deleting backup files

[Fred Ridder]

I wasn't recommending that anybody should *rely* on the autosave
feature.  There is no substitute for good work habits.  My point was
that the autosave option does perform a useful function, while the
automatic backup feature is misnamed and does not provide the
functionality you expect it to.

It's important to note that autosave does *not* perform the same
operation as the regular save.  There is a separate autosave file that
FrameMaker manages, separate from the file that you opened (or that
you last saved).  Otherwise, FrameMaker would wipe out the restore
point that you can get back to with the "revert to saved" command
with every autosave.  The invisible autosave file is automatically destroyed
after you do a regular save or when you close the document. If you
launch FrameMaker after an "unexpected exit" and it sees a lingering
autosave file, it alerts you to that fact and gives you the option to open
either the last saved version of the file (the last one you explicitly 
saved,
that is) or the autosaved version. If you open the autosaved version
and find garbage, you can always simply close it and open the last
saved version instead and you're no worse off than you would be if
the autosave option were disabled.  It's not foolproof, but I have
*never* known it to be destructive.  There is nothing "scary" about it.

Also note that the last saved version of a file is never actually
overwritten, so it can almost always be recovered. When you do a
regular save, the new saved version is written to a new file and the
last saved version is either renamed with a .backup secondary extension
(if the automatic backup on save option is enabled) or flagged to
the OS or file server as available disk space (if automatic backup is
disabled).

Fred Ridder


>From: "John Sgammato" <jsgammato at IMPRIVATA.com>
>To: "Mike Wickham" <mewickham at compuserve.com>,"Fred Ridder" 
><docudoc at hotmail.com>,"Frame Users" <framers at lists.FrameUsers.com>
>Subject: RE: deleting backup files
>Date: Mon, 23 Jul 2007 18:06:43 -0400
>
>I'm with Mike.
>I find the AutoSave feature brings me more tragedy than joy. I prefer to
>develop a good, solid, old-fashioned work habit than to rely on that
>feature.
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: framers-bounces+jsgammato=imprivata.com at lists.frameusers.com
>[mailto:framers-bounces+jsgammato=imprivata.com at lists.frameusers.com] On
>Behalf Of Mike Wickham
>Sent: Monday, July 23, 2007 5:42 PM
>To: Fred Ridder; Frame Users
>Subject: Re: deleting backup files
>
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Fred Ridder" <docudoc at hotmail.com>
>To: <bhechter at objectives.ca>; <framers at lists.frameusers.com>
>Sent: Monday, July 23, 2007 2:46 PM
>Subject: RE: deleting backup files
>
>
> >I know it's not an answer to the question you are asking, but my
> > advice would be to eliminate the .backup files from the outset by
> > turning off the "automatic backup on save" option.
> > I do recommend the "autosave" option, on the other hand. That
> > feature has saved my bacon on several occasions when FrameMaker
> > has exited unexpectedly.
>
>The autosave feature scares me. I work out of a home office, and we have
>
>roaming cats. If one walks across a keyboard, it can add or delete all
>kinds
>of things in a document. Autosave will happily save the fouled up
>version.
>If you're away from the keyboard, it's possible for autosave to run more
>
>than once, overwriting even the .backup.fm file. I've made it a habit to
>hit
>Ctrl-S regularly, instead.
>
>Mike Wickham

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