FM7 = 12 Running Headers and Footers - ARRGHHH!

[eric.dunn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

This is just too frustrating. Sometime ago I complained on-list that for one of
our projects the master pages needed to reference dozens of element attributes.
I should check the archives because I have a sinking suspision that I said 12.
The annoying thing is that we require 13 of them! So, even with FM7 we'll have
to combine data in running header variables to get all the required data.

Mind you this is one of my major beefs with FrameMaker. Why is it that the
variable building blocks aren't universal? I beleive that a new FM template
should not contain a single variable.

For variables, FM should just have unlimited user variables that can be built
using all the current building blocks that are available. I'm sure that we could
come up with a list of missing building blocks to add to the current one to make
variables even more useful. In addition to variable building blocks, the
building blocks for Xrefs and generated files need to be made universal as well.
Note also that the requirements for universal building blocks should also apply
to all the SGML/structure building blocks as well.

The only variables that should be forced on everyone is perhaps the table
continuation and sheet variables. But in my mind even these should be gotten rid
of. The table variables should become instead a property in the table designer.
This would allow for different styles and inclusion or not based on table
format. Not on wheter the writers remembered to insert the variable or not.

Eric L. Dunn



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