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<p class="MsoNormal">Hi,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I could use the advice of some Frame veterans on whether a switch from Frame to Flare might be a delusion-inspired wrong turn for me, or possibly the right way to go.
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">My company's primary documentation output is PDF user/training/reference guides authored on FrameMaker 7. Not the current Frame version, I know, but sufficient with our good templates to produce solid, professional-looking documents we're
proud of. Other current deliverables include context-sensitive HTML topics produced via Mif2go and a limited number of "Process Assistance" MS Word topics. These latter are a sort of MS-Word help equivalent that our customers can download from our application,
edit if necessary, and even upload back into our application for others if they want to. I create Process Assistance MS-Word topics by cutting from Frame and pasting into Word, followed by manual reformatting (ouch).
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Our customers (utilities) have been requesting another MS Word output: Editable MS Word versions of our 20-300 page PDF manuals so that they can edit them for their own purposes (such as internal training). Unfortunately, we've been unable
to find a workable Frame-to-Word conversion process to this end. I can do manual reformatting to Word in our short Process Assistance topics, but to do it on entire manuals would give me a nervous breakdown.
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">So, with better MS-Word output generation as my primary goal, I've been considering a switch to Flare. Its capability to output in PDF, Word, and HTML seems as though it might ultimately streamline our processes. As I test Flare by my 30-day
trial, though, I'm reminded of the many things FrameMaker does really well — things I might be losing if I made the switch: For example, precise page layouts, complex graphics, robust tables. To its credit, Flare seems to offer output versatility, excellent
documentation and support, and a lot of Marketing momentum. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Am I misguiding myself? Barking up the wrong tree? </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Thanks for any opinions or comments.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"; color:#2D4678">Kevin Ryan</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"; color:#2D4678">Technical Writer</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"; color:#2D4678"></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif""><img width="309" height="46" id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image001.jpg@01D0504A.19306B70" alt="cid:image001.jpg@01C97FA7.A9E51B40"></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"">Systems & Software, Inc.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"">426 Industrial Avenue
</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"">Suite 140</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"">Williston, VT 05495</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"">802.865.1170 phone</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"">802.865.1171 fax</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center"><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif""><a href="http://www1.harriscomputer.com/en/conference/"><b>Save the Date! 2015 Harris Customer Training Conference:</b></a><br>
October 21–23, 2015, Atlanta, Georgia - Atlanta Marriott Marquis. </span></p>
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