Efficiently applying paragraph styles to multiple paragraphs

[johnb3665]

Hi Barb. Thx - that helps. 

I've signed-up for your next class in March. There really seems to be a lot I don't know. 🙂 

I have a new question on the same project, this time with one of the annexes (i.e., Annex F - TGI API calls). I need to import over a thousand functional calls with associated title, description, return and input information of the following form:

F.7.6.2 addAbstractionDefinitionPort
Description: Add abstractionDefPort with the given logicalName and type to the given abstractionDef element
-- Returns: abstractionDefPortID of type String - Handle to a new abstractionDefPort element
-- Input: abstractionDefID of type String - handle to an abstractionDef element
-- Input: logicalName of type String - Logical port name
-- Input: type of type String - Logical port style (wire or transactional)

Each line in the above call has a differnet pre-determined style name in Framemaker:

First line (F.7.6.2) - TGI Title

Second line (Description) - TGI Description

Third line (Returns) - TGI Returns

Four line (Input) - TGI Input

Here's my problem: I need to update this Annex F in the standard. The updated calls (over one thousand each) are available to me as a Word or Excel document. Is there a way to import all of these calls so that each line of each call has the proper style in FM? Someone suggest maybe using a DITA import/translation. Or perhaps I could use the "Find/Replace" function in FM to change the styles for each of the above line categories, e.g., First line - TGI Title, Second line - TGI Description, etc. I just don't know how to automate this task.

To repeat: The problem is to import or copy/paste over a thousand calls - each with four different lines and FM style categories - into FM without me having to manual change each and every line in FM. 

Appreciate any suggestions. Cheers -- John

[Barb Binder · Accepted solution]

Hi John: 

I just processed your registration—thank you—but didn't realize it was you. 😊

On the forums, it is best to ask each unrelated question as its one post, to make it easier for others with the same question to quickly track down the answer. I moved this new question to a new post for you. 

Two ideas to quickly apply the paragraph styles:

1. If you, or somebody else in your office, knows Word well, one can assign the styles in Word in advance. Then you can map the styles from word to FrameMaker. See https://www.rockymountaintraining.com/adobe-framemaker-smoother-import-word-files-style-mapping/ or
2. Use an Advanced Find/Change sequence. For each of the four paragraph styles:
   1. Copy the desired paragraph styles to the clipboard (i.e., TGI Description) using Edit > Copy Special
   2. Find a one word unique to the paragraph (i.e., Description: )
   3. Change By Pasting

The last three are fairly straight-forward beceause they each begin with a specific word followed by colon and a space. The first one will likely require a regular expression. I am happy to cover this in more detail in class. Looking forward to meeting you. 

~Barb 

[johnb3665]

Hi Barb. No worries. I'm very much looking forward to your course. 

I like the Word approach with styles as it seems the easiest and most direct. I'm going to experiment with it for now.

Thx and Cheers -- John