question about modification date variable

[Alan Litchfield]

Hi Deirdre,

It seems odd that there is only one date no the Revisions Page. If only one
date is used I would have thought that it would appear on the title page only
and there would be no need for a Revisions Page. From what I have seen you
only have a Revisions Page to list revision dates, revision numbers, and who
validated/verified them.

Assuming what is being done is the latter, then if the date that appears on
each page is the same date as the newest date on the Revisions Page then this
is what I would do:

Part 1;
1. On the Revisions Page, make a table to contain the revision dates, numbers,
names.
2. Create a marker that is put into the table cell that contains the date you
want shown on the body pages.
3. When you need a new date, add a row to the table, type in the information
required and move the marker into the new cell that contains the new date.

Part 2;
1. On the Master pages for the body text pages put a cross reference in the
header/footer that points to the marker on the Revisions Page
2. To update the date in the header/footer use the cross references update
function (depending on whether you are using a book or stand alone file, how
you do it will vary).

By doing this you will need to manually type the new revision date onto the
Revisions Page and move the marker, then update the cross references. But that
is all.

Of course, if you have only one date on that page, then it is easy. Do the
above but you don't need to move the marker to a new cell.

Cheers
Alan

Deirdre Reagan wrote:
> Hi Alan:
>
> I'm asking because I've never done this before and I don't know how to do it.
>
> The document is a template.  There's only one date on the Record of
> Revisions, and that date appears as a cross reference on every other
> page.
>
> Basically, I'm looking at a template and attempting to figure out how
> I would add a revision date on an actual document.
>
> We've been typing in the revision date manually, but I don't know if
> that's because that's how it's supposed to be done, or if that's
> because the people here aren't using FM to it's full capacity.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Deirdre
>
> On 3/19/08, Alan Litchfield  wrote:
>> Hi Deirdre
>>
>> Deirdre Reagan wrote:
>> >
>> > The date on every single page is a cross reference to the original
>> > date variable on the Record of Revisions page.  Does that sound right
>> > to you?
>>
>> Logically I would think that the dates on the Revisions Page should reflect
>> what are on the individual pages, but that depends on how it is structured.
>> Do
>> you have a revision number and the date of that revision on the Revisions
>> Page
>> which matches the most recent date within the document? Or are the revisions
>> dated only when a new version is numbered?
>>
>> Alternatively, have you got a list of all the pages on the Revisions Page
>> and
>> the date of their last revision?
>>
>> >
>> > I'm asking because I'm wondering how to deal with revisions.  How do I
>> > modify the date on the pages that have been revised?  Put a
>> > modification date variable on the Record of Revisions page then
>> > manually erase the cross-reference on each affected page and insert a
>> > cross-reference to the Record of Revision modification date variable?
>> >
>>
>> How you do this may depend on what the answer to the above is.
>>
>> Cheers
>> Alan
>>
>> --
>> Alan Litchfield MBus (Hons), MNZCS
>> AlphaByte
>> PO Box 1941, Auckland
>> http://www.alphabyte.co.nz
>>
>>
>


-- 
Alan Litchfield MBus (Hons), MNZCS
AlphaByte
PO Box 1941, Auckland
http://www.alphabyte.co.nz

MadCap Blaze

[Hedley Finger]

Sharon:

I concur with Bill.  What I cannot understand is that this was trumpeted as a
FrameMaker killer yet its functionality falls far below.  FM is very 
powerful but
still needs a lot of work.  For one, the presence of so many indexing add-ons
indicates that better indexing and index management needs to be built in.

The Adobe DITA support is woeful; thank god Leximation and Silicon Publishing
are addressing that with their plugin.

At Friday, 21/03/2008, 02:26 AM;, you wrote:
> >  One of the biggest differences in Blaze - and really, Flare - is that you
> >  are not authoring long documents, but rather you're authoring 
> topics. Then,
> >  using Outlines, you put together the topics into the deliverables; for
> >  example, a User's Guide and an Admin Guide.

Then why didn't you just do DITA from the beginning?  It has a much more
robust model of technical communications documents -- and you can specialise
your own models for specific requirements.  The XHTML-based model is foolish
because you are simply implementing a good old unstructured document
no better than Word, unstructured FrameMaker or Notepad.

One of the bugbears in a team environment is ensuring everyone is using the
same structure and styles/formats appropriately.  You can employ an editor
to ride herd on everybody -- or just implement a DTD or schema which 
automatically
enforces conformance.

> >  There's nothing to prevent you from authoring just like you do in Word of
> >  Frame in that you can open a new topic in Blaze and then write a 200 page
> >  document in one topic. ...
>
>Well, agreed. ... For the record, I've done
>topic-based authoring in FrameMaker years ago.

A colleague of mine implements a very DITA-like approach by having 
empty chapter files
in which all the content is imported as text insets.  The equivalent 
of the 
element was implemented by putting FM cross-references in the chapter 
document after
each of the topic text-insets.  This ensured the topics were context 
free but the cross-
references were robust.

> >  I strongly urge you to attend one of my online demos to learn 
> more about the
> >  paradigm shift for Blaze.

What paradigm shift?  The Madcap team were from 
Bluesky/Robohelp/eHelp, so must
be quite familiar with the topic model.  I don't have a problem with 
quirky GUIs as any IDE
is similar.  In fact, I think a tech. doco app should have an 
interface more like an IDE.

