"Unable to install RoboHelp plugin for FrameMaker..."

[AnneOfParadise]

Hi--

I have Frame 9 and a demo copy of RoboHelp 8.0.0.203 and am working in Windows 7 (suddenly. Still learning my way into the OS after last weekend's catastrophic failure of my trusty little XP machine.) I do not have TCS2; just these two as standalone tools. I have a Frame book that I need to turn into context-sensitive OLH and am auditioning Robo for the task.

No dice. Every time I try to import (see below re linking) I get an error message in a box labelled "RHUtils": "Unable to install RoboHelp plugin for FrameMaker. Please close FrameMaker and try again."

With your permission, I'll cover a few points in the order in which they may come to mind:

==> Initially I tried linking, hoping of course for the benefits of single-sourcing. I've learned in this forum and elsewhere (---btw, sincere thanks for this outstanding resource) that I need the bona-fide TCS2 in place in order to link. Thought I'd import for now instead, just to see how it went; got the same error message.

==> This was AFTER I'd gone researching and, on the Adobe site (http://www.adobe.com/support/robohelp/misc.html) found this: "The FrameMaker plug-in for RoboHelp enables FrameMaker users to rapidly convert any number of FrameMaker files or books for easy import into RoboHelp 2002 and X3. RoboHelp X4 includes the plug-in! The FrameMaker Plug-in for RoboHelp is available for Windows only. To install the plug-in, unzip the RoboMIF.dll into the Plugins folder within the FrameMaker installation folder, (normally found at C:\Program Files\Adobe\FrameMaker7.0\fminit\Plugins)..   Once the plug-in has been installed, restart FrameMaker. FrameMaker will now include a RoboHelp menu."   OK: I downloaded RoboMIF.dll, installed it as instructed, rebooted all just in case, and now "Adobe RoboHelp" does in fact appear in the menu bar in Frame. I'm nonetheless still getting the error message every time I try to (now) import.

==> For several of these attempts Frame was in fact closed. For several others Frame was open to the entry page and nothing else. No apparent impact either way.

==> Importing and linking Word files seems