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tschuman1
Participating Frequently
February 24, 2021
Answered

FrameMaker 2020 impossible to use when files have a lot of graphics

  • February 24, 2021
  • 8 replies
  • 1945 views

We have noticed a considerable issue with FrameMaker 2020 performance when a file has a lot of graphics. We actually have reverted to using FrameMaker 2019 with books that have lots of graphics. I know we can hide graphics (ESC+V+V), but in some cases we really need to view the graphics in order to edit the files. When we open a file in FrameMaker 2020 with the graphics showing, it takes several minutes for a page to load, and scrolling forces the page to refresh and start the load process over. The majority of our graphics are .png graphics and nothing more sohisticated than screenshots. When we open the same files in the 2019 version, we do not have this issue. Has anyone else seen this in 2020 and have any suggestions other than hiding graphics? Thank you.

This topic has been closed for replies.
Correct answer pulkitn

Hi @tschuman1

 

We internally work with graphics-rich documents but haven't seen this issue with FM2020.
Would you mind telling few things which Bob too asked?
Assuming you are using .fm/mif formats as your document 

  • Are images imported by reference or copied into the document and where are they residing if imported by reference (network, CMS, local etc )?

Further, if your images are non-local and you are using VPN which may be adding network delay then you can check one of property present in preference "Edit -->Preference--> General--> "Do not check updates images and multimedia " 

 

Thanks 
Pulkit 

8 replies

Jeff_Coatsworth
Jeff_Coatsworth
Community Expert
September 15, 2021

@tschuman1 - unfortunately calling into Adobe Support doesn't get you very far - they have no real experience of the internal workings of FM - you would need to contact the FM folks via that e-mail I suggested before.

    Jeff_Coatsworth
    Jeff_Coatsworth
    Community Expert
    September 15, 2021

    @QuintinSeegers you should get in touch with the FM folks about this - just posting on the forums won't get it on their official radar - see https://helpx.adobe.com/contact/enterprise-support.other.html#framemaker for your Adobe Support options. I'd recommend using the tcssup@adobe.com e-mail address as it reaches the team dedicated to Technical Communication Suite products including FrameMaker.

    Matt-Tech Comm Tools
    Matt-Tech Comm Tools
    Community Expert
    September 9, 2021

    Are you running with Autosave enabled?

    Given the network location of resources, and a (slower) VPN connection, the autosave might be dragging down your performance to the speed of the network every "X" minutes. Try moving to a local machine and/or disabling Autosave.

     

    -Matt

    -Matt SullivanFrameMaker Course Creator, Author, Trainer, Consultant
    D
    default7disvucsk5yt
    New Participant
    September 8, 2021

    In response to the graphics issue,

    FM automatically checks for updates of graphics or other items that are imported onto pages (even text!).  FM pauses to make this check every time a page comes onscreen with an imported item – even if it has done the check before.

    The selection of the Edit/Preference/Do not check for Updated Images & Multimedia checkbox seems to affect only items that are imported by reference and not imported by copy, so these very frustrating pauses still happen.

     

    To avoid the unwanted pauses, turn off the internet connection while working on a doc.  FM can’t pause to make these update checks if there isn’t any connection.  Then work can proceed smoothly.

    T
    tschuman1Author
    Participating Frequently
    September 8, 2021

    It is frustrating. Even with the cehckbox selected, we have several books that are graphic heavy and we had to give up on FrameMaker 2020. We continue to work on these books in Frame 2019. FrameMaker 2020 is basically unresponsive when we upgrade these books and often crashes.

      QuintinSeegers
      QuintinSeegers
      Brainiac
      September 12, 2021

      This is the same reason we reverted back to Framemaker 2019. All our documents and graphics reside on the network and all graphics are imported by reference. Our documents can contain anything between 1 and 100 images. Opening a document in FM2020 takes almost a minute, where in FM2019 it takes less than 10 seconds. That's not even countiang the constant page refresh time. Not sure what was changed in FM2020 regarding the graphics engine, but it's certainly been a leap backwards for us. So we're sticking with FM2019.

      Barb Binder
      Barb Binder
      Community Expert
      February 24, 2021

      That is so helpful, @pulkitn. I had no idea.

       

      ~Barb 

      ~Barb at Rocky Mountain Training
        W
        Winfried Reng
        Community Expert
        February 24, 2021

        I have FrameMaker 2020 (16.0.1.817) and documents with lots of graphics (JPG or EPS) and several hundred pages. In my experience FM 2020 is considerably faster than previous versions. I did not notice any delays.

        An additional question:

        What happens, when you switch off your antivirus software temporarily?

          T
          tschuman1Author
          Participating Frequently
          February 24, 2021

          Yes. The graphics are imported by reference, located on a network drive, and we are working over a VPN. I understand this has implications, but I can open the same files in FrameMaker 2019 and not have this issue. Selecting the Do Not Check for Updated Images & Multimedia has helped the situation quite a bit. 

            Matt-Tech Comm Tools
            Matt-Tech Comm Tools
            Community Expert
            September 9, 2021

            I'm betting the network location for the graphics and VPN are at the root of your issue. Similar issues get reported by those using the Dropbox functionality.

             

            Try moving all resources to a local machine to see if it speeds up. If so, consider version control software to manage the content.

             

            My largest book is 500 pages, with an average of 5 screenshots per page, and I have no slowdown whatsoever, even though I run on a VM.

            Certainly, though, make sure you're using 16.0.2, and 16.0.3 when it's released.

             

            -Matt

            -Matt SullivanFrameMaker Course Creator, Author, Trainer, Consultant
            pulkitn
            Adobe Employee
            pulkitnCorrect answer
            Adobe Employee
            February 24, 2021

            Hi @tschuman1

             

            We internally work with graphics-rich documents but haven't seen this issue with FM2020.
            Would you mind telling few things which Bob too asked?
            Assuming you are using .fm/mif formats as your document 

            • Are images imported by reference or copied into the document and where are they residing if imported by reference (network, CMS, local etc )?

            Further, if your images are non-local and you are using VPN which may be adding network delay then you can check one of property present in preference "Edit -->Preference--> General--> "Do not check updates images and multimedia " 

             

            Thanks 
            Pulkit 

              Bob_Niland
              Bob_Niland
              Community Expert
              February 24, 2021

              I haven't done enough graphics-rich work in FM2020 to have noticed anything, but anyone with more experience is apt to want to know:

              • Point version of FM2020 (e.g. 16.0.0p543)
              • Images Imported by Reference or Copied into Document?
              • What graphics file format(s)? (e.g. EPS, JPG, PNG, SVG, etc.)
              • If Imported, are they on local machine or opened over network (or in a CMS server)?
              • Bitmap, grayscale (and bit depth), color (and bit depth : color model)?
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