FrameMaker FDK Developement - hints and tips needed

[Phrone]

Hi.

I have looked around after information about how to develope with FrameMaker FDK, but I can't find any good examples for a FDK newbee.

Anyone that knows about some useful links where I can find information about how to get started?

I have tried google, but I couldn't find anything good.

Thanks,

Per

[m_m_anthony]

You don't say what you are trying to accomplish. You might want to look at Framescript by ElmSoft. It is essentially a scripting language on top of the FDK.  Good way to get familiar without the overhead of the kit.

M

[Phrone]

Thanks for your reply.

I don't know exactly what I will do. 

I work as system designer for a company with >200 technical writers and they sometimes asks if I can create plugins for them to speed things up in there daily work.

[Guest]

You might browse through the archives of the Frame Dev list, here:

    http://groups.yahoo.com/group/frame_dev/

[Arnis Gubins]

If you need to create quick fixes to speed up production, then definitely investigate Framescript first. It's a complete IDE environment that lets you try things out iteratively. It has virtually all of the capabilities of the FDK and lets you access system resources as well. The documentation is extensive and there is a third-party tutorial book available from Rick Quatro at http://www.frameexpert.com

There is an active group on Yahoo for this as well at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/framescript-users/

Depending upon where you reside there also are some training classes available for this via Front-Runner Training in Toronto,

see: http://www.front-runner.com/TrainingCategoryDetail.php?cid=76&catid=4&compid=1&pageNum_CategoryCours...

[Russ Ward · Accepted solution]

Hi Per,

There are no tutorials that I am aware of, and, complicating matters, the normal documentation has not kept pace with development. However, there are a large number of samples that install with the FDK. And, for what documentation there is, it is generally very good.

I've given presentations on the FDK before. I don't know if it will help you any, but I have attached a PDF of some slides from one such presentation I did with Scott Prentice of Leximation.com at the FrameMaker 2008 Chautauqua conference.

I agree with what others have said about FrameScript. It is easier to get started and develop than the FDK. However, note that the deployment of scripts can be less convenient and will be considerably more expensive. Anyone who wants to run a script must have FrameScript installed. If I'm reading the FrameScript.com site correctly, it would cost around $20,000 USD to equip 200 workstations with FrameScript. Conversely, an FDK-based API client costs nothing to deploy and the FDK itself is also free.

Russ

[Arnis Gubins]

The costs aren't quite as high, see: http://www.framescript.com/index.php?q=node/5

But yes, you will need to either get a volume or site license if every work station requires it.

It might be easier & faster for some to test out concepts in FrameScript first and then convert that to an API via the FDK. YMMV.

[Russ Ward]

Arnis,

Help me out here because I'm not trying to tell any lies about FrameScript. When I read the page, I see a price of $99.95 for a license (about $100), when 50+ licenses are purchased. When I multiply that by 200, I get 20,000. Is there something I'm missing?

I don't use FrameScript myself, but I have encountered many instances where it would have been more convenient than the FDK. One of the big upsides to FrameScript is that you don't have to restart FrameMaker to compile and deploy. Now that FrameMaker takes a few hours to start up, FrameScript is looking better every day.

Russ

[Arnis Gubins]

Russ,

Ooops, trying to do too many things at once here. You're correct. I was thinking the OP had 100 licenses to deal with. Sorry about that.

I'm not certain if Finite Matters has a site license, which might be another option.

[Phrone]

Ok,

If it is required that all users has FrameScript installed, it's not an option.

Sometimes we want a customer to use the plugin aswell.

I will take a look at the samples that comes with the installation, and come back here when I am stuck.

Thanks everyone!

[TWDaveWalker]

Is there a way to import and/or convert a FrameScript in the FDK?  That would be ideal -- develop in FrameScript, deploy as a plugin.  Or perhaps is thrid-party conversion software available?  Or lastly, a contractor who does this for a living?  (I only say "lastly" as it would be a harder sell to management.)

Thanks,

Dave

[Russ Ward]

Hi Dave,

Definately no such thing, except for the last one .  It really wouldn't make much sense anyway. If you want an FDK client, then develop with the FDK. Any time savings realized by doing a preliminary design with FrameScript would be vastly outweighed by the time and effort required to port it over.

Russ

[TWDaveWalker]

Ok, thanks.  Any recommendations for people who do this?  We have some existing scripts but

no C programming expertise currently available.

[Russ Ward]

Dave,

A lot of us know some people, but rather than ask us to make public endorsements, your best bet is probably to post some contact information and ask anyone interested to contact you. You could do that here and on the other lists as well. In particular, the FDK development forum on Yahoo might be a good place to fish around:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Frame_dev

You might also consider just taking this on yourself, if you at least have the FrameScript experience on staff. If there is someone who knows how to work FrameScript, it is not a big leap to learn the FDK. All the basic methodology is the same... just some different syntax and environmental considerations. You can almost learn enough C from the FDK documentation alone.

Russ