TOC generation multiple errors in FM 2017

[ericb39592353]

Hi all,

I've been a Frame user for nearly two decades and this is a new one on me. This has happened while creating two distinct and separate books, so it's time to ask for some help.

I've created my book chapters and built my books the usual way. My headings are numbered, and the numbering is correct within the book's individual files:

• Chapter numbers are of the correct argument within the Chapter Number tag.
• Head 1 (and all heading) numbers are of the correct argument within their tag.

All display and update correctly within the book's Chapter files when 'booked'; all book files have their numbering set correctly. This is legacy stuff, in use for years, not a hard thing.

But NOW, when I go to do a 'Create Standalone TOC', I'm getting these crazy-making errors:

• Page numbers in the TOC are getting replaced with an incomplete argument that doesn't really belong there at all: "$paratext>" (note the lack of the first delimiter)
• Heading levels and Paragraphs used to import correctly into the TOC and Reference Pages; now they do not.
• Page numbering in the TOC can be off by one page, when compared to the page footer - TOC says "Setup....13", when the actual page number is 14.
• A second example of this: My order is typically, Front Page and Title, TOC, LOT, LOF. (These are done in roman numerals, then restarted for the regular book; and this has always worked up to now.) The LOF page number in the footer is now always +1 from where it should be. Numbering is restarted correctly, specified correctly for each of these Front Matter files.
• Reference-Page-generated TOC items don't seem to make sense; editing the text and re genning the TOC has very mixed results; little of it helpful.

The only way I have been able to fix the first of these errors is to reboot (an incredibly huge pain on a PC with Security Rights Management!), delete the TOC, and try to run it again. Updating the book is hit-and-miss for it working correctly.

The only way I have been able to fix the second of these errors is to hand-code each of the heading levels with its own level of numbering in the Paragraph Designer. Essentially I'm creating the same level of hierarchy that I have in the document, something that Frame used to do automatically. I'm able to short-cut this a bit by opening one of the book files and just copying over the paragraph numbering schema from all four levels of headings. Still, from someone who has seen this work "automagically" in previous versions, we seem to have regressed,

Any ideas, here?

Thanks for the help.

[Matt S - Tech Comm Tools]

Hi Eric,

It sounds like something got fouled up, and now you'll need to clean out the existing TOC, etc.

You might try either or both of these things:

1. Remove the TOC from the book file, and (delete, rename, or move) the TOC from the current location. Then create the TOC as you're accustomed, and format from scratch. Since you don't know what the "problem" is, importing formats from previous TOC may just reintroduce the ref page or para format that's gumming up the system.
2. Create a new, blank book, and add the necessary components. Then add your TOC to the book as above.

Let me know if this resolves any of your issues and we can go from there.

[ericb39592353]

You may be on the right track.

What I had done before (with very limited success) was just go in and delete the faulty TOC using the Book's Delete function (which is supposed to scrub it off the disk), and have another attempt at generating it. This had hit-and-miss results, as stated originally. After reading your response, I started wondering if there was some 'gremlin' having to do with that folder - network access privilege, access time, phase of the Moon, -who knows what-

It's clear that rebooting did not fix the problem. There must have been something else at work.

So, using your line of thinking, I copied the entire set of project folders, deleted the Book and all the generated files from the new copy, create a brand-new Book file, and Generate a Standalone TOC within that folder.

Success. First time. And second time.

I think you have the correct answer to this question.

In the case of these kinds of recurring inexplicable errors, then it's best to copy the entire project folder set, delete the original Book and all generated files from the newly replicated set, and remake/regenerate them within the copied folder. Rename the original folder to make sure that there are no references back to it, and then once you've verified that the new Book and all files within it are working correctly, delete the original folders .

[Matt S - Tech Comm Tools]

Excellent, I was hoping it would be that easy!

One correction: Reread the dialog when you delete a file using the book's option...you should find that it deletes the reference, but not the file itself. The offending file should also be deleted via the Windows interface. If you leave it there, and the name is the default derivative of the book filename, it will be used as the formatting basis for your next TOC.

Having said that, I think that deleting the TOC ref in the book and the file on disk should be sufficient. At least that would be my first attempt, as the rest of your potential process gives me a headache just thinking about it!

[ericb39592353]

...deleting the TOC ref in the book and the file on disk should be sufficient. At least that would be my first attempt...

It was my second through nth... attempts!

Your idea of cloning the folders and deleting the Book along with all generated files, was the only thing that gave consistently good results. Wish I'd known this a couple days ago, when FM was giving me such fits. I had to finally conquer it through brute force.

Yes, I totally, totally agree: HEADACHE!!

[Matt S - Tech Comm Tools]

'nuff said!!