FrameMaker vs Word

1
FrameMaker vs Word

• From a technical writers viewpoint

2
Introduction

• Overview
• Creating a document
• Adding and editing content
• Working with large documents
• Publishing documents
• Summary

3
Overview

4
Design and purpose

• Word
• General business tool
• Widely used Industry Standard
• FrameMaker
• Specialist technical authoring tool
• Aimed at professional technical writers

5
Contrasting viewpoints

• What Word users say about FrameMaker
• The interface is difficult to use
• FrameMaker is hard to learn
• And what do FrameMaker users say about Word ?
• _at_!!
• Difficult to do things that are easy in
  FrameMaker

6
Creating a document

7
Templates vs Formats

• Creating a new document from a template
• Word templates are attached
• Can be updated independently
• Can be replaced
• FrameMaker formats are embedded
• Cannot be lost or accidentally changed
• Can be copied from other documents

8
Page layouts

• Word page layouts set up in sections
• Easy to set up and modify
• Settings stored in section break
• FrameMaker uses Master Pages
• Define using Master Page view
• Create and reuse customised page layouts
• Set up columns, side heads and text flow

9
Using paragraph styles

• Autonumbering
• FrameMaker uses special counters built-in to the
  paragraph style
• Word uses seq. fields
• Setting up side heads and column spanning is easy
  in FrameMaker
• Can specify table cell properties for paragraph
  styles in FrameMaker

10
FrameMaker Reference Pages

• FrameMaker stores further information on
  Reference Pages
• Set up TOC paragraph definitions using standard
  building blocks
• Define graphic objects to use within paragraph
  styles
• Set up HTML paragraph mapping
• Store Boilerplate text

11
Adding and editing content

12
View options

• Page views
• FrameMaker has only Print Layout view
• Word has useful Outline view
• Non-printing symbols and markers
• Word bookmarks may be affected by text editing
• FrameMaker markers cannot be edited accidentally
• Word shows space symbols

13
Using styles

• Word
• Autoformatting features not always wanted!
• Easy to apply manual overrides
• Can be hard to maintain consistency
• FrameMaker
• Identifies manual overrides
• Strongly structured approach does not encourage
  manual overrides

14
Using tables

• Word
• Provides pre-defined table formats
• No easy way to create custom table formats
• FrameMaker
• Few pre-defined table formats
• Can define custom table formats
• Formats stored in table catalogue, easy to reuse

15
Using cross references

• Word cross references
• Link within same document
• May be corrupted by accidentally editing target
  bookmark
• FrameMaker cross references
• Link to anything, anywhere
• Can create and reuse cross-ref formats
• Use of markers makes them robust and easily
  restored

16
Using graphics

• Embedding or linking graphics
• FrameMaker anchored frames very reliable and
  easy to use
• Frames can be shrink-wrapped
• Drawing tools
• Word has basic line-drawing tools
• FrameMaker provides a comprehensive set of
  drawing tools

17
Scientific equations

• FrameMaker
• Equation editor built-in
• Equations handled within frames
• Word
• Equation editor is optional
• Can create equations using field codes

18
Variables

• Both Word and FrameMaker have a standard set of
  system variables
• You can define your own variables
• Word has DocVariable fields
• FrameMaker has user variables

19
Index entries

• Word
• Easy to add index entries
• Index entries stored as hidden text
• FrameMaker
• More control over index entry format
• Index entries stored as markers
• Can create customised index markers

20
Searching and replacing

• FrameMaker can search on almost anything
• Text strings and formats
• Markers (by type) and marker text
• Anchored frames
• Table tags
• Word Go To feature is very similar

21
Text-checking tools

• Both have standard tools
• Spelling checker, thesaurus
• Can create and maintain custom dictionaries
• Word also has a Grammar checker
• Whoops! I didnt mean to do that
• FrameMaker has only single level of Undo
• Use Revert to last saved option to restore

22
Conditional text

• FrameMaker allows content to be tagged as
  Conditional
• Hide comments and authoring notes
• Create Print and Online versions
• Create multiple documents from single source
  (e.g. software versions or branding)
• Hidden conditions stored in markers, easily
  managed, cannot be accidentally deleted

