Posts Tagged ‘Frame Maker’

Corporate Self-Help: Outsourcing Skills Training

Monday, April 26th, 2010 - Posted By: Scott McDonough

Everyone needs some help learning how to do something from time to time. Learning how to tie your shoes. Learning how to ride a bike, learning to swim. Or even learning how not to act at the office holiday party. These are the kinds of things we learn from our parents, older siblings, and friends (and in the case of the last example, our bosses). Good lessons, all of them.

Companies learn how to do things by hiring smart people and paying them to figure out how things are done. Sometimes, even after they figure it out for themselves, they hire other companies to do the work for them. In either case, what needs to be figured out gets figured out, and what needs to get done ultimately does.

But what happens when the smart people don’t have the time or knowledge required to figure out how to do what needs to get done? Simple, you hire someone else to do the work, right? Well, what if that too is not an option? Ignore the need and hope it goes away?

No, of course not. If you don’t have the time or knowledge to complete the task yourself and you can’t outsource the work itself, why not consider outsourcing training that will give your smart people, well, even more smarts?

It’s an attractive compromise for a few reasons:

  • Lower overall cost. It’s generally less costly overall to pay for the training required to perform the work than it is to pay for the work itself.
  • Job and requirements-specific training. These might sound like buzzwords or jargon, but there’s a real point here and this can make a huge difference on the true effectiveness of your training. In our world of content development for example, we would much rather offer training on the use of Frame Maker as it applies directly to the performance and within the context of an individual’s day-to-day job, not as an overview to the sum total capabilities of the software. With outsourcing of the training you have the huge advantage of ensuring the training is 100% applicable to your process and your content. The significance of this distinction cannot be overstated.
  • No long-term commitment to outsourcing. When you target the training you need specifically to your unique requirements, it takes less time to train overall since the objectives of the training are very clear and understood up front. No time is wasted covering irrelevant material. It can be everything you want and nothing you don’t, and this means less redundancy and cost. Once the training has been completed and you now have the skills you need to complete what needs to get done, there’s no commitment to further expenditures on outsourcing, unless you decide you want additional training.

Another way to look at it, (and I’ll apologize in advance for the terribly overused cliché), when you have to get something done would you rather pay for a fish, or learn to fish for yourself?

Outsourcing can be both an incredibly cost-effective and efficient way of getting additional work done without adding the cost of new equipment, software, or additional talent. At the same time, outsourcing can be looked upon negatively in that it can sometimes mean that a job that could potentially be done internally is now going to be outsourced. But it doesn’t have to. There is a middle ground through targeted skills training, and its worth looking into.

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What is a Structured Document?

Monday, March 22nd, 2010 - Posted By: John Crews

This is a question commonly asked by our customers when we begin working with them on a single-source solution.  There is a short answer:

A structured document organizes paragraphs (elements) in a logical hierarchy, provides a means to attach tags (attributes) to individual paragraphs (elements), and gives you the ability to view the document in multiple ways.  FrameMaker ® (and other editors) also gives you the ability to manipulate the content of structured documents so that you can supply different outputs from the same document.

For this discussion, I will be using Adobe® FrameMaker® as my editor.  FrameMaker’s what-you-see-is-what-you-get view of structured documents is called the Document View.  If you have worked in unstructured Frame, this should look very familiar:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Note, that all text is enclosed in brackets.  These brackets indicate element boundaries on the WYSIWYG view (Document View).  This correlates to the Structure View hierarchy described later.

The second way to view the document is called Structure View in FrameMaker.  The Structure View shows all elements (paragraphs) arranged in a hierarchy.  Each box represents an element.  An excerpt of the element text is displayed to the right of the element.  Below each element are Attributes assigned to the element.

The example highlighted below shows that the first element Bullet1 is assigned a value of 1 for the attribute Output.  The second element Bullet1 is assigned a value of 2 for the attribute Output.

In addition to managing the attributes and hierarchy of elements, you can also perform some edits in the Structure view.  If you right-click on an element, a context menu appears that describes several possible actions.  Typical shortcut buttons (ctrl+C for copy, ctrl+v for paste) function normally.  You can also drag-and-drop elements to move their location or to change their place within the hierarchy.

