FrameMaker development - versions 4.0 to 6.0
Release date | Version 4.0
1993-08 Review for the Mac version by Graeme Forbes |
Version 5.0
1995-11 Version 5.1.2 1996-01 [1] |
Version 5.5 1997-09 [2] | Version 6.0 2000-04 |
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User interface | New and extended menu structure; button bar and format bar; Help extended; configurable UI; mm as display unit; short/long menu; customisable menus | Menu structure enhanced; dialogues adapted to W95; button bar enhanced; screen-display enhanced | Context menus and tool tips on all platforms; drag & drop; tabbed dialogues
in Windows First fully functional japanese version on all platforms (Double-Byte Support) |
Platform dependent Help includes free text search; enhanced book-handling. Many dialogues still for small screens |
Documentation/ Help | Help is FM-Viewer format | Quick ref. manual integrated into user guide; enhanced help. Some information from v.4 deleted... | User Guide reworked completely (about 1/2 as many pages). Additional information (MIF etc.) in PDF | User Guide reworked, more hints, better examples; Help format platform dependant ??? (Winhelp on Win) |
OS specifics& fonts | Last version for 16-bit windows (3.11). Font handling enhanced (add. sections in maker.ini); no long file names in Windows (until 5.11); enhanced locking |
5.1 is for 32-bit Windows (W95, NT 3.51) only. Long file names in Windows; new extensions for crash-files; OLE 2 support |
Consistent naming (extensions) and file format (.fm) across platforms;
save as text with encoding Rubi, combined fonts, Kumihan rules |
Linux beta 5.5.6 available only for half a year; development abandoned in same year |
Document handling | (automatic) change bars introduced | Double byte support; PDF set-up (Acrobat bookmarks) | ||
Typography | ¶ and f-designer reorganised; line spacing and spacing | Stretch text; missing fonts stored in document | ||
Page layout | New templates; side heads; run-in heads; better options page size; enhanced handling of body- master page creation; | Text frames can include columns; side heads enhanced; straddles; more anchored frame positions | ||
Graphics/colour | Rotation in 0.001° 8 line styles (customisable); spot colour (Pantone, 4colour models) |
Join lines and curves; text run-around (on/off) | Colour libraries; tints; more run-around properties; overprint/knockout | |
Tables | Table-designer enhanced | Sort by rows or columns; save as text | ||
Import | More filters | Text import by reference; more filters, updated | Document roperties; More & better filters | |
Export | RTF is the only one (limited capabilities) | Save to HTML (rud.) more filters, updated; Fluid-View document (continuous page) | More & better filters; save to PDF; links across books, generation of
bookmarks etc.; enhanced save to HTML, CSS support |
PDF document information and file optimisation |
Hypertext | Incorporation of the HyperGen mechanism, more link types | Variable window settings; thumbs in index; sub menus. | Additional functions; integrated GUI | |
Language [3] | Language is ¶-property; 17 dictionaries standard; building blocks language dependent ; Webster the-saurus [Proximity] | Language is also f-property | ||
Variables, references | Rename marker types; user specified marker names | Volume- and chapter number | ||
Book operations; generated files | Automatic hypertext links possible in generated files | Book wide find/replace and spell-check; enhanced setup of file properties (including numbering) | ||
Utilities | View only documents; document comparison | Compare documents; WebWorks Publisher light [Quadralay] for HTML export | Create format-catalogue from local formatting | WebWorks Publisher Standard (= light) for good HTML and XML export. FrameViewer not ion CD |
Formulas | More control on typography: fine tuning location, font setting | |||
SGML | Product name: FrameMaker + SGML, singificantly better than FrameBuilder | |||
Commercial issues | 1993-11: second work force reduction to 425 | 1995-10-30: Adobe acquires Frame Technology FM 5.1 was the first version issued by Adobe, hence new manuals … |
Notes
[1] Version 5.1 was shipped by Frame Technology, 5.1.1 was shipped 1995-12 by Adobe (just logo change). Only 5.1.2 shortly after became stable
[2] Version 5.5 was very buggy, only 5.5.6 became stable (released 1998-10)
[3] Too deep localisation is a major problem also with the most recent version. This complicates exchange of documents between FrameMaker UI-versions (e.g. maintain a document in Germany, France and Great Britain).