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Glad to hear you've found what seems to be the answer. But I have to wonder - that folder that may have a null character in its name...isn't that the same folder you were using all along? Weren't you able to PDFify FM files from that folder for some time before this problem cropped up? If you were, that would mean that the folder name got changed for the worse at some point. If so, somebody needs to figure out how the null character got added.
Good luck with it from here on out.
--- On Wed, 11/10/10, Ken Poshedly <poshedly -at- bellsouth -dot- net> wrote:
From: Ken Poshedly <poshedly -at- bellsouth -dot- net>
Subject: FrameMaker / post script file glitch solved (hopefully)
To: "Techwr-l" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com>
Date: Wednesday, November 10, 2010, 4:41 PM
This is to let you all know the problem preventing me (and now the other two
tech writers in my group) from producing pdf files from FrameMaker version 8.0
SEEMS to be a problem with the main folder name. This affected everything in the
subfolders as well (only 1 or 2 layers down).
The filename hierarchy is:
Level 1 - "Machine name" (no quotes in actual folder names)
Level 2 - "Operator manual"
Level 3 - "Preliminary version" (includes all the FM files)
The exercises I went through since end of last week are numerous, but I won't go
through all of that.
Today, on a whim, after successfully opening FM files in other folders and
creating test postscript files and then pdf files, I did this:
1. Created a new folder.
2. Copied one of the bum FrameMaker files (from the folder for one of our new
products) into it.
3. Opened that "old" file and printed via the "adobe printer".
4. Watched with _extreme_ joy and relief as a post script file with an actual
numerical value rather than 0 KB was created! YAY!!!
5. Double-left-clicked on the post script filename and watched with exhilaration
as Adobe Distiller version 9.0 opened, then processed the new ps file and
produced an actual pdf file.
Holy Moly!! After what I've been through with all these whacko experiments the
past week, it's almost like magic to see this happen again.
The new filename hierarchy is:
Level 1 - "Slightly Different Machine Name" (no quotes in actual folder names)
Level 2 - "Operator manual"
Level 3 - "Preliminary version" (includes all the FM files)
My friend Tim Murray (also a member of this group) guesses that the folder name
with all the files that couldn't be successfully "post scripted" via FM had a
"null character" (not displayed) in it that fooled FM into never following
through.
The new folder just created didn't have that problem, thus FM followed through
just fine with files copied / moved from the bum folder.
-- Kenpo in Atlanta
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