FWD: Anchored Frames in FrameMaker

["Eric J. Ray" <ejray -at- RAYCOMM -dot- COM>]

Name withheld upon request. Please reply on list.

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RE: Anchored frames in FrameMaker

We are trying to merge two separate documentation departments into one
cohesive unit. Our primary issue in completing this task stems from the
fact that the two departments employ two different methodologies and use
two radically different text processing tools--Interleaf and FrameMaker. We
have decided to convert all the Interleaf documents into FrameMaker (for
use on both UNIX and NT systems), and to create a new template to
accomodate these changes.

One of the many debates spawned by this action concerns anchored
frames--specifically, whether to:

1) Create a distinct, center-aligned paragraph tag (called FIGURE, for
example), to which we could anchor and shrink wrap a displayed graphic.

OR

2) Use only the existing paragraph tags, and anchor the frame to the
paragraph that precedes or follows the graphic. Instead of shrink wrapping
the figure, we "eye-ball" it to distribute evenly within the frame's
borders, then extend the frame width to the page margins so the graphic
appears to be centered.

I prefer the first method because it seems more efficient. It allows for
greater precision and consistency, eliminates arbitrary or wasted space
(and wasted time), and provides greater flexibility when editing a
document--you can move, cut, paste, delete, alter, etc. data without
affecting the frame or its anchor.

Supporters of method 2 insist that, in fact, the reverse is true--that "my
way" sounds good in theory, but actually fails in practice. They argue that
method 1 introduces alignment, spacing and positioning issues, and also
suggest that "empty" paragraph tags cause problems when converting
documents to HTML, XML or SGML.

To me, those arguments seem somewhat spurious. Unfortunately, my opinion is
the minority. Since I am relatively new to FrameMaker, and by no means an
expert, my thesis carries little weight among the others who are more
experienced Frame users. I have tested my method, however, and have not
encountered any problems.

I'd like to hear from others who are proficient in FrameMaker. How do you
deal with your displayed graphics? Have you found any of these assertions
to be true? Can you suggest benefits or drawbacks to either or both methods?

Thanks in advance.