Can't Save Master Pages in Structured Document

[techademus]

I am new to Framemaker, but I have read the framemaker help.pdf, searched the web and these forums, and I can't see what I am doing wrong.

I am trying to create a book using structured authoring. My ditamap currently looks like this:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>

<!DOCTYPE bookmap PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DITA BookMap//EN" "bookmap/dtd/bookmap.dtd" [

]>

<bookmap

    xmlns:ditaarch="http://dita.oasis-open.org/architecture/2005/">

<booktitle><mainbooktitle>Practical PRoject Management</mainbooktitle></booktitle>

<chapter href="Introduction.xml" type="concept"></chapter>

<chapter href="Chapter1.xml" type="concept">

<topicref href="ch1_quote.xml" type="topic"></topicref>

<topicref href="ch1_setkas_story.xml" type="topic"></topicref>

</chapter>

</bookmap>

I open 'Chapter1.xml' in the editor and I want to do what all the tutorials on master pages do, which is give it a unique layout.  I navigate to the master page, add a new one and make my modifications.  Then I go back to my body doc and select my new master page and everything looks good.  I save (using CTRL+S or the File > Save menu), but when I close and reopen chapter1.xml, my custom master page is gone.

I don't see anywhere that says I can't do this with xml based documentation, so what am I missing?  Please help a n00b Framemaker user!

[Ian Proudfoot]

When you open any XML document in structured FrameMaker, the XML content is loaded into a copy of a 'structured template'. This structured template is an empty FrameMaker document that already includes the element cataog for a specific structured application.

Therefore to make permanent layout changes to the master pages you must edit the structured template for the relevant structured application. Here's how to find the structured template:

1. Open Structure > Structured Application Designer
   
2. Locate the Structure Application, for example DITA_1.3_concept
3. Find the template reference, for example: $STRUCTDIR\xml\DITA_1.3\app\technicalContent\template\concept.template.fm where $STRUCTDIR is the structure folder in your FrameMaker installation.
4. Make a copy of this template file somewhere that allows read/write access, then make your master page changes to that copy of the template. Save the file.
5. In the Structured Application Designer click on the ... button to locate your customised template.
6. Save
7. Open your DITA concept topic which will now be using your template.

[techademus]

Thank you, I will give this a try.  It is rather confusing that they let you make changes and apparently save them (the save option is available after you change a master template, and greys out when you do the save, suggesting something has just been persisted).

[techademus]

Sadly, I am not able to get these instructions to work. Here is what is happening:

* I copied the concept.template.fm file to my book directory and changed it.  That worked fine.  I can load the new file in Framemaker and see my master page as I designed it.

* I open the structured application designer, set the Applications to Dita_1.3_concept as shown above (which, BTW, always gives me a warning that there are unsaved changes in my current application, even if I literally just opened FM and wen to this dialog)

* I use the ... button next to 'Template' to select my file.  The text/path field changes to point to my file correctly.

* I click 'Save', which brings up a dialog stating 'Application with the same name already exists in the specified structapps file.  Overwrite existing application?'.  I click on the 'OK' button.  This screenshot was taken right before I clicked 'OK', and shows that the template is pointing to the copy of the template.fm file that I made.

The 'Save' option is now greyed out, suggesting that a save occurred.  However, if I close and reopen the structured application designer dialog, my change has been lost.  This screenshot is taken after clicking 'OK', then 'Close' on the Structured Application Designer, then immediately reopening it and navigating back to the same place.  As you can see, the Template has reset back to the default.

I am running Windows 10, so I tried launching Framemaker as an Administrator to see if it was a permission problem, but my results are identical.  Any ideas why I can't save my changes in the Structured Application Designer?

Any help would be appreciated.

[Ian Proudfoot]

Sorry for the confusion, rather than using Save at Step 6 I should have written Save As.

Using the Save in Structapp File dialog, Navigate to the following path:

C:\Users\<User_Name>\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\FrameMaker\<FM_version>\

Select structapps.fm then click Save

I hope that helps?

~Ian

[techademus]

I feel like I am getting closer, but I still can't get this to work.  No matter how or how many times I save the Here is what I have.

First, I created a template that I want to use, and saved it in my documents folder with my xml files. It looks like this - just a purple box with text below it.  The file is saved as  C:\Users\Anyone\Documents\Practical Project Management Book\concept.template.fm:

Then I used the structured application designer to set the C:\Users\Anyone\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\FrameMaker\14\structapps.fm file with my changes.  I can load that file into Framemaker and see my custom FM file is stored there.

Then I opened my xml file and verified that the structured application for this document is, in fact, DITA.1_3_concept:

However, I cannot see my template anywhere.  When I select View > Master pages, I only see the default master page not my custom one.

So, I go back to the structured application designer, and sure enough the path to the template has once again changed back to the $STRUCTDIR.

But C:\Users\Anyone\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\FrameMaker\14\structapps.fm still has the path to my custom file in it, so that says that wile the structured application designer is saving changes to my \Users\<myuser>\AppData folder, Framemaker is still loading from a different directory, and I Can't figure out how to change that.   I won't go into everything I have tried, but it includes launching FM as an administrator and editing the global defintions.  Even that didn't work.

Sorry to be a pain, but any thoughts?

[techademus · Accepted solution]

Well, I finally got it to work, but I don't know how.  I think it was a matter of closing and reloading Framemaker after posting the above.  Things I noticed that might help others who run into this:

1) On windows 10 (at least my machine)  c:\Users\<myusername>\AppData is a hidden folder - it won't appear in your file selector unless you have show hidden files turned on.  You can work around that by typing  \AppData once you browse to c:\Users\<myusername>

2) You can't use some features in the Structure > Application Definition menu unless you launch framemaker as an administrator.

3) After each change, close and reopen Framemaker and see if your change stuck.  Framemaker will tell you something saved and you can come back later only to find out it didn't.

And if anyone from Adobe reads this, please fix your user interface.  If I click 'Save' and the save button gets greyed out and my changes appear in the editor, it is reasonable for me to assume those changes were saved.  As documented above, that is not always the case, which is amazingly frustrating.

[Idratherbeskiing]

Hello;

 I am having the exact same problem in DITA1.3. Unfortuneatley, my master pages are not being applied or saved after I have tried the solution suggested by Mr. Proudfoot. Those all make sense and it seems like it should work, but I think something is overwriting any changes I make to master pages.

Even after I try importing Formats from my newly created template, save the XML file and reopen, the new master pages are not applied and are gone.

Somehow the path to the template in the Stuctured Application Designer is not being updated or saved as Tecademus has stated above.

(Probably something in the alphabet soup of DTD, EDD, RW rules, and XYZ is overwriting my changes, me messing with those is above my paygrade.)

In other Structured FrameMaker files I can easily make changes to Master pages and they are applied and saved without problems.

Any other thoughts?

[Idratherbeskiing]

We may have figured ou the issue. We do not have writepermissin to the Structure folder. However Frame does not tell you that you do not have write access when you try to Save the  structapps.fm file.  It just merrily goes on it's way and one assumes the changes have been saved. So when Tecademus tried as admin, that probably fixed his issue. I will update when I get the (permission changed and try again.)