I played around for five minutes.  How do you get to a code view, as 
long as we are in XML?

> >  As to DITA or CMS,
> >  check out our just announced product Team Server. It's a 
> workflow management
> >  tool that's amazing. We have ideas about what it should do but 
> we want your
> >  input about what you need that tool to do.
>
>I'm confused. Is it a product or is it an idea for a product?

Well, it should allow concurrent checkout, automatic merge on checkin 
if changes don't
clash, and manual compare and merge if changes by different writers 
do clash.  It should
allow branching and merging back to the trunk.  It should allow 
automation so overnight doco
builds can be done.  It should mark topics that have been touched 
since the last release so that
the editor/reviewers/writers don't have to review the entire 
publication.  It should allow staging so
that changes by disgruntled employees are not immediately published 
on to the website.  Etc.

> >  I'm delighted to answer questions about Blaze or any of our 
> products. If you
> >  could send those questions to my MadCap email, that would help me a lot.
> >  sburton at madcapsoftware.com, please.

If I come up with any more suggestions, they will be published right 
here.  They will be better
for evaluation and improvement by other list members.

Regards,
Hedley

--
Hedley Stewart Finger
28 Regent Street   Camberwell VIC 3124   Australia
Tel. +61 3 9809 1229   Mobile +61 412 461 558,
E-mail 

--
Hedley Stewart Finger
28 Regent Street   Camberwell VIC 3124   Australia
Tel. +61 3 9809 1229   Mobile +61 412 461 558,
E-mail 

MadCap Blaze

[Hedley Finger]

Sharon:

At Friday, 21/03/2008, 11:07 AM;, you wrote:
>you also have short line control, missing from FrameMaker.

Is that the same as widows and orphans?  Or is it when a small word, 
say "all", turns over onto a new line at the end of a paragraph?  If 
the latter, in FM most people just put a non-breaking space before 
the word, e.g. "\ all", in order to bring the preceding word over 
onto the last line.

Regards,
Hedley


--
Hedley Stewart Finger
28 Regent Street   Camberwell VIC 3124   Australia
Tel. +61 3 9809 1229   Mobile +61 412 461 558,
E-mail 

delivering XML on the web

[Yves Barbion]

Hi Mollye,

I'm currently also working on a fun project: authoring structured 
content for a corporate website.

I'm using the DITA information model and I'm writing DITA topics in 
FrameMaker with the DITA-FMx plug-in. This is how I do it:

   1. We do a brainstorm and make a list of the topics which we want to
  have on the site.
   2. We open this list in FrameMaker and save it as a regular,
  unstructured FrameMaker file. This list is resembles the
  traditional outline: the indents define the level of the topics
  and headings.
   3. We  use DITA-FMx to create a ditamap and "stubs" from this list.
  The "stubs" are topics which already have the correct title and
  some metadata.
   4. Write standalone, information-typed topics, which means filling in
  the stubs.
   5. We (re)arrange the topics in the ditamap, which will later become
  the sitemap.
   6. In the ditamap, use a "relationship table" to add links to my
  topics (navigation). 

I use the DITA Open Toolkit to generate the following output:

* xhtml. These are the files which I deliver to my web developer.
* HTMLHelp, which I then convert to WebHelp. This gives me a pretty
  good idea of how my "pages" look in a web browser and how the
  navigation and linking works.

Lessons learned?

* Authoring, and (re)structuring web content has never been easier.
  Just take the ditamap and drag the topics around in the structure
  to the position where you want to have them.
* The DITA-FMx plug-in is really the must-have tool if you want to
  author DITA content in FrameMaker.


More information about DITA and DITA-FMx?

* http://leximation.com/dita-fmx/
* http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/tc_home.php?wg_abbrev=dita
* http://dita.xml.org/
* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DITA


Kind regards


Yves Barbion 
Documentation Architect
Adobe-Certified FrameMaker Instructor


Scripto bvba
Asselsstraat 65
9031 Gent
Belgium
T: +32 494 12 01 89
F: +32 9 366 50 23
BTW (VAT) BE 0886.192.394
skype: yves.barbion




Mollye Barrett wrote:
> Dear Framers,
>
> I'm working on a fun project (for an equipment manufacturer) using Frame
> to author structured files that may (for a time) be published to PDF as
> well as to XML. The XML files will be checked into a CMS and delivered to
> the web for dynamic publication based on metadata and/or search.
>
> Is anyone doing the same or something similar? I'm interested your
> production path details, information model, lessons learned and, very
> soon, navigation in the delivery environment.
>
> I look forward to and appreciate any replies.
>
> Mollye Barrett
> ClearPath, LLC
> 414-331-1378
> ___
>
>
> You are currently subscribed to Framers as yves.barbion at gmail.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/yves.barbion%40gmail.com
>
> Send administrative questions to listadmin at frameusers.com. Visit
> http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.
>
>   

delivering XML on the web

[Gordon McLean]

https://info2.lotus.com/bluegrass/

This flipped across my path recently and sounds similar to what you are
doing, might be worth a look??

