FM 9 vs. InDesign

[John Sgammato]

One "feature" to remember is the pool of talent available to maintain
the docs if you are unable to. 
I know I (or my intern) can find in my current Rolodex FM users who
could take over my docs if I get hit by a bus. At this time I could not
do the same for InDesign users, so I would have to build that network,
too.
john

-----Original Message-----
From: framers-bounces at lists.frameusers.com
[mailto:framers-bounces at lists.frameusers.com] On Behalf Of Peter Gold
Sent: Thursday, October 22, 2009 10:57 AM
To: Rick Quatro
Cc: framers at lists.frameusers.com
Subject: Re: FM 9 vs. InDesign

Hi, Rick:
Thanks for the detailed reply.

On Thu, Oct 22, 2009 at 9:23 AM, Rick Quatro <rick at rickquatro.com>
wrote:

>  Hi Peter,
>
>
>
> I am comparing component chapter files in a catalog with lots of data.

> We used InDesign CS4. Although we don't have a version of the catalog 
> in FrameMaker for direct comparison, experience tells me that the 
> performance would be better in any recent version of FrameMaker.
>
Have you evaluated the performance of the catalog tools made for
InDesign?

>  The fact that InDesign scripting is built in doesn't affect my 
> business; I make money writing scripts, not selling scripting tools.
>
I was thinking about the many free InDesign scripts; I don't know how
this compares to free FrameScript scripts.

> Based on my experience, InDesign scripting performance with JavaScript

> is poor compared to FrameScript/FrameMaker performance, particularly 
> for more complex tasks.
>
Inefficient coding is common.

> When you using automation, the cost for a third-party tool can be 
> recovered quickly if there are significant gains in performance.
>
Agreed.

>  This is not to say that I don't like InDesign; it is a great tool 
> with many nice features. But I would be cautious about moving to 
> InDesign from FrameMaker unless there is a compelling reason for doing
so.
>
Two popular reasons are the significantly better typography controls,
and the better graphics features; ID's drawing tools are quite advanced
vs. FM, and there's more power in manipulating imported graphics. The
graphic features overlap Photoshop to some degree; the advantage here is
staying inside one application to use them. With TCS2 including the full
Photoshop application, "more is more" for sure.

"Compelling" is subjective, I agree. Usually, technical documentation's
communication of information doesn't improve significantly because of
more-sophisticatedly composed type, but for some publishers or
publications, masterful typesetting is a compelling requirement.

Perhaps Tina's list of requirements will provide more information for
comparing the applications and their suitability.


> Regards,
>
>
> Peter
>
> _______________________
>
> Peter Gold
>
> KnowHow ProServices
>


>  Rick Quatro
>
Carmen Publishing Inc.
>
> 585-659-8267
>
> rick at frameexpert.com
>
> www.frameexpert.com
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> *From:* knowhowpro at gmail.com [mailto:knowhowpro at gmail.com] *On Behalf 
> Of *Peter Gold
> *Sent:* Wednesday, October 21, 2009 6:39 PM
> *To:* Rick Quatro
> *Cc:* Tina Ricks; framers at lists.frameusers.com
> *Subject:* Re: FM 9 vs. InDesign
>
>
>
> Hi, Rick:
>
> On Wed, Oct 21, 2009 at 2:36 PM, Rick Quatro <rick at rickquatro.com>
wrote:
>
> Hi Tina,
>
> I have found InDesign's performance to be sluggish with long
documents.
>
>
>
> Are you comparing books with component chapter files, or single-file 
> long documents? And, which release of InDesign compared to which 
> release of FrameMaker?
>
>
>
> Although InDesign has built-in scripting, the FrameMaker/FrameScript 
> combination is much faster for automation.
>
>
>
> InDesign's scripting tools are built in, not extra-cost third-party
items.
> Although it's obviously not a good thing for your business, there's a 
> great quantity of free InDesign scripts "out there."
>
>
>
> Regards,
>
>
>
> Peter
>
> _______________________
>
> Peter Gold
>
> KnowHow ProServices
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Rick Quatro
> Carmen Publishing Inc.
> 585-659-8267
> rick at frameexpert.com
> www.frameexpert.com
>
>
>
>
> Can anyone point me to a thorough comparison list of features between 
> FM9 and InDesign? I'm using Frame primarily for print books at a small

> publisher, and using it because I know it and I'm familiar with it.
>
> I currently use Frame 8, and I'm considering an upgrade to either 
> Frame 9 or InDesign.
>
> I've read that InDesign CS4 recently added cross references. Does 
> anyone know how they compare to Frame's feature? Also, what about 
> creating an index in InDesign. What features does it have for dynamic 
> indexing?
>
> Thanks.
>
> Tina Ricks | Managing Editor | Trial Guides
>
> www.trialguides.com
>
>
_______________________________________________


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