Re: Is Photoshop a good tool for screenshots?(long)

[Goober <techcommgoober -at- yahoo -dot- com>]

> I need to find the best way to take screenshots so
> they can be used in 
> print and in online documentation and still retain
> their quality AND I need 
> a program where I can also embed callouts. 

You should never embed callouts in the images, as your
text will lose its smoothness.

> This issue has arisen as we are 
> trying to implement single sourcing for print and
> online documentation.
> We use FrameMaker to develop the document. It is
> then converted into a MIF 
> file and imported into Robohelp 2000 for online. 

Sorry, but it's impossible to single-source using
FrameMaker and RoboHelp. You are repurposing content,
at best. No, this isn't some kind of a tool war loose
canon type of post, it's fact. Ask any single-source
guru on the matter.

> My manager, who does the 
> online conversion, would LIKE to have the
> screenshots in print just import 
> smoothly into Robohelp, but this doesn't work for 2
> reasons:
> 	1) Images are poor quality once imported
> 	2) Callouts and lines created in FM come out
> misaligned once imported.

Well, you need to fix the workflow. If you MUST use
RoboHell with FlameMaker, might I advise that your
screenshots with embedded *sigh* callouts be saved as
EPS and PNG? That way, you use conditional text on
them, so your EPS goes to print and your PNG goes to
online.

>  I don't know of a good way to do what is being
> asked. 

I don't know of an easy way to answer your question
without digging deeper into the root of the problem
(your online repurposing workflow).

> The best way I know to meet our needs is to save the
> screenshot into a 
> "master" image file separately. The screenshot can
> then be exported to JPEG 
> and either linked to or pasted into the FM doc. For
> online, that same
> master screenshot would be exported to GIF in the
> correct resolution for 
> online. This process requires we maintain the image
> files separately from 
> the print and online docs.

Um, there's no difference between JPG and GIF when
talking screen shots going to print. Both are
bitmapped images. There was a thread last week on this
very issue. I suggest hitting the archives.

> How did we do screenshots up to this point? Just
> copied and pasted into FrameMaker. 

Import by reference. Pasting directly into FM is like,
well, I can't equate it... it's just not cool.

> But this resulted in such poor quality
> for online that I had to 
> go in and recreate all of the screenshots just for
> online. This was a big 
> pain,especially when I needed to add callouts - I
> did it using Corel 
> Photo-Paint which I found tedious and not
> user-friendly.

Why not use FM for callouts? I don't get it. Does RH
choke on these? Not surprised if it does...
 
> My solution proposes that we invest in a good
> imaging tool such as 
> Photoshop, where I can take the screenshot, use
> Photoshop tools to create 
> callouts on a different layer and then and then
> merge the layers to export 
> the PSD file into JPEG for print and do the Save for
> Web to export
> into GIF for online. My understanding is that you
> have to manipulate the 
> screenshot for these different media anyways because
> they have different 
> requirements (i.e. resolution, file size).

Your solution is flawed, I hate to say. No image
program on Earth will help you given your workflow. 

> Does anyone know of a better way to do this process?
> Is the solution that 
> my manager wants one that can be achieved or do we
> have to, as I propose, 
> create and maintain the screenshots separately?

You're using the wrong tool for online conversion. You
really should be investing your time and money into
WebWorks Publisher or Mif2Go. Both actually WORK with
FrameMaker and produce wonderful results. The problem
with RoboHelp is that it tries to translate the MIF
data into something it can work with, and then moves
it to HTML. You're going through two file conversions
there, just to get it into a workable form in
RoboHelp. WWP and M2G convert based on style tagged in
the MIF... it's a beautiful thing.

> I am just trying to find out if my proposed solution
> is on the right track, 
> or unnecessarily complicated.

Just unnecessary. If your baby doesn't like peas, and
you upgrade from store brand peas to Green Giant or
Birdseye peas, you're not solving the problem...
you're just paying more to produce the same result (a
floor full of uneaten peas).

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