Gordon 

-Original Message-
From: framers-boun...@lists.frameusers.com
[mailto:framers-bounces at lists.frameusers.com] On Behalf Of Mollye Barrett
Sent: 20 March 2008 20:02
To: framers at lists.frameusers.com
Subject: delivering XML on the web

Dear Framers,

I'm working on a fun project (for an equipment manufacturer) using Frame to
author structured files that may (for a time) be published to PDF as well as
to XML. The XML files will be checked into a CMS and delivered to the web
for dynamic publication based on metadata and/or search.

Is anyone doing the same or something similar? I'm interested your
production path details, information model, lessons learned and, very soon,
navigation in the delivery environment.

I look forward to and appreciate any replies.

Mollye Barrett
ClearPath, LLC
414-331-1378
___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as
Gordon.McLean at grahamtechnology.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/gordon.mclean%40grahamte
chnology.com

Send administrative questions to listadmin at frameusers.com. Visit
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.




This email (and any attachments) is private and confidential, and is intended 
solely for the
addressee. If you have received this communication in error please remove it 
and inform us via
telephone or email. Although we take all possible steps to ensure mail and 
attachments
are free from malicious content, malware and viruses, we cannot accept any 
responsibility
whatsoever for any changes to content outwith our administrative bounds. The 
views represented
within this mail are solely the view of the author and do not reflect the views 
of the organisation
as a whole.

Graham Technology plc
Registered in Scotland company no. SC143434
Registered Office India of Inchinnan, Renfrewshire, Scotland PA4 9LH

http://www.grahamtechnology.com

More like a flicker than a Blaze

[richard.melan...@us.tel.com]

 They gotta start somewhere!
Rick


-Original Message-
From: framers-bounces at lists.frameusers.com 
[mailto:framers-boun...@lists.frameusers.com] On Behalf Of Hedley Finger
Sent: Wednesday, March 19, 2008 6:55 PM
To: Frame Users
Subject: More like a flicker than a Blaze


Blaze the FrameMaker killer?  Don't make me laugh.

What about a named style for everything?  What about smart cross-references?  
What about variables?  What about advanced search and replace for anything?  
What about diagnostic reports?

XHTML, not even XML.  No DITA.

Adobe will be able to have a good laugh and sink back into its customary state 
of complacency.

Frame killer?  Frame tickler.

And I wanted so much for it to be an advanced XML-based editor with
CSS3 page layout styling, or even a nifty XSL-FO styler.  Breathe easy 
Arbortext.

Regards,
Hedley

P.S.  But if I want an advanced XHTML editor for my web site, this baby will do.


--
Hedley Stewart Finger
28 Regent Street   Camberwell VIC 3124   Australia
Tel. +61 3 9809 1229   Mobile +61 412 461 558,
E-mail 


___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as richard.melanson at us.tel.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/richard.melanson%40us.tel.com

Send administrative questions to listadmin at frameusers.com. Visit
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.

MadCap Blaze

[Sharon Burton]

It's the second, as in your example. If the words leave a line that's too
short to look good, you can set how that's managed. It can either
recalculate the lines above it and pull the short line up into the paragraph
OR it can expand the text and send more into the last line.

But it's automatic. You don't have to put a non-breaking space. And if you
need to reuse that content in another layout, that non-breaking space could
look icky in the second layout. Better to set rules for this and then move
on.


sharon

Sharon Burton
CEO, Anthrobytes Consulting
951-369-8590
www.anthrobytes.com


-Original Message-
From: framers-boun...@lists.frameusers.com
[mailto:framers-bounces at lists.frameusers.com]On Behalf Of Hedley Finger
Sent: Thursday, March 20, 2008 7:35 PM
To: Frame Users
Subject: Re: MadCap Blaze



Sharon:

At Friday, 21/03/2008, 11:07 AM;, you wrote:
>you also have short line control, missing from FrameMaker.

Is that the same as widows and orphans?  Or is it when a small word,
say "all", turns over onto a new line at the end of a paragraph?  If
the latter, in FM most people just put a non-breaking space before
the word, e.g. "\ all", in order to bring the preceding word over
onto the last line.

Regards,
Hedley

How to track versions

[mathieu jacquet]

Dear all,I am looking for a tool to manage the different versions of a same 
document. Does FM 8.0 include this kind of feature? Do you use a specific tool? 
In a word, how do you track versions of a document (unstructured FM)?Thank you 
for your tips!Yours sincerely,Mathieu.
_
Votre contact a choisi Hotmail, l'e-mail ultra s?curis?. Cr?ez un compte 
gratuitement !
http://www.windowslive.fr/hotmail/default.asp

delivering XML on the web

[Mollye Barrett]

Hi Yves,

Thanks! sounds cool and you've provided great details. The creation process
sounds relatively easy. For sure, if I used DITA everything from this very
large doc set would need rewriting... It's likely time to do a serious
content cleaning so I'll do some projections on time and cost.

Does each xhtml file truly stand-alone? When topics with prescribed
relationships (rel table) change, do you have to recompile to maintain those
relationships?  

Thanks again. You've provided perspective and that's what I need!

Best!
Mollye

-Original Message-
From: Yves Barbion [mailto:yves.barb...@gmail.com] 
Sent: Friday, March 21, 2008 4:18 AM
To: mollye at clearpath.cc
Cc: framers at lists.frameusers.com
Subject: Re: delivering XML on the web



Hi Mollye,

I'm currently also working on a fun project: authoring structured content
for a corporate website.

