis will provide authoritative answers, I'd like to see how my  
different chapters compare.


* Important features use complicated interfaces that are hard to  
master through pure trial and error. I was initiated into the arcane  
secrets of section numbering by the Wizard Sheldon, who could make  
Framemaker sing soprano. You really need -training- to do advanced  
things like TOCs and indices, either in person or from a clear and  
complete written explanation. I'm only tackling indices this time  
because there's a readable chapter on it in O'Keefe et al's  
Unstructured Framemaker 8 (and because the publisher isn't doing the  
index himself).


* There's no outlining feature with expand/collapse and a distinction  
between headings and text, like you have in MS Word. While I don't  
find Word's outline feature very effective, it's better than almost  
all 3rd party outliners.




Weak points of MS Word - things that have failed me over the past decade

* If you want a consistent document, you need to put it all in one  
file. Maybe they've fixed that by now, but I've mercifully not had to  
deal with a giant Word document recently.


* If the document gets too big (100+ pages), random things start  
failing. In a previous version, I remember seeing bullet symbols  
randomly disappear from bullet lists when the document reached 100  
pages.


* I can't make cross references work as cleanly and reliably as they  
work in Frame.


* I can't control a figure's location as reliably as I can in Frame.

* I can't make chapter or section or figure or table numbering work as  
cleanly and reliably as it works in Frame.


* I can't change an individual paragraph's format as cleanly as I do  
in Frame. When I try to apply a Word style or a format or whatever to  
a paragraph, I get a bunch of questions about whether I'm trying to  
redefine the style or globally apply this paragraph's format to other  
things, or something else irrelevant.


* I can't reliably make a global change to a paragraph format and  
propagate it to all thusly-formatted paragraphs and do it as easily  
and reliably as I do in Frame.



Over the years I've learned how to fix some of my gripes about Word,  
but the fixes haven't always survived past the next product upgrade.



Rick Smith
Cryptosmith LLC

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Framemaker 9 vs Microsoft Word

[Dr Rick Smith]

Regarding Frame vs Word, let me explain how I use it: I'm a consultant  
whose vice is book writing. I've been writing books with unstructured  
Frame since version 4. I'm also obliged to use MS Word when writing  
reports for clients.

Rather than list strong points of each, let me list weak points of each:



Weak points of Framemaker

* Hardly anyone uses Frame. There's rarely any point in emailing Frame  
documents to people. Fortunately, both of my publishers have a  
production organization that knows/understands/loves it.

* The vendor doesn't take the product seriously. This is shown through  
lackluster advertising, upgrades, and support. It reminds me of  
Multics under Honeywell, for the oldsters out there.  I'm astonished  
that the program is in as good a shape as it is. I'm always expecting  
another "We're dropping Frame" announcement.

* Since it's not taken seriously, there are rough edges in the user  
interface. Today, even the simplest text editor software understands  
"click and drag." Not Framemaker. When the scroll wheel became a  
common GUI feature a decade ago, Frame required an extra release or  
two before the scroll wheel worked reliably.

* The analytical and statistical tools are weak or nonexistent.  
There's a hokey interface that performs "word count," and that's about  
it. There are no analytics of average sentence complexity or grade  
level. While on one level I'm not confident that an algorithmic  
analysis will provide authoritative answers, I'd like to see how my  
different chapters compare.

* Important features use complicated interfaces that are hard to  
master through pure trial and error. I was initiated into the arcane  
secrets of section numbering by the Wizard Sheldon, who could make  
Framemaker sing soprano. You really need -training- to do advanced  
things like TOCs and indices, either in person or from a clear and  
complete written explanation. I'm only tackling indices this time  
because there's a readable chapter on it in O'Keefe et al's  
"Unstructured Framemaker 8" (and because the publisher isn't doing the  
index himself).

* There's no outlining feature with expand/collapse and a distinction  
between headings and text, like you have in MS Word. While I don't  
find Word's outline feature very effective, it's better than almost  
all 3rd party outliners.



Weak points of MS Word - things that have failed me over the past decade

* If you want a consistent document, you need to put it all in one  
file. Maybe they've fixed that by now, but I've mercifully not had to  
deal with a giant Word document recently.

* If the document gets too big (100+ pages), random things start  
failing. In a previous version, I remember seeing bullet symbols  
randomly disappear from bullet lists when the document reached 100  
pages.

* I can't make cross references work as cleanly and reliably as they  
work in Frame.

* I can't control a figure's location as reliably as I can in Frame.

* I can't make chapter or section or figure or table numbering work as  
cleanly and reliably as it works in Frame.

* I can't change an individual paragraph's format as cleanly as I do  
in Frame. When I try to apply a Word style or a format or whatever to  
a paragraph, I get a bunch of questions about whether I'm trying to  
redefine the style or globally apply this paragraph's format to other  
things, or something else irrelevant.

* I can't reliably make a global change to a paragraph format and  
propagate it to all thusly-formatted paragraphs and do it as easily  
and reliably as I do in Frame.


Over the years I've learned how to fix some of my gripes about Word,  
but the fixes haven't always survived past the next product upgrade.


Rick Smith
Cryptosmith LLC

Content Structuring on a desktop

[Dr Rick Smith]

I wrote my first two books by creating huge outlines in ThinkTank or  
MORE, and importing them into Framemaker. The last book was published  
in 2001 using Frame 5 or a Mac (grumble grumble). The MORE-to-Frame  
conversion created five levels of headings which became chapters,  
sections, subsections, on down to some bulleted lists. At the leaf  
level I could include a summary paragraph that I'd use as a starting  
point for the real writing.

I'm halfway through a new project (just converted from Frame 7 to 9)  
and I miss the old flexibility. The current crop of outliners are  
garbage. The MS Word outline format doesn't seem to bring format tags  
into Frame, so you lose the hierarchy. The only outlining tool that is  
close to MORE is a now-unsupported screenwriting tool. And its import  
ability makes it nearly useless, too.

I know how to build a structured document in Frame, but I see no no  
easy way to work with structure pieces at a macro level, like Move  
section 3.2 to under 5.3 except by selecting and moving multi-page  
chunks of text.

I've read about DITA and I'd love to use a database to store chunks of  
the document (that's how I think) but these solutions seem to require  
server-level implementations or unexplained bits of additional software.

Rick Smith
http://www.cryptosmith.com/



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http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.

Content Structuring on a desktop

[Dr Rick Smith]

I wrote my first two books by creating huge outlines in ThinkTank or  
MORE, and importing them into Framemaker. The last book was published  
in 2001 using Frame 5 or a Mac (grumble grumble). The MORE-to-Frame  
conversion created five levels of headings which became chapters,  
sections, subsections, on down to some bulleted lists. At the leaf  
level I could include a summary paragraph that I'd use as a starting  
point for the real writing.

I'm halfway through a new project (just converted from Frame 7 to 9)  
and I miss the old flexibility. The current crop of outliners are  
garbage. The MS Word outline format doesn't seem to bring format tags  
into Frame, so you lose the hierarchy. The only outlining tool that is  
close to MORE is a now-unsupported screenwriting tool. And its import  
ability makes it nearly useless, too.

I know how to build a structured document in Frame, but I see no no  
easy way to work with structure pieces at a macro level, like "Move  
section 3.2 to under 5.3" except by selecting and moving multi-page  
chunks of text.

I've read about DITA and I'd love to use a database to store chunks of  
the document (that's how I think) but these solutions seem to require  
server-level implementations or unexplained bits of additional software.

Rick Smith
http://www.cryptosmith.com/