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Robert at ID-Tasker
Legend
May 3, 2025
Question

FrameMaker's functionality missing in the InDesign...

  • May 3, 2025
  • 4 replies
  • 889 views

Looking for people using both programs - to pick their brains 😉

 

What kind of functionality would you like to see in the InDesign?

 

Please either post here or privately. 

 

TIA 

 

4 replies

frameexpert
Community Expert
Community Expert
May 12, 2025

FrameMaker has anchored frames that can contain multiple images, callouts, etc. As far as I know, InDesign doesn't have anchored frames that allow you to have multiple objects in it. Is that still correct?

Robert at ID-Tasker
Legend
May 12, 2025
quote

FrameMaker has anchored frames that can contain multiple images, callouts, etc. As far as I know, InDesign doesn't have anchored frames that allow you to have multiple objects in it. Is that still correct?


By @frameexpert

 

You can group your objects and then "Paste Into". 

 

Or you can "Paste Into" a single object into a Rectangle / Oval as well. 

 

That was available long time ago. 

 

Group is kind of like any other graphic object.

 

Community Expert
May 5, 2025

My main gripe with InDesign is mainly speed and the lack of fast book handling. InDesign is slow when the number of pages rise. And the book feature is a mess. That said, I sure wish FM had some of the good features of InDesign like guidelines, better color management, better font support and better print engine.

Bjørn Smalbro - FrameMaker.dk
frameexpert
Community Expert
Community Expert
May 5, 2025

I agree. Give me a pasteboard, ruler guides, configurable paragraph rules and paragraph shading.

Robert at ID-Tasker
Legend
May 5, 2025
quote

I agree. Give me a pasteboard, ruler guides, configurable paragraph rules and paragraph shading.


By @frameexpert

 

If only scripting through VB would be possible in FM... 

 

Matt-Tech Comm Tools
Community Expert
Community Expert
May 5, 2025

I wonder if you'd get better results asking this question in the Id forum, where folks are looking for things Id doesn't do (or do well)

For myself, I like Fm's ability to manage content across VLB (Very Large Books) and InDesign's ability to microdesign a specific page.

 

-Matt Sullivan, FrameMaker Course Creator, Author, Trainer, Consultant
Robert at ID-Tasker
Legend
May 5, 2025
quote

I wonder if you'd get better results asking this question in the Id forum, where folks are looking for things Id doesn't do (or do well)

[...] 


By @Matt-Tech Comm Tools

 

Yeah, I'm already there 😉 but was hoping to get more ideas. 

 

quote

[...] 

For myself, I like Fm's ability to manage content across VLB (Very Large Books) [...] 

 

Could you please elaborate? I'm not FM user. 

 

Dave Creamer of IDEAS
Community Expert
Community Expert
May 3, 2025

More of Frame's Book features (been asking for years...). 

Per-document pagination in a book (not one setting for all documents). 

Variables that can break across lines.

Ability to add partial Character styles to variables, x-refs, etc. 

Multiple indices.

I'm sure there's more. I'll edit or add as I think of them. (Not at my main computer.)

 

David Creamer: Community Expert (ACI and ACE 1995-2023)
Robert at ID-Tasker
Legend
May 3, 2025
quote

[...] 

Variables that can break across lines.

[...] 

 

By @Dave Creamer of IDEAS

 

That's pretty much done 😉 will work even in the free version of my tool - but will require a bit of extra clicking 😉 

 

Variable -> to text -> back to Variable. 

 

Plus ability to use only part of the contents of the variable - e.g. only part of the File Name. 

 

Plus auto applying dedicated Para / CharStyle - so different "locations" can be easily found and processed. 

 

Next step - full management on the document level - editing, creating, importing, etc. 

 

So there is only one step to auto-updating bunch of documents based on the new File Name - with automatic PDF generation and upload.