Re: Flowing DOWN the page PAST straddling frames

[Dan Emory <danemory@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

At 06:25 PM 2/6/99 -0500, Jay Smith wrote:
>(FM 556 on Win95)
>
>Am I missing something?
>
>If one has a document with two columns of text per page and
>anchored frames the total width of those two columns... Does FM
>have no way of continuing the
>flow of text DOWN the page to the page-bottom of the left column
>and then down the right column to the page-bottom of the right
>column?
>I have experimented with anchoring my anchored frames in various
>ways and setting them to in-column or to straddle, but I have
>not found a way to get the flow to behave.  I have set the
>paragraph containing the anchor to stay in-column, etc.
>---------------------------Snip
*****************************************************************
I'm not sure what you're trying to say, but here, at least, is how I look at it:

1. Assume that you initially create the stuff in a single-column layout, as
shown below:

######################################################

|----------------Top of Page-----------------------|
|Text above 1st anch frm xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx| All text is
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx              | set for
|__________________________________________________| In Column
|       Anchored Frame (set to At Insertion Point, |
|       anchored to empty Anchor Para that spans   |
|       all colums)                                |
|                                                  |
|__________________________________________________|
|              Figure 1 Caption (spans all cols)   |
|Text below fig 1 caption xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx | All text is
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx | set for
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx              | In Column
|__________________________________________________|
|       Anchored Frame (set to At Insertion Point, |
|       anchored to empty Anchor Para that spans   |
|       all colums)                                |
|                                                  |
|__________________________________________________|
|              Figure 2 Caption (spans all cols)   |  
|Text below fig 2 caption xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |All text is
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |set for 
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |In Column
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx                 |
|-----------------Bottom of Page-------------------|
######################################################
2. Now, you use Customize Text Frame to convert the single-column layout
above to a two-column layout, with Balance Columns and Feathering both
turned on. Here's how the text would then appear:

|----------------Top of Page-----------------------|
|Text above ist anch frm    xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx| All text is
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx   xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx| set for
|__________________________________________________| In Column
|       Anchored Frame (set to At Insertion Point, |
|       anchored to empty Anchor Para that spans   |
|       all colums)                                |
|                                                  |
|__________________________________________________|
|              Figure 1 Caption (spans all cols)   |
|Text below fig 1 caption    xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx | All text is
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx   xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx | set for
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx   xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx | In Column
|__________________________________________________|
|       Anchored Frame (set to At Insertion Point, |
|       anchored to empty Anchor Para that spans   |
|       all colums)                                |
|                                                  |
|__________________________________________________|
|              Figure 2 Caption (spans all cols)   |  
|Text below fig 2 caption    xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx | All text is
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx   xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx | set for
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx   xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx | In Column
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx   xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx   xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx   xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx   xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx   xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |
|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx   xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |
|-----------------Bottom of Page-------------------|

As you can see, to read the text, you don't read down the first column to
the bottom of the page, then continue reading by going to the top of the
page and reading down the second column to the bottom of the page.

Instead, you must read down the first column until you hit the first
anchored frame, then continue to the second column above the first anchored
frame until you hit the first anchored frame again, then proceed to the
first column below the first figure caption, read down until you hit the
second anchored frame, then continue to the second column below the first
figure caption, and read down until you hit the second anchored frame again,
then proceed to the first column below the second figure caption until you
hit the bottom of the page, then continue reading in the second column below
the second figure caption until you hit the bottom of the page again.

There is no way to change this behavior in FrameMaker.

This behavior is likely to confuse many readers, who will try to read the
first column down to the bottom of the page and then continue by going to
the top of the page and reading down the second column.

I can think of only three ways in FrameMaker to avoid this possible
confusion in reading a multi-column page that contains a mixture of
multi-column text with tables and figures that span all columns:

1. Group all objects that span all columns at the top and/or bottom of the
page. This places all multi-column text on the page above, below, or between
those objects (tables, figures) that span both columns.

2. Insert headings that span all columns to divide the multi-column text
before and after each table or figure that spans all columns. It should then
be clear to the reader that(s)he must read all multi-column text under a
heading before proceeding to the multi-column text under the next heading.

3. Create the multi-column layout for a page in rows of an untitled table
instead of a multi-column master page layout, using table straddles for
objects that span all columns. By placing table rules at the top and bottom
of each such row, it would be clear that the text is to be read across the
columns of the row, rather than reading all the way down to the bottom of
the page in one column, then proceeding to the top of the page and reading
down to the bottom of the page in the next column, and so on. But balancing
the text across columns of a row must be done manually, and everytime the
text is changed, you must manually re-balance it.

It's unlikely, however, that use of these "solutions" (or even a combination
of all of them) will solve all cases.
                                 NOTE
The show-stopper of having to manually balance the text across rows of a
table in solution 3 above could be eliminated if Adobe would add a nifty
enhancement to the next FrameMaker release. The new feature would add a
"Balance Columns" option to the table Row Format dialog box for an
individual table row. Selecting this option for a row would cause FrameMaker
to automatically balance the text across all columns (straddled and
unstraddled) in a specified row. 

     ____________________
     | 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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