Most users who are accustomed to unstructured FrameMaker are used to working with the formatting toolbar.  Structured Frame does have this functionality; however, it also introduces an Element Catalog in place of the paragraph catalog.  The Element Catalog lists elements that may be selected to insert into the document and provides a tool-set for managing elements as you create them.  Using this catalog, you can insert an element into an existing element, wrap an existing element inside of a new element, and change the type of an existing element.  This tool set helps to minimize the complexity of managing the content from the Structure View.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once you have an element in place, you can assign attributes using the Attribute Editor.  The editor displays potential attributes for a selected element and lists the predefined values that may be assigned.  Select the desired attribute, assign an attribute value, and then select the Set Value button.  This assigned value is then visible in the Structure View.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Using the Structured FrameMaker tool set helps to make management of complex single-sourced documents easier.  Creating a functional hierarchy allows you to manage content at all levels.  Attributes allow you control several output levels and types while ensuring that you are able to maintain accurate content.

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Import Images by Reference – Advil for Drawing Revision Headaches

Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 - Posted By: John Crews

Our Customers Ask…

“Our company frequently revises our engineering drawings.  Several of these drawings are included in our product guides.  How can we efficiently ensure that the latest drawings are included in our manuals?”

PPI Answers…

We use a repeatable method to ensure that our customers’ latest drawings are always included in documentation.  The key lies in the way we import images.

When you insert a drawing into an Adobe® FrameMaker® document, you have the option of either embedding or referencing the image file.  If you select the embed option, the file is imported as a static part of the document.

Instead, selecting the Import by Reference option tells FrameMaker® to check the source file each time you open the document.  This means that if you change your drawing, save it in the same location by the same name, then FrameMaker® will display the updated image next time it opens the document. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Voila! Automatic drawing updates!   The tricky part is building a sustainable file structure that allows you to manage the images while retaining revision control.  Most organizations use the name of their drawing files to track revisions.  This can still be done while setting up a file structure that promotes referencing vs. embedding image files.

 A common file structure might look like this:

Each file name includes a brief description of the file and shows what revision.  Users can tell at a glance what file is the latest revision.

 In order to make the best use of the Import by Reference option, you might consider adding an Active folder to your file structure.  The files in the Active  folder should not have the revision information in the title.  For example

 

 

When you update a drawing, follow these steps;

  1. Save the file as you normally would.
  2. Save a copy of the drawing to the Active folder
  3. Rename the file so that it has the same name as the previous revision.  This way, FrameMaker knows what drawing files should be displayed. 

Managing your files this way saves you the nightmare of hunting through existing documents and replacing images every time a drawing is revised.

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Adobe Frame Maker Training: A Results Oriented Approach

Tuesday, February 16th, 2010 - Posted By: Scott McDonough

We were doing some consulting for a manufacturer that had been tasked with launching a more-or-less new technical publications department. I say “more-or-less new” as the company had always tried to produce and keep up with technical documentation to support their products, but the process was ad hoc at best, and completed by any available warm body with access to a desktop computer, Word and/or an ancient version of Corel Ventura . As the company grew this became problematic, as you can imagine. The manufacturer’s decision was to formalize a group that would be responsible for ensuring that product was always accompanied by relevant documentation.

One lucky staff engineer was appointed manager of the new, albeit non-existant, technical documentation group.  Beyond a fresh set of licenses for the still-uninstalled Adobe Technical Communication Suite software, this manager was not working with very much to start. Of particular interest was training on the use Adobe Frame Maker for the newly-minted technical writers.

The manager was well aware of the prevalent training options. Adobe themselves offer training, and there’s an entire cottage industry of third-parties dedicated to offering  training on just about any piece of software imaginable. Costs vary somewhat based on the location, duration or the supplemental training materials provided, and many focus on providing the trainees with a means to getting their feet wet with Frame Maker. A good functional overview , if you will.

This is all fine and good, and certainly of benefit to many people seeking to learn more about Frame Maker and it’s capabilities. However, for this particular customer, we advised a results-oriented approach.

Why? Not because there’s anything inherently wrong with sending a staff of writers to Frame Maker training; but as consultants we have an obligation to consider our customers’ actual requirements. Not to mention that we’re a service organization and it’s what we do afterall, create clear paths to results for our customers.

