Cannot Generate PDF - FM8 File Opened with FM9

Report · Jan 29, 2010

I sure hope someone can help me ASAP.

I am using FM9 to open a FM8 book and subsequent files. I am trying to generate a simple PDF. The PDF does not generate, and FrameMaker will not tell me why or how to fix the problem.

The FM Console window is complaining that "CG Times" font and "Helvetica" font is missing, but subsitutes these with "Times New Roman" and "Arial" fonts respectively. Is this font substitution causing the PDF not to generate?

In addition, in the Print Book window, I have tried the following:

- Checking the "Print to File" option.

- Un-checking the "Print to File" option.

- Checking the "Generate PDF Data" option.

- Un-checking the "Generate PDF Data" option.

- Combinations of the above

None of these work. The printer is listed as "Adobe PDF".

What can I do? We cannot get this book to generate a PDF!!! We are going crazy! Why is FrameMaker so insanely complicated?

- Shady

Report · Jan 29, 2010

If you searched the archives, you should have found several threads on this.

This is what I'd do, maybe pausing to try to generate the PDF at each step or two:

If you're running XP (you didn't provide any system / environment information -- makes it harder to trouble shoot), apply the MS HotFix for PS printers
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=952909
-- it applies to all PS printers, including the logical PDF.
Check your patch levels to make sure that both FM and Acrobat are fully patched.
Set your system default printer to the Adobe PDF logical printer
Open all the component files in the book. SaveAs them to MIF, then open them and save as .FM. This is my SOP for any files from a previous version that I open in 9. You can do this at the book level if you install the eval copy of MIF2Go from omsys.com -- it installs a WashToMif utility on the Files menu that works for all the files in the book.
Create a new book file in 9. You can just select and copy the component files from the FM8 book into the new one.

Art

Report · Jan 29, 2010

Sorry about that Scrabble URL in the previous message. ;- )

It should be: http://support.microsoft.com/?id=952909
-- it applies to all PS printers, including the logical PDF.

Report · Jan 29, 2010

Sorry about that, Art, we are running FM9 on Windows XP, SP2.

Trying for the hotfix you referenced now.

Normally I would browse the forums looking for previous articles, but this is a bit of an emergency, we have to get this PDF generated today.

- Shady

Report · Jan 29, 2010

Before you go to print, make certain that you have all of the book component files open (while the book file is in focus, hold down the Shift key, click on the File menu to get options to enable you to open, close and save all files in a book in one go). If you were trying to print or SaveAsPDF from the book file alone, and there were font issues, then FM will fail to generate output when the files were opened silently and the font issue couldn' be dealt with.

Your best solution is to fix the font issue in the FM document. If you're ok with the TimesNewRoman and Arial subsitutions, then turn off the File > Preferences > Remember Missing Font Names option. Save your document(s). FM will then replace the fonts. Change the Preference back again to what it was. Open the documents and then try creating your PDF.

Note: CG Times is typically a printer font in HP Laserjets so it sounds like the document was created using printer fonts, which neither FM nor Distiller would have access to for creating PDFs.

You may want to consider using Sundorne's SetPrint utility to always ensure that FM's default printer is the AdobePDF. See: http://www.sundorne.com/FrameMaker/Freeware/setPrint.htm

Report · Jan 29, 2010

Note: CG Times is typically a printer font in HP Laserjets so it sounds
like the document was created using printer fonts, which neither FM nor
Distiller would have access to for creating PDFs.

>

It's absolutely true that printer-resident fonts cannot be used by FM or

Distiller for creating PDFs. However, HP normally includes the fonts on a

disk that comes with their printers. So a fix would be to install the fonts

manually. (They do not install as part of the normal printer setup routine.)

Then the fonts would be available to FM and Distiller for creating PDFs, and

not just available for printing to an HP printer.