23
Macros and task automation

• Word has built-in macro language
• Easy to record and edit scripts
• Can perform complex text processing
• FrameScript and FDK are optional extras
• Require specialist skills to use
• Yes, even dedicated FrameMaker users will admit
  Word does this better

24
Setting up hypertext links

• Word has a limited set of targets
• Bookmarks, file names and URLs
• FrameMaker targets are hypertext markers
• Easy to create using standard building blocks
• Facilitate on-line navigation within and between
  documents
• Can be used on both body and master pages

25
Using custom markers

• FrameMaker allows you to define and add custom
  markers for online output
• Context-sensitive help topic IDs
• Whats This help pop-ups
• HTML macros

26
Customising the interface

• Word
• Has options to rearrange menus and toolbars
• Easy to customise using Visual Basic
• FrameMaker
• Customising possible by experienced user
• Good plug-ins available

27
Working with large documents

28
Handling multiple chapters

• Word offers two solutions
• A single document with section breaks (which can
  get very large)
• Use a Master Document to manage files
  (unreliable, problems with file corruption)
• FrameMaker is designed to do this
• Put document files in a FrameMaker Book file

29
A FrameMaker Book file

• Contains a group of document files
• Controls chapter, paragraph and page numbering
• Enables book-wide searching, spellchecking,
  updating formats
• Automatically generates Table of Contents and
  Index
• Allows two or more writers to work on different
  chapters in the same book

30
Creating a Table of Contents

• Word
• Generated using a TOC field embedded in document
• Not easy to customise output
• FrameMaker
• Generated by Book file as a separate document
• Can include any combination of paragraph tags

31
Formatting the Table of Contents

• Both Word and FrameMaker allow you modify TOC
  paragraph styles
• FrameMaker provides extra formatting ability,
  using reference pages

32
Creating an Index

• Word
• Generated using an Index field
• FrameMaker
• Generated by Book file
• Page layout defined in Master pages
• Can include custom index markers

33
Generating other lists and tables

• Word has a standard set
• Tables of Figures, Tables, Equations
• Can also generate lists using fields
• FrameMaker is very versatile
• Lists of paragraphs (any type)
• Lists of markers and references
• Indexes of markers and references
• Can generate lists from any files in a book

34
File sharing and reuse

• Word
• A large document is usually a single file
• Hard to share sections between different books
• FrameMaker
• Each chapter is a separate file
• A document file may be included in many books
  formats and numbering are updated automatically

35
Publishing documents

36
Preparing for publication

• Word
• Attach the appropriate templates
• Update all fields to create final TOC, index and
  cross-references
• FrameMaker
• Import the appropriate formats into the book
• Update the book to update all references and
  numbering, and create all generated files

37
Printing hardcopy

• Word and FrameMaker printing options are
  virtually identical
• Output to printer
• Print to a postscript file

38
Online manuals

• FrameMaker documents can be issued in read-only
  format, using FrameViewer
• High-quality, suitable for printing
• Easy to produce and maintain
• Both Word and FrameMaker produce PDFs
• FrameMaker can save the PDF as individual files
  (chapters) or complete books
• FrameMaker preserves all hyperlinks, even between
  books

39
HTML and web pages

• Converting Word documents to HTML
• Save as Web Page option produces good output
• Converting FrameMaker documents to HTML
• Save as HTML option for simple HTML conversion,
  using HTML mapping set up on Reference pages
• FrameMaker 6.0 includes WebWorks Publisher, for
  fully-featured HTML conversion

40
Online help

• Creating from Word
• Use third-party software, such as Doc-to-Help,
  RoboHelp, etc.
• Pre-processing of Word file required
• Creating from FrameMaker
• Use third-party software WebWorks Publisher
• No pre-processing of FrameMaker files required
• Can produce HTML Help, Win Help, and Web Help
• Quick and easy to do, high-quality output

41
Summary

42
The advantages of Word

• Relatively cheap, part of standard Office
  software suite
• Easy to perform extensive text processing and
  formatting using macros
• Widely used
• Many source documents will be supplied in Word
  format
• Easy for anybody to edit and maintain

43
The power of FrameMaker

• FrameMaker is specifically designed for creating
  large and complex documents
• Easy to share and reuse documents
• Conditional text, autonumbering and
  cross-references are reliable and robust
• Structured approach ensures consistent layout and
  formatting