[Framers] MadCap Flare

[Sean]

So, FrameMaker is great for a workflow that includes print or PDF designed for print. With XML, FrameMaker should save some translation funds and structure style use in a group environment. I like FrameMaker. I would not, however, as others have done, describe it as page layout software. See InDesign for that.

I enjoy MadCap Flare, but it just has quirks that make it awkward. I would recommend flare for a true single-sourcing environment, where online documentation — NOT a Website — is as important as a for-print PDF. Flare is easy to work with almost. Numbering is painful. I often resort to editing raw HTML.

If a Website is also in your scope, FrameMaker and Flare are not the right tools. At all. Word is. Microsoft Word. Follow me here….

Just kidding. Word sucks.

Use Dreamweaver to author your Website. Copy and paste content. Do not make a Website part of any single-sourcing workflow.

I use all of the aforementioned tools, except structured FM (I am unstructured).

Cheers,

Sean

> On Feb 29, 2020, at 4:41 PM, <jackdeland at comcast.net> <jackdeland at comcast.net> wrote:
> 
> I can do both, to some extent. If I need a really tricky CSS implementation,
> I have a variety of consulting friends to call on and/or subcontract to. I
> believe that every tech writer should push his or her limits in using the
> tools and playgrounds (yes, I find CSS to be endlessly fascinating). I like
> Flare so much because it is so extensible.
> 
> The Flare interface scared me when I first saw it (I forget what version),
> and I neglected it for years. It wasn't until I got "under the covers" with
> styling that I felt accomplished in any real sense. I had the same feeling
> when I got into FrameMaker years before that - it was overwhelming at first,
> but then I began to see the logic.
> 
> And sure you can make a website with Flare. I am working on a prototype done
> entirely in Flare, very bare bones. It's at www.jackdeland.com, but will
> move to www.howtoreadpoe.com when I get some free time to pump it up. Yes, I
> KNOW the graphics are very high res and therefore weighty. That's my intent.
> 
> 
> Jack DeLand
> Semi-retired and I don't care
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Framers <framers-bounces+jackdeland=comcast.net at lists.frameusers.com>
> On Behalf Of Craig Ede
> Sent: Saturday, February 29, 2020 2:46 PM
> To: An email list for people using Adobe FrameMaker software.
> <framers at lists.frameusers.com>
> Subject: Re: [Framers] MadCap Flare
> 
> I would agree with Rick on this. Content design is very different from
> presentation design. It's rare to find someone who can do both.
> 
> Craig Ede
> 
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