Adding insult to injustice

[Bill Swallow]

> I feel your pain, Bill, although I am not a Mac user.  I don't want to
> learn a new tool and convert my documents.  So I will use Frame until it is
> absolutely impossible to continue (hopefully, after I retire), despite
> whether Adobe still supports it, as long as my OS can still run it.

Oh, no pain here (though my arm may be stiff later from the flu shot I
just got...)

I'll use FM for as long as it's necessary for me to do so. We're
moving to structured authoring (still doing some unstructured work)
and will hopefully be moving to XML i/o in the future. Once that
happens, FM is just a spiffy content editor, like Epic and the like.
My goal is to be tool independent... I think it'd be very cool to
allow writers to use whatever tool they feel most comfortable with
provided that it works with XML and sticks to the schema. :-)

> Still, the only effects I can envision, should FrameMaker die, are that we
> will get no more enhancements/upgrades and replacement CDs, this discussion
> group might disappear so we would get no more advice, and I would be forced
> to move to XML, a move that my brain has not yet been able to accomplish.
> I won't bother to buy another high-end package unless I can't find another
> writer who can use XML when I retire.

XML seems intimidating but it's actually quite logical. If you can
nail down use of unstructured FM templates, you can nail down XML. As
for user groups and lists, I suspect they'll be around for some time
to come, and should they go dodo, build your list of contacts now so
you're prepared. :-)

> So keep your CDs safe and print out all the FrameUsers advice that you need
> to keep.  And have a happy holiday season.  I intend to overeat for a month
> and think about it later.  : )

LOL! Many of my friends think I'm insane, but my diet starts on Black
Friday. :-)

--
Bill Swallow
HATT List Owner
WWP-Users List Owner
42.8162,-73.7736
http://techcommdood.blogspot.com