RE: FrameMaker + SGML

[Dan Emory <danemory@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

At 03:24 PM 5/9/00 -0400, KMcLauchlan@chrysalis-its.com wrote:
>Hmm.  I don't suppose there's a way to go backwards
>from FM+SGML, to create a doc (or at least a good
>template in FM, then tag it with the SGML element
>tags, and back it out into an EDD?
>
>What I'd like is to take an existing doc, which
>looks and flows pretty much the way I want my docs
>to do, and turn that into an EDD and DTD that would
>thereafter be usable for future versions and docs.
>If the process forces me to clean up some aspects
>I'd neglected, well that's fine.

========================================
You can do it indirectly, with a little additional work, provided your 
unstructured doc is consistently tagged.
You can use FM+SGML structure rules tables (siimilar to, but more powerful 
than, FM's built-in HTML converter) to map paragraph and character tags, 
etc. to SGML element names.  This allows you to convert your unstructured 
docs to structured docs. Admittedly, however, to create a structure rules 
table you must visualize the hierarchical structure you're trying to 
create.  Now, you can rather easily create an EDD to reflect the structure 
(probably wiith some enhancements) of the converted document. You also have 
to add format rules. Although it's not the best way to go, the structure 
rules table, which maps paragraphs to container elements and charcter tags 
to text range elements, provides you with most of the information you need 
to create the format rules.

Once the EDD is in a semi-complete (but validated) form, you can import it 
into the document you've converted to structured form. This should apply 
the format rules to the elements. Now you can, if necessary, refine it's 
structure, using the element catalog that becomes available after importing 
the EDD.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

>I'd also like to export as tagged SGML text, make
>future revisions with an SGML-aware (and enforcing)
>text editor) and only bring my texts into FM+SGML
>in the final days of a doc cycle, for formatting.

==================================================
FM+SGML is an SGML-aware (and enforcing via the element validation 
feature)  editor.
The advantage of having a WSYIWYG author/editor ought not to be discounted. 
You can round-trip between FM+SGML and SGML.


>The notion of keeping the master and working docs
>in tagged-text format is attractive for several
>reasons, including:
===========================================
Yes, tagged-text is the best (and most economical) storage method.


====================
| Nullius in Verba |
====================
Dan Emory, Dan Emory & Associates
FrameMaker/FrameMaker+SGML Document Design & Database Publishing
Voice/Fax: 949-722-8971 E-Mail: danemory@primenet.com
10044 Adams Ave. #208, Huntington Beach, CA 92646
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