converting FM cross references to xrefs

[Scott Prentice]

The method Alan describes works *if* the following are true ..

- you're doing a 1-to-1 conversion: FM file(s) to XML file(s). If you're 
converting to DITA or some model where you're converting each FM file to 
many XML files, this method doesn't work well since the target file 
names are essentially unknown to the default conversion process.

- your model is OK with attributes named "Id" and "Idref" (cased as 
shown). If your referencing attributes use different names or casing, 
you'll need to run a script of some type to fix them up.

Also .. if you have references that go between FM files, your results 
may not be so stellar. I haven't done that in a while, but I do recall 
this being particularly difficult and required some extra scripting. One 
tip is to modify your cross-ref formats so they include the target file 
name in plain text (wrapped in brackets of some type so it can be 
located by your post-processing script).

<sales-pitch>
If you are converting to DITA, you may want to check out my FM2DITA 
plugin. It's a collection of tools that make the entire process 
(including the cross-ref to xref) much more workable.

     http://leximation.com/tools/info/fm2dita.php
</sales-pitch>

Cheers,

...scott

On 2/5/15 12:50 PM, Alan Houser wrote:
> FrameMaker will do this for you, including generating ID values. The 
> details are documented in the Structured Application Developer's Guide.
>
> Basically, your conversion table should contain a rule for each 
> cross-reference format that may appear in the document. For example: 
> "X:FigureAndPage". If you generate or update a conversion table from 
> existing documents, you will get these rules automatically. You should 
> map these to your XML cross-reference element.
>
> FrameMaker will generate matching IDREF and ID attributes on the 
> source and target.
>
> You have a bit more flexibility if you import your EDD before running 
> the conversion table. For example, you can cross-reference a 
> containing section, instead of a title.
>
> These are just the high points. Try it; it should work.
>
> -Alan
> ----
> Alan Houser
> Group Wellesley, Inc.
> Consultant and Trainer, Technical Publishing
> arh on Twitter
> 412-450-0532
> On 2/5/15 2:32 PM, Robert Carel wrote:
>>
>> Does anyone have a sample conversion table that converts FrameMaker 
>> cross references to XML? I guess this include setting Id attribute 
>> values on the target elements of the cross-reference to equal the 
>> content of an associated title element (in place of FrameMaker 
>> markers) and using this title element content in an attribute of the 
>> xref element (the source of the cross-reference). Easier said than done.
>>
>> *Robert Carel*
>> Technical Publications Manager
>> O: 925.659.3200  |  M: 925.659.3267  |  twitter: @accelasoftware
>>
>> http://www.accela.com/ext/logo_email.png <http://www.accela.com/>
>>
>>
>

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