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Yes, I think so, because many products (Word, Frame, my mind is blank
but I'm sure lots of others) have templates that can't be written to
(unless you're editing them) that you can use as a basis for your
document.
But in Frame, the Import Formats feature is so robust that I never use
templates. I suppose if a bunch of writers were sharing templates, it
might be easier to use them, but even in that situation, my group has
just sent new writers a document that they can borrow the formats from.
-----Original Message-----
From: Combs, Richard [mailto:richard -dot- combs -at- Polycom -dot- com]
Sent: Friday, May 14, 2010 10:10 AM
To: Robart, Kay; techwr-l
Subject: RE: FrameMaker paths to imported images...
Robart, Kay wrote:
> I don't really have a direct answer to your question, but I've never
had
> problems with where my FrameMaker documents are pointing to get their
> imported images once I change it the first time. That being said, I
> don't use FrameMaker templates. I just import formats from other
> documents. Since the import formats feature does all I would ever
want,
> I have never seen any point to the FrameMaker templates. Perhaps this
is
> because I've been using FrameMaker since 1991, when they didn't have
> templates, but it sure sounds like it works easier than it does using
> templates!
You know, it hadn't occurred to me that there are different
interpretations of "using templates" (or that how you use them could
have a bearing on the issues Monique is having).
I think of myself as using FM templates religiously. But by that I mean
that I've crafted, tested, and refined sets of FM files with formats,
layouts, settings, etc., for creating certain sizes/types of books,
PDFs, or online help. I call them templates. I upload them to our
Confluence site so that other tech writers in the company can use them.
We talk about them as templates, discuss template revisions, new
templates needed, etc.
But I can't remember the last time I chose File > New > Document > Use
Template. It must have been years and years.
To start a new doc based on a template, I just copy (in the file system)
the template file -- or some other doc based on the template. And of
course, I use File > Import > Formats a lot (also the Clean Import
plug-in).
I consider what I'm doing as "using templates" because I'm ensuring that
my docs conform to certain standards, as defined in the templates.
Do other people think of "using templates" in the narrower sense of
creating a new file by pointing FM to a template to base it on?
Richard G. Combs
Senior Technical Writer
Polycom, Inc.
richardDOTcombs AT polycomDOTcom
303-223-5111
------
rgcombs AT gmailDOTcom
303-903-6372
------
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