Any up to date comparisons of Word and Frame

[Kelly McDaniel]

As the writer states in this post:

"It all comes down to this: 

FrameMaker is a very mature and solid product
that can handle structural complexity very well."

http://www.technicalcommunicationcenter.com/2009/02/08/which-text-editor
-to-use-for-technical-writing-adobe-framemaker-or-microsoft-word/

An anecdote:

I have over 30 years in the tech trade and consider myself to be adept.
In my current position, I was assigned a new "book" authored in Word and
saved as an RTF to convert to FrameMaker. That was in September 2007. I
still occasionally discover some obscure, Microsoft-specific wonkiness
deeply embedded in my converted files.

You mention "(... half my company's docs are written using Word)." IMHO,
Word may be the correct authoring tool for many short documents. Word is
not, however, an appropriate authoring tool for sets of documentation
that may span many chapters, require periodic revisions, and be targeted
for production-quality end use...regards, Kelly.

-----Original Message-----
From: framers-bounces at lists.frameusers.com
[mailto:framers-bounces at lists.frameusers.com] On Behalf Of Saunders, Ian
Sent: Thursday, April 09, 2009 2:27 AM
To: framers at lists.frameusers.com
Subject: Any up to date comparisons of Word and Frame

Hi,

I am a fanatical Frame user but it looks as though I am going to have to
convert my docs to Word (long story, but half my company's docs are
written using Word). I know this question comes up time after time, but
most responses refer to old reviews and comparisons (though probably the
only ones that exist on the web). 

I work well and efficiently in Frame, and know exactly what it can and
can't do. I enjoy using it. I am scared that working in Word will be
less efficient, more frustrating, and that it will crash and screw up my
documents.

Can anyone provide or point me to an up to date comparison of Frame 8 or
9 vs Word 2007 (or later?). I know this is hard because very few folks
use both tools extensively and know what each is capable of. Frame fans
say that Word sucks, and Word fans say it doesn't. Tit for tat. 

Is Word's multifile functionality still broken? Does it produce
hyperlinked index entries by default. Does the latest Word have any
serious problems or deficiencies, and which Frame functionality will I
miss that makes working in Word harder or more time-comsuming.

If I can present an argument that justifies sticking with Frame because
of cost-savings, I may yet be able to stave off its demise.

Many thanks! 

Ian Saunders 
Syntellect Inc (UK)

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