I'm using the DITA information model and I'm writing DITA topics in
FrameMaker with the DITA-FMx plug-in. This is how I do it:


1.  We do a brainstorm and make a list of the topics which we want to
have on the site. 

2.  We open this list in FrameMaker and save it as a regular,
unstructured FrameMaker file. This list is resembles the traditional
outline: the indents define the level of the topics and headings. 

3.  We  use DITA-FMx to create a ditamap and "stubs" from this list. The
"stubs" are topics which already have the correct title and some metadata.


4.  Write standalone, information-typed topics, which means filling in
the stubs.


5.  We (re)arrange the topics in the ditamap, which will later become
the sitemap. 

6.  In the ditamap, use a "relationship table" to add links to my topics
(navigation). 


I use the DITA Open Toolkit to generate the following output:


*   xhtml. These are the files which I deliver to my web developer.


*   HTMLHelp, which I then convert to WebHelp. This gives me a pretty
good idea of how my "pages" look in a web browser and how the navigation and
linking works.


Lessons learned?


*   Authoring, and (re)structuring web content has never been easier.
Just take the ditamap and drag the topics around in the structure to the
position where you want to have them. 

*   The DITA-FMx plug-in is really the must-have tool if you want to
author DITA content in FrameMaker. 


More information about DITA and DITA-FMx?


*   http://leximation.com/dita-fmx/


*   http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/tc_home.php?wg_abbrev=dita 

*   http://dita.xml.org/ 

*   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DITA 


Kind regards


Yves Barbion 

Documentation Architect

Adobe-Certified FrameMaker Instructor





Scripto bvba

Asselsstraat 65

9031 Gent

Belgium

T: +32 494 12 01 89

F: +32 9 366 50 23

BTW (VAT) BE 0886.192.394

skype: yves.barbion




Mollye Barrett wrote: 

Dear Framers,



I'm working on a fun project (for an equipment manufacturer) using Frame

to author structured files that may (for a time) be published to PDF as

well as to XML. The XML files will be checked into a CMS and delivered to

the web for dynamic publication based on metadata and/or search.



Is anyone doing the same or something similar? I'm interested your

production path details, information model, lessons learned and, very

soon, navigation in the delivery environment.



I look forward to and appreciate any replies.



Mollye Barrett

ClearPath, LLC

414-331-1378

___





You are currently subscribed to Framers as yves.barbion at gmail.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/yves.barbion%40gmail.com



Send administrative questions to listadmin at frameusers.com. Visit

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

MadCap Blaze

[qui...@airmail.net]

The problem is that XML and by extention XHTML describe content, not 
presentation or formatting. HTML is designed to present data in a 
formatted state (XHTML is designed to allow the content author to 
define the structure and presentation). But HTML does not have the 
control built into it for printed media. It can be used, but is a 
pale shadow of what can be done with a word processor, much less 
dedicate apps like FrameMaker or InDesign.

The data format is text for Gods sake. And  Blaze's output to print 
is through PDF or XPS. Fine, but it means you have to define your 
output. A second step of design that you don't do with FrameMaker or 
InDesign, or even Word.

Scott

At 3:39 PM -0800 3/20/08, Sharon Burton wrote:
>Vendor post
>
>Forgive me - these are straight questions. I really don't quite understand.
>
>What's convoluted about getting printed output out of XML, HTML, or 
>XHTML topics
>in Blaze?
>
>You create topics, you define and assign style sheets to topics (you can also
>have multiple style sheets in one project and assign them at build time when
>you create the output), you create outlines that define the content for the
>output, you specify PDF, XPS, or HTML as the output, you output, and you're
>done.
>
>What other printed outputs would you want? PDF and XPS seem to be 
>the only ones
>you can send to a printer for printed books... If your workflow needs you to
>also output to Word or Frame, we have that too, but it's not really a print
>output, per se.
>
>As to XML, HTML, or XHTML not being the right data format for 
>content, it's the
>direction the industry is moving. Data in these formats are more 
>extendable and
>reusable than in a Word format, for example... Pretty much all CMSs, for
>example, store data as one of these formats.
>
>We've not found much that you can do in unstructured Frame that you 
>can't do in
>Blaze. But Blaze does things that Frame can't do, like Smart Cross-references.
>[see the docs or our website for what those are but they are very powerful]
>
>As to the docs, we have a 36 page Quick Start Guide and very extensive help
>system in the first beta build. This *is* a beta, so we're finishing the docs
>during the beta, hopefully using info you guys give us about what else needs
>tight docs. We would need to know what are you struggling with that needs more
>docs?
>
>Can you help me understand?
>
>Quoting quills at airmail.net:
>
>>
>>For a product that is supposedly Print oriented, HTML is a lousy
>>media to produce it in. There is no reason to use HTML. Even XHTML is
>>not the best route, nor is XML. While HTML and XHTML are presentation
>>based, they don't allow the same type of easy manipulation that
>>FrameMaker or even Word allows.
>>
>>This just isn't a paradigm that makes sense to me. There isn't an
>>output other than html or PDF or XPS. The means to get to your output
>>result is laborious and convoluted. This just doesn't seem to be a
>>well thought out print solution.
>>
>>And the beta did not provide me with any real documentation that I
>>could view with confidence. Was that a problem with the build?
>>
>>Scott

More like a flicker than a Blaze

[qui...@airmail.net]

Truthfully, I'd use Oxygen rather than Blaze for an XHTML editor. Or 
I'd use a couple of other apps, which even when taken as a group are 
less expensive than would be Blaze. And have a learning curve that 
isn't as steep. The requirement to design isn't one that I would give 
to all authors, though the input of data I would, and that can be 
done with text editors, much as is done with Arbortext apps.

