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It has been quite a while since I used PageMaker, but from what I can say is
that if you are planning to produce long technical manuals, I would
definitely suggest FrameMaker. PageMaker simply is not designed for long
publications; it is more designed for newsletters and brochures. I would
have to say is that comparing PageMaker and FrameMaker is like comparing
apples and oranges. PageMaker's more immediate competitor is Quark, and
FrameMaker's more immediate competitors are Interleaf and Ventura.
Of course, this all depends on what Adobe plans to do with both
applications--I am also part of the Framers list, and I have heard numerous
rumors that Adobe plans to phase out both FrameMaker and PageMaker in favor
of InDesign. Of course, I am not familiar with InDesign, but I have heard
that Adobe is investing more into InDesign because the company feels that it
cannot make any significant improvements over either the FrameMaker or the
PageMaker code. From what I am able to gather about the latest version of
Frame (Frame 6), it is a cosmetic improvement at best over the previous
version (Frame 5.5.6). I hope that if Adobe plans to phase out FrameMaker
and PageMaker in favor of InDesign, I hope that the new product will
incorporate all of the best features of both FrameMaker and PageMaker.
Curtis R. Brautigam
Technical Writer
Nursery Supplies, Inc.
Chambersburg, PA.
