Re: FrameMaker 7.1 "Save book as PDF" nightmare

Subject: Re: FrameMaker 7.1 "Save book as PDF" nightmare
From: Stuart Burnfield <slb -at- westnet -dot- com -dot- au>
To: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Date: Sun, 16 Dec 2007 14:48:45 +0900

I haven't used Frame for a while so I'm a little rusty, but here's what
I think is happening:

When you save a book as PDF, Frame needs to open all the individual
files so it can resolve references, generate the index and TOC, check
page breaks, and so on. It's not actually opening a new document window
for each file, it's just opening them in the background, as it were.

Sometimes when you open a chapter for editing, there are one or two
warnings that Frame needs you to let you know about, such as missing
fonts or unresolved cross-references. Normally you would click OK to
acknowledge the message, then you could either deal with the warnings or
ignore them as you prefer.

When you're saving the book as PDF, though, it's different. Frame
doesn't "know" if you're aware of these chapter-opening warnings and
therefore whether it's OK to continue. For example, what if there are
some unresolved cross-references? If this is a partial draft that you're
sending out for review, maybe you don't care. If you're generating your
final PDF to go on the distribution CD, you definitely *do* care.

So in the absence of an OK from you for each file that has warnings,
Frame puts the messages in the log and you get the "Couldn't open
___.fm" messages.


So, what do you do? There's a short-term fix and a long-term fix.

The short-term fix is to have all of the files open already when you do
the Save As PDF. From the book window, Shift-click the File menu and
select Open All Files in Book. OK all the warning messages as they come
up. Once all the files are open you should be able to Save As PDF.

The long-term fix is to solve whatever problems are causing the warning
messages. People often mention the "Remember Missing Font Names"
preference as though it's a cure-all, but you need to be aware of what
it's doing. If this option is selected, Frame will temporarily
substitute available fonts for the missing ones. If you clear this
option, the substitution is permanent. *This is only good if the
substituted fonts are appropriate.* Changing Helvetica to Arial is fine.
Changing a symbol font to Courier is not! So definitely check the
console log to see what font changes will be made. If you're not happy
with any of them, you can edit the font substitution tables in
maker.ini, then open all the files and check the substitutions again
before clearing Remember Missing Font Names to make the changes permanent.

As for the broken links, you and your manager are both half right. There
are broken links, but they're caused by the font issues; because of the
font warnings, Frame isn't able to open some files, which means it
(temporarily) can't resolve cross-references to headings in those files.
Fix the fonts and I bet the broken links are resolved.

Good luck.

Stuart

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Create HTML or Microsoft Word content and convert to Help file formats or
printed documentation. Features include support for Windows Vista & 2007
Microsoft Office, team authoring, plus more.
http://www.DocToHelp.com/TechwrlList

True single source, conditional content, PDF export, modular help.
Help & Manual is the most powerful authoring tool for technical
documentation. Boost your productivity! http://www.helpandmanual.com

---
You are currently subscribed to TECHWR-L as archive -at- web -dot- techwr-l -dot- com -dot-

To unsubscribe send a blank email to
techwr-l-unsubscribe -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
or visit http://lists.techwr-l.com/mailman/options/techwr-l/archive%40web.techwr-l.com


To subscribe, send a blank email to techwr-l-join -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com

Send administrative questions to admin -at- techwr-l -dot- com -dot- Visit
http://www.techwr-l.com/ for more resources and info.


Previous by Author: Re: End User Manual and SharePoint Wiki
Next by Author: Re: Job function question
Previous by Thread: FrameMaker 7.1 "Save book as PDF" nightmare
Next by Thread: Tools: Mac Virtualization


What this post helpful? Share it with friends and colleagues:


Sponsored Ads