Scott

At 9:54 AM +1100 3/20/08, Hedley Finger wrote:
>Blaze the FrameMaker killer?  Don't make me laugh.
>
>What about a named style for everything?  What about smart
>cross-references?  What about variables?  What about advanced search
>and replace for anything?  What about diagnostic reports?
>
>XHTML, not even XML.  No DITA.
>
>Adobe will be able to have a good laugh and sink back into its
>customary state of complacency.
>
>Frame killer?  Frame tickler.
>
>And I wanted so much for it to be an advanced XML-based editor with
>CSS3 page layout styling, or even a nifty XSL-FO styler.  Breathe
>easy Arbortext.
>
>Regards,
>Hedley
>
>P.S.  But if I want an advanced XHTML editor for my web site, this
>baby will do.
>
>
>--
>Hedley Stewart Finger
>28 Regent Street   Camberwell VIC 3124   Australia
>Tel. +61 3 9809 1229   Mobile +61 412 461 558,
>E-mail 
>

Installation issues: Acrobat Pro 8 on top of FM 8

[Tina Ricks]

Hi all



I wrote yesterday about Word and the Acrobat markup tools for reviewers, and
agreed with the consensus that Acrobat Pro 8 is the way to go for reviewing.



So I ordered a copy (due here in a few days by snail mail). I also
downloaded the 30 day trial so I can work with it now.



When I try to install the free download of Acrobat Pro 8, I get this
message:



"Setup has detected that you already have a more functional product
installed."



And then the install quits.



What gives? I want Acrobat Pro. I bought it. I just want to install it. Does
it matter which order FM8 and Acrobat Pro 8 get installed in? Do I have to
de-install FM8, then install Acrobat Pro 8, then reinstall? There's no
button to just tell Acrobat Pro 8 to install anyway.



Tina Ricks

Editor, Trial Guides

tina at trialguides.com

How to track versions

[Wilk, Susan]

We use a source control system like our developers do. Since I have been at 
TriZetto, we have used Visual Source Safe, Perforce, and PVCS.

Of these, Perforce is my favorite; PVCS is the least desirable.

We have also tried to use SharePoint, but the source control feature does not 
work with FrameMaker. (We used 2.0.) It seems to work, but when you open a 
checked in, changed file, it is the original version, not the updated version. 


-Original Message-
From: framers-bounces at lists.frameusers.com 
[mailto:framers-boun...@lists.frameusers.com] On Behalf Of mathieu jacquet
Sent: Friday, March 21, 2008 10:24 AM
To: Frame Users
Subject: How to track versions


Dear all,I am looking for a tool to manage the different versions of a same 
document. Does FM 8.0 include this kind of feature? Do you use a specific tool? 
In a word, how do you track versions of a document (unstructured FM)?Thank you 
for your tips!Yours sincerely,Mathieu.
_
Votre contact a choisi Hotmail, l'e-mail ultra s?curis?. Cr?ez un compte 
gratuitement !
http://www.windowslive.fr/hotmail/default.asp
___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as susan.wilk at trizetto.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/susan.wilk%40trizetto.com

Send administrative questions to listadmin at frameusers.com. Visit 
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.

Re: delivering XML on the web

[Yves Barbion]

Hi Mollye,

I'm currently also working on a fun project: authoring structured 
content for a corporate website.

I'm using the DITA information model and I'm writing DITA topics in 
FrameMaker with the DITA-FMx plug-in. This is how I do it:

   1. We do a brainstorm and make a list of the topics which we want to
  have on the site.
   2. We open this list in FrameMaker and save it as a regular,
  unstructured FrameMaker file. This list is resembles the
  traditional outline: the indents define the level of the topics
  and headings.
   3. We  use DITA-FMx to create a ditamap and "stubs" from this list.
  The "stubs" are topics which already have the correct title and
  some metadata.
   4. Write standalone, information-typed topics, which means filling in
  the stubs.
   5. We (re)arrange the topics in the ditamap, which will later become
  the sitemap.
   6. In the ditamap, use a "relationship table" to add links to my
  topics (navigation). 

I use the DITA Open Toolkit to generate the following output:

* xhtml. These are the files which I deliver to my web developer.
* HTMLHelp, which I then convert to WebHelp. This gives me a pretty
  good idea of how my "pages" look in a web browser and how the
  navigation and linking works.

Lessons learned?

* Authoring, and (re)structuring web content has never been easier.
  Just take the ditamap and drag the topics around in the structure
  to the position where you want to have them.
* The DITA-FMx plug-in is really the must-have tool if you want to
  author DITA content in FrameMaker.


More information about DITA and DITA-FMx?

