FrameMaker vs. InDesign, round CS4

[quills at airmail.net]

It's still not ready for prime time. At least not for technical documentation.

It's still an Xpress style layout program for magazines and brochures, not long documents. The paradigm of it's tools and how you go about things are based upon the paste up board of a graphic designer. Don't tell me how great 
it is with it's add ons, its work flow isn't designed for what technical documentation requires. 

Scott

On Tue 08/09/23 16:59 , "Peter Gold"  sent:
> Hi, Sarah: (I also posted on your blog)
> 
> "...UNTIL NOW...," as the late movie trailer guy might say, I've been
> under Adobe's non-disclosure agreement for ID CS4 pre-release testers.
> 
> "...BUT, IN A WORLD..." where disclosure can now be thrown to the
> winds, I'll add a few comments.
> 
> ID's been sneaking up on FM's long technical-document authoring tool
> set for a few releases. ID CS3 added system- and user-defined
> variables, running headers, table styles (named table formats), cell
> styles, named object styles, and nested styles - the ability to
> specify a pattern that applies named character styles to matching
> content within paragraphs - and it improved numbered lists a HUGE
> amount.
> 
> ID CS4 is closing in with new additions that matter to technical
> authors: cross-references, conditional text, smart text reflow
> (real-time adding new pages as needed, and deleting them when empty),
> along with boosting the already-powerful nested paragraph feature to
> include, selecting by a GREP pattern as you noted, and also by line
> number within the paragraph, so the nth line will get the character
> style you specify, no matter how it wraps or flows, and the ability to
> repeat (or loop) applying the sequence of styles (sort of a macro
> ability.)
> 
> FrameMaker users who don't use CS3-level Adobe Illustrator or
> Photoshop will need time to adjust to Adobe's corporate user
> interface, and learning new ways to perform familiar tasks.
> 
> Plus, just because something's on the package label, trust - but
> verify. Don't assume.
> 
> Here are a few FrameMaker features that you may miss:
> 
> * Run-in paragraphs
> * Side headings and side-heading area
> * Paragraphs that flow with text and also straddle multiple columns,
> and multiple columns AND side heads
> * Table sorting
> * No Track Changes
> * No logical conditional text expressions - AND and NOT were added in FM
> 8* No "size matters" inter-paragraph spacing - FM uses the larger of
> space below and space above for paragraph spacing. ID, like most other
> applications, adds the space below and space above, which makes it
> more complicated to set up paragraph formats that will space as you
> need, regardless of who-follows-what.
> * Frame above /below paragraphs can contain graphics, text, or a mix.
> ID's rules above/below paragraph are great, but they aren't
> containers.
> 
> Here are a few FrameMaker features in ID CS4 that are a little more
> complicated to do:
> * To jump to a cross-reference source from within FrameMaker, instead
> of Ctrl+Alt+Click, you click in the Cross-Reference panel
> * Index markers support multiple-level entries, but can't create
> multiple entries in one marker like FM's ":" technique
> * Without run-in paragraphs, you need to strategize to create TOC
> entries from a partial heading
> 
> There's a very good third-party conversion tool that converts MIF
> files to InDesign (dtptools.com). However, migrating FrameMaker
> content to InDesign depends on what FrameMaker are in them for which
> InDesign has no direct counterpart, whether you use a commercial tool
> or do it manually. It's something like converting Microsoft Word files
> to FrameMaker. There's work to be done.
> 
> The conversion tool's nearly-clonelike reproduction of FM pages in ID
> comes from its minute adjustments of paragraph formats, meaning many
> formats are overridden uniquely. Most of the tweaks are paragraph
> settings - space between, run-in, side heading, straddle headings,
> frame above/below, table-cell properties.
> 
> One of the greatest ID features from early on is the INFINITE UNDO
> UNDO UNDO! It doesn't clear its history when you perform certain
> actions. You can experiment nearly forever, and roll back to "square
> one." ID saves every action you perform - an instant autosave; after a
> crash, it can restore almost every last one.
> 
> If you're considering ID as a replacement for FM, test-drive ID in
> parallel with an FM project or two, to see if your wishes are rewarded
> or exceeded, and if your needs are served. During my testing, I
> compared the long-document features so much that I decided to write a
> book on the core issues for FrameMaker users moving to Indesign.
> 
> FM Mac diehards - don't forget that ID works on Mac OS X, both Intel
> and PowerPC G4/G5 chips. FM's stuck at 7.0 on Classic or OS 9 on Mac.
> 
> Regards,
> 
> Peter Gold
> KnowHow ProServices
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