[Framers] FrameMaker vs InDesign

[D L Reynolds]

> Donna,
> 
> Can you cite a few examples of ways that Frames table editor is superior to InDesign and/or things that can be done with tables in Frame that cannot be done in InDesign? The publication in question is almost entirely composed of tables.. around 600 to be exact!
> 
> These may very well be the type of arguments I need to make clear to the powers that be!
> 
> Thanks
> -Mike

First a caveat - I’m still using ID CS6, trying to avoid Adobe’s subscription model for as long as possible. To the best of my knowledge, these points are still true but be sure to check.

FM enables you to add variables to running table titles - e.g., “Continued” or “page x of y,” a feature that doesn’t exist in InDesign. If you bang around on the web you’ll find discussions of workarounds in ID, but they’re all a bit of a hassle. I once worked on a publication that contained two tables that ran 300+ pages. The “page x of y” feature was definitely useful.

ID doesn’t distinguish between a table title row and heading rows.

It’s been awhile, so I’ll probably get this about half wrong, but I seem to recall that table rules are built into the cell styles. This has caused me some problems in the past. Sorry to be so vague, but that’s as much of it as I remember.

Hope this helps a little.

    -dr

Donna Reynolds