* http://leximation.com/dita-fmx/
* http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/tc_home.php?wg_abbrev=dita
* http://dita.xml.org/
* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DITA


Kind regards
 

Yves Barbion 
Documentation Architect
Adobe-Certified FrameMaker Instructor


Scripto bvba
Asselsstraat 65
9031 Gent
Belgium
T: +32 494 12 01 89
F: +32 9 366 50 23
BTW (VAT) BE 0886.192.394
skype: yves.barbion




Mollye Barrett wrote:
> Dear Framers,
>
> I'm working on a fun project (for an equipment manufacturer) using Frame
> to author structured files that may (for a time) be published to PDF as
> well as to XML. The XML files will be checked into a CMS and delivered to
> the web for dynamic publication based on metadata and/or search.
>
> Is anyone doing the same or something similar? I'm interested your
> production path details, information model, lessons learned and, very
> soon, navigation in the delivery environment.
>
> I look forward to and appreciate any replies.
>
> Mollye Barrett
> ClearPath, LLC
> 414-331-1378
> ___
>
>
> You are currently subscribed to Framers as [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
> Send list messages to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
> To unsubscribe send a blank email to 
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> or visit 
> http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/yves.barbion%40gmail.com
>
> Send administrative questions to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit
> http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.
>
>   
___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Send list messages to [EMAIL PROTECTED]

To unsubscribe send a blank email to 
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
or visit 
http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/archive%40mail-archive.com

Send administrative questions to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.

RE: delivering XML on the web

[Gordon McLean]

https://info2.lotus.com/bluegrass/

This flipped across my path recently and sounds similar to what you are
doing, might be worth a look??

Gordon 

-Original Message-
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Mollye Barrett
Sent: 20 March 2008 20:02
To: framers@lists.frameusers.com
Subject: delivering XML on the web

Dear Framers,

I'm working on a fun project (for an equipment manufacturer) using Frame to
author structured files that may (for a time) be published to PDF as well as
to XML. The XML files will be checked into a CMS and delivered to the web
for dynamic publication based on metadata and/or search.

Is anyone doing the same or something similar? I'm interested your
production path details, information model, lessons learned and, very soon,
navigation in the delivery environment.

I look forward to and appreciate any replies.

Mollye Barrett
ClearPath, LLC
414-331-1378
___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as
[EMAIL PROTECTED]

Send list messages to [EMAIL PROTECTED]

To unsubscribe send a blank email to
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
or visit
http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/gordon.mclean%40grahamte
chnology.com

Send administrative questions to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.




This email (and any attachments) is private and confidential, and is intended 
solely for the
addressee. If you have received this communication in error please remove it 
and inform us via
telephone or email. Although we take all possible steps to ensure mail and 
attachments
are free from malicious content, malware and viruses, we cannot accept any 
responsibility
whatsoever for any changes to content outwith our administrative bounds. The 
views represented
within this mail are solely the view of the author and do not reflect the views 
of the organisation
as a whole.

Graham Technology plc
Registered in Scotland company no. SC143434
Registered Office India of Inchinnan, Renfrewshire, Scotland PA4 9LH

http://www.grahamtechnology.com


___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Send list messages to [EMAIL PROTECTED]

To unsubscribe send a blank email to 
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
or visit 
http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/archive%40mail-archive.com

Send administrative questions to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.

RE: More like a flicker than a Blaze

[richard.melanson]

 They gotta start somewhere!
Rick


-Original Message-
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Hedley Finger
Sent: Wednesday, March 19, 2008 6:55 PM
To: Frame Users
Subject: More like a flicker than a Blaze


Blaze the FrameMaker killer?  Don't make me laugh.

What about a named style for everything?  What about smart cross-references?  
What about variables?  What about advanced search and replace for anything?  
What about diagnostic reports?

XHTML, not even XML.  No DITA.

Adobe will be able to have a good laugh and sink back into its customary state 
of complacency.

Frame killer?  Frame tickler.

And I wanted so much for it to be an advanced XML-based editor with
CSS3 page layout styling, or even a nifty XSL-FO styler.  Breathe easy 
Arbortext.

Regards,
Hedley

P.S.  But if I want an advanced XHTML editor for my web site, this baby will do.


--
Hedley Stewart Finger
28 Regent Street   Camberwell VIC 3124   Australia
Tel. +61 3 9809 1229   Mobile +61 412 461 558,
E-mail 


___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Send list messages to [EMAIL PROTECTED]

To unsubscribe send a blank email to 
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
or visit 
http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/richard.melanson%40us.tel.com

Send administrative questions to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.


___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Send list messages to [EMAIL PROTECTED]

To unsubscribe send a blank email to 
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
or visit 
http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/archive%40mail-archive.com

Send administrative questions to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.

RE: MadCap Blaze

[Sharon Burton]

It's the second, as in your example. If the words leave a line that's too
short to look good, you can set how that's managed. It can either
recalculate the lines above it and pull the short line up into the paragraph
OR it can expand the text and send more into the last line.

But it's automatic. You don't have to put a non-breaking space. And if you
need to reuse that content in another layout, that non-breaking space could
look icky in the second layout. Better to set rules for this and then move
on.


sharon

Sharon Burton
CEO, Anthrobytes Consulting
951-369-8590
www.anthrobytes.com


-Original Message-
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of Hedley Finger
Sent: Thursday, March 20, 2008 7:35 PM
To: Frame Users
Subject: Re: MadCap Blaze



Sharon:

At Friday, 21/03/2008, 11:07 AM;, you wrote:
>you also have short line control, missing from FrameMaker.

