This method is recommended as the files size doesn’t bloat and when you update a graphic, it is automatically updated in the document. There is a distinct difference between they both handle graphics:įrame imports graphics, which have been either copied directly into the FrameMaker file, or referenced from another location. You can’t have text on one page with different directions, headers and footers horizontal and, for example, a vertical pictures description. Temporary Word files will eat up your disk space, and sometimes don’t get deleted from the cache. Word offers several views of a document, including a non-WYSIWYG view that works well on typical landscape monitors.Īutotext, Autocorrect and the Macro Recorder are very helpful.įormatting diagrams and images is awkward and prone to crashing the system. The Insert Symbols dialog box is faster and more intuitive than FrameMaker’s Help KeyboardMaps mechanism. When you highlight a word, Word highlights the next space, which improves cut & paste. Word is not without merit and has some nice features: No other commercial DTP package runs across so many platforms.įrame prints identically on Unix/Mac/Windows - but you need to be using the same FrameMaker release. FrameMaker is very useful for intensive printing jobs where, for example, you can utilize Postscript.įrame’s cross-platform capabilities are very impressive. Avoid at all costs!įrameMaker’s quality of typography is better than most DTP packages, and significantly superior to Word. If you have to print large documents in Word, you’ll most likely end up having to split the document into smaller files, changing the header and footers accordingly, hard-code the TOC’s and having nightmares with any cross-references. Very little deterioration occurs when printing complex documents across a range of printers and operating systems.įrameMaker is more connected to the publishing world, and has very close ties to Adobe’s other technologies, such as the Adobe Type Manager, Postscript and Acrobat PDF. Master Document feature is meant to address this, but is notorious for collapsing.įrameMaker is excellent for producing printed manuals. Not designed as a structured document tool, i.e. Poor support for page layout and/or graphic placement i.e. Word was not designed as a DTP program - it’s a word processing program that has added features over releases, so that if can be used for less intensive publishing requirements. spellcheck, redo, undo, sort, are not up to Word’s Also, the word processing functions in FrameMaker i.e. If your documents are under 100 pages on average, FrameMaker is probably not required. FrameMaker is best on 1280 x 1024 monitors, and can be difficult to use on small screens.įrameMaker is designed specifically for long complex documents, which can be edited, updated and changed, including the TOC and indexes very easily. Page, section, figure, table, and even equation numbering can follow any scheme you can think up. The real advantage to FrameMaker is the ease at which documentation, indices, and cross-references is easily updated. if you have too many bullet list and graphic import, it will start to generate error, such as inserting paragraph marks in the header and footers. Using templates in Word is far from ideal as they tend to corrupt when under stress, i.e. Microsoft Word is not a desktop publishing program - It’s a word processor.īefore you start, define your template. combination of graphic and text formatting.Ĭompiling the TOC and indexes for multiple files takes much longer in Word than FrameMaker. Word doesn’t handle large documents well and begins to have difficulties when it goes over 100 pages of standard text, i.e. Adobe said that development plans for the immediate future include enhancing the import and export of files from one format to another.Ĭompanies that choose FrameMaker are safe-guarded regardless of future documentation standards, i.e. Over the past decade, Adobe has created a suite of publications software, with FrameMaker fulfilling the role for documentation generation. This article compares Microsoft Word and Adobe FrameMaker by examining the following key areas:
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