Given this customer’s requirements, we determined a course of action that best fit the description of a results-oriented approach to Frame Maker training. I’ve sketched out that approach below; maybe you will find it of use within your own organization.

1.  Create a Frame Maker template. One of the most important and useful things you can do is to create a standardized Framemaker template (or templates) for your documentation. Work from an example of your existing documentation; establish the look, feel and approved writing styles to create a consistent set of components for you and your writers to use when working within Frame Maker. Think of this as the common skeleton for all your manuals. A solid template should contain the following:

  • A graphical representation of the way your documents are laid out on the pages, i.e. pre-defined sections and spacing; what goes where (“frames”)
  • All standard boilerplate information such as your front matter, corporate logo, page header and footer definitions (page number, doc part number, contact info etc.)
  • A library of approved styles to be used within your manuals. Again, working from the styles you’ve used in the past (or created as new), you can pre-define the available selections your writers will need to have access to on a day to day basis. For example, for all of your chapter or section headings, you can create the component within Frame Maker as say, “Section Head”, so when selected, you simply type the text and Frame Maker will automatically apply the correct positioning on the page, space around the text, font, size, and other attributes. The same would apply to warnings, cautions, notes, numbered or bulleted lists, body text, etc. This will ensure consistency across all of your documents.
  • Include instructions for use within the template itself. Not only can you create the tools; you should show examples in use within the template and include instructions on how to use written into the template document itself. This way, any writer can open up the template and immediately see how different styles are to be used, and can keep a copy if they wish as a quick reference as needed.

Template creation is an important first step to ensure that your publications retain the same structure from document to document regardless of who does the writing within your group. Good templates also establish the standard of usability for readers, and should represent your brand in a positive manner.

Note that very few, if any Frame Maker training courses will provide a customized template for you to use, yet this is absolutely key to begin using Frame Maker in a meaningful way and should not be overlooked.

2. Think job-specific training, not just software training. Taking a class on Frame Maker may not meet your groups’ requirements in and of itself; especially if one of the requirements is to get productive quickly. Adobe also offers a self-guided instructional manual with Frame Maker of course, but often times users find it about 50% more than they need to get their job done, and it’s hard to know at a glance what is pertinent information and what is not.

 
Consider how your staff will use Frame Maker day in and day out, then focus on training that addresses these real everyday requirements. As part of your company’s Frame Maker training you should incorporate the following:
  • A Quick Reference Guide for your staff. This should be the “SOP” for anyone present or future who has the role of technical writer at your company. Even as people move on, this remains, to serve as the reference on how your company’s documents are created using Frame Maker. Again, this should be completely specific to the production of your documentation, not a generic guide on the use of Frame Maker that leaves it to your staff to figure out how to apply it to your specific application.
  • Instructor-led training that will ensure your staff get hands-on experience working in your specific template producing your manuals under the guidance of  an experienced Frame Maker user. This way, the tasks learned are 100% 1:1 applicable to the actual jobs your staff will be doing day to day.
Combined, these components will absolutely ensure that your group will quite literally hit the ground running. Focus on creating productive, efficient technical writers, not just a  staff that knows a lot more about Frame Maker overall, but are still unsure of how that applies to their jobs.
 
Cost deserves a mention as well. Good, bad or otherwise, one of the biggest factors in selecting a resource for Frame Maker training is cost.
 

Perhaps harder to quantify on paper for comparison’s sake, but how much is it costing every day that your group is not up to speed producing new documents or working through a back log? What tolerance will there be internally for the time and expense of off-the-shelf software training that does not yield practical and immediate results? Based on the wages and benefits of our staff, how much time would have to spent dealing with inefficiencies before that cost is equal to or greater than the cost of our developing a training program as outlined above? Worth your time to take a look at both.

Basic Frame Maker training will yield an overview-level understanding of the entire range of Frame Maker’s capabilities. Yet upon completion of software training, you will not have a template to work from, will not have had the benefit of practical time working on your specific manuals, and if a person moves on, that training is gone.  Equip your group for the long term; don’t risk stop-gapping the issue with insufficient software training.

 

 

 

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