Is that the same as widows and orphans?  Or is it when a small word,
say "all", turns over onto a new line at the end of a paragraph?  If
the latter, in FM most people just put a non-breaking space before
the word, e.g. "\ all", in order to bring the preceding word over
onto the last line.

Regards,
Hedley


___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Send list messages to [EMAIL PROTECTED]

To unsubscribe send a blank email to 
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
or visit 
http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/archive%40mail-archive.com

Send administrative questions to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.

How to track versions

[mathieu jacquet]

Dear all,I am looking for a tool to manage the different versions of a same 
document. Does FM 8.0 include this kind of feature? Do you use a specific tool? 
In a word, how do you track versions of a document (unstructured FM)?Thank you 
for your tips!Yours sincerely,Mathieu.
_
Votre contact a choisi Hotmail, l'e-mail ultra sécurisé. Créez un compte 
gratuitement !
http://www.windowslive.fr/hotmail/default.asp
___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Send list messages to [EMAIL PROTECTED]

To unsubscribe send a blank email to 
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
or visit 
http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/archive%40mail-archive.com

Send administrative questions to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.

RE: delivering XML on the web

[Mollye Barrett]

Hi Yves,
 
Thanks! sounds cool and you've provided great details. The creation process
sounds relatively easy. For sure, if I used DITA everything from this very
large doc set would need rewriting... It's likely time to do a serious
content cleaning so I'll do some projections on time and cost.
 
Does each xhtml file truly stand-alone? When topics with prescribed
relationships (rel table) change, do you have to recompile to maintain those
relationships?  
 
Thanks again. You've provided perspective and that's what I need!
 
Best!
Mollye
 
-Original Message-
From: Yves Barbion [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] 
Sent: Friday, March 21, 2008 4:18 AM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Cc: framers@lists.frameusers.com
Subject: Re: delivering XML on the web



Hi Mollye,

I'm currently also working on a fun project: authoring structured content
for a corporate website.

I'm using the DITA information model and I'm writing DITA topics in
FrameMaker with the DITA-FMx plug-in. This is how I do it:


1.  We do a brainstorm and make a list of the topics which we want to
have on the site. 

2.  We open this list in FrameMaker and save it as a regular,
unstructured FrameMaker file. This list is resembles the traditional
outline: the indents define the level of the topics and headings. 

3.  We  use DITA-FMx to create a ditamap and "stubs" from this list. The
"stubs" are topics which already have the correct title and some metadata.


4.  Write standalone, information-typed topics, which means filling in
the stubs.


5.  We (re)arrange the topics in the ditamap, which will later become
the sitemap. 

6.  In the ditamap, use a "relationship table" to add links to my topics
(navigation). 


I use the DITA Open Toolkit to generate the following output:


*   xhtml. These are the files which I deliver to my web developer.


*   HTMLHelp, which I then convert to WebHelp. This gives me a pretty
good idea of how my "pages" look in a web browser and how the navigation and
linking works.


Lessons learned?


*   Authoring, and (re)structuring web content has never been easier.
Just take the ditamap and drag the topics around in the structure to the
position where you want to have them. 

*   The DITA-FMx plug-in is really the must-have tool if you want to
author DITA content in FrameMaker. 


More information about DITA and DITA-FMx?


*   http://leximation.com/dita-fmx/


*   http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/tc_home.php?wg_abbrev=dita 

*   http://dita.xml.org/ 

*   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DITA 


Kind regards
 

Yves Barbion 

Documentation Architect

Adobe-Certified FrameMaker Instructor





Scripto bvba

Asselsstraat 65

9031 Gent

Belgium

T: +32 494 12 01 89

F: +32 9 366 50 23

BTW (VAT) BE 0886.192.394

skype: yves.barbion




Mollye Barrett wrote: 

Dear Framers,



I'm working on a fun project (for an equipment manufacturer) using Frame

to author structured files that may (for a time) be published to PDF as

well as to XML. The XML files will be checked into a CMS and delivered to

the web for dynamic publication based on metadata and/or search.



Is anyone doing the same or something similar? I'm interested your

production path details, information model, lessons learned and, very

soon, navigation in the delivery environment.



I look forward to and appreciate any replies.



Mollye Barrett

ClearPath, LLC

414-331-1378

___





You are currently subscribed to Framers as [EMAIL PROTECTED]



Send list messages to [EMAIL PROTECTED]



To unsubscribe send a blank email to 

[EMAIL PROTECTED]

or visit
http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/yves.barbion%40gmail.com



Send administrative questions to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit

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



  

___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Send list messages to [EMAIL PROTECTED]

To unsubscribe send a blank email to 
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
or visit 
http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/archive%40mail-archive.com

Send administrative questions to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.

Re: MadCap Blaze

[quills]

The problem is that XML and by extention XHTML describe content, not 
presentation or formatting. HTML is designed to present data in a 
formatted state (XHTML is designed to allow the content author to 
define the structure and presentation). But HTML does not have the 
control built into it for printed media. It can be used, but is a 
pale shadow of what can be done with a word processor, much less 
dedicate apps like FrameMaker or InDesign.

The data format is text for Gods sake. And  Blaze's output to print 
is through PDF or XPS. Fine, but it means you have to define your 
output. A second step of design that you don't do with FrameMaker or 
InDesign, or even Word.

Scott

At 3:39 PM -0800 3/20/08, Sharon Burton wrote:
>Vendor post
>
>Forgive me - these are straight questions. I really don't quite understand.
>
>What's convoluted about getting printed output out of XML, HTML, or 
>XHTML topics
>in Blaze?
>
>You create topics, you define and assign style sheets to topics (you can also
>have multiple style sheets in one project and assign them at build time when
>you create the output), you create outlines that define the content for the
>output, you specify PDF, XPS, or HTML as the output, you output, and you're
>done.
>
>What other printed outputs would you want? PDF and XPS seem to be 
>the only ones
>you can send to a printer for printed books... If your workflow needs you to
>also output to Word or Frame, we have that too, but it's not really a print
>output, per se.
>
>As to XML, HTML, or XHTML not being the right data format for 
>content, it's the
>direction the industry is moving. Data in these formats are more 
>extendable and
>reusable than in a Word format, for example... Pretty much all CMSs, for
>example, store data as one of these formats.
>
>We've not found much that you can do in unstructured Frame that you 
>can't do in
>Blaze. But Blaze does things that Frame can't do, like Smart Cross-references.
>[see the docs or our website for what those are but they are very powerful]
>
>As to the docs, we have a 36 page Quick Start Guide and very extensive help
>system in the first beta build. This *is* a beta, so we're finishing the docs
>during the beta, hopefully using info you guys give us about what else needs
>tight docs. We would need to know what are you struggling with that needs more
>docs?
>
>Can you help me understand?
>
>Quoting [EMAIL PROTECTED]:
>
>>
>>For a product that is supposedly Print oriented, HTML is a lousy
>>media to produce it in. There is no reason to use HTML. Even XHTML is
>>not the best route, nor is XML. While HTML and XHTML are presentation
>>based, they don't allow the same type of easy manipulation that
>>FrameMaker or even Word allows.
>>
>>This just isn't a paradigm that makes sense to me. There isn't an
>>output other than html or PDF or XPS. The means to get to your output
>>result is laborious and convoluted. This just doesn't seem to be a
>>well thought out print solution.
>>
>>And the beta did not provide me with any real documentation that I
>>could view with confidence. Was that a problem with the build?
>>
>>Scott

___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Send list messages to [EMAIL PROTECTED]

To unsubscribe send a blank email to 
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
or visit 
http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/archive%40mail-archive.com

Send administrative questions to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.

Re: More like a flicker than a Blaze

[quills]

Truthfully, I'd use Oxygen rather than Blaze for an XHTML editor. Or 
I'd use a couple of other apps, which even when taken as a group are 
less expensive than would be Blaze. And have a learning curve that 
isn't as steep. The requirement to design isn't one that I would give 
to all authors, though the input of data I would, and that can be 
done with text editors, much as is done with Arbortext apps.

Scott

At 9:54 AM +1100 3/20/08, Hedley Finger wrote:
>Blaze the FrameMaker killer?  Don't make me laugh.
>
>What about a named style for everything?  What about smart
>cross-references?  What about variables?  What about advanced search
>and replace for anything?  What about diagnostic reports?
>
>XHTML, not even XML.  No DITA.
>
>Adobe will be able to have a good laugh and sink back into its
>customary state of complacency.
>
>Frame killer?  Frame tickler.
>
>And I wanted so much for it to be an advanced XML-based editor with
>CSS3 page layout styling, or even a nifty XSL-FO styler.  Breathe
>easy Arbortext.
>
>Regards,
>Hedley
>
>P.S.  But if I want an advanced XHTML editor for my web site, this
>baby will do.
>
>
>--
>Hedley Stewart Finger
>28 Regent Street   Camberwell VIC 3124   Australia
>Tel. +61 3 9809 1229   Mobile +61 412 461 558,
>E-mail 
>
___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Send list messages to [EMAIL PROTECTED]

To unsubscribe send a blank email to 
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
or visit 
http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/archive%40mail-archive.com

Send administrative questions to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.

Installation issues: Acrobat Pro 8 on top of FM 8

[Tina Ricks]

Hi all

 

I wrote yesterday about Word and the Acrobat markup tools for reviewers, and
agreed with the consensus that Acrobat Pro 8 is the way to go for reviewing.

 

So I ordered a copy (due here in a few days by snail mail). I also
downloaded the 30 day trial so I can work with it now.

 

When I try to install the free download of Acrobat Pro 8, I get this
message:

 

"Setup has detected that you already have a more functional product
installed."

 

And then the install quits.

 

What gives? I want Acrobat Pro. I bought it. I just want to install it. Does
it matter which order FM8 and Acrobat Pro 8 get installed in? Do I have to
de-install FM8, then install Acrobat Pro 8, then reinstall? There's no
button to just tell Acrobat Pro 8 to install anyway.

 

Tina Ricks

Editor, Trial Guides

[EMAIL PROTECTED]

 

 

___


You are currently subscribed to Framers as [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Send list messages to [EMAIL PROTECTED]

To unsubscribe send a blank email to 
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
or visit 
http://lists.frameusers.com/mailman/options/framers/archive%40mail-archive.com

Send administrative questions to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit
http://www.frameusers.com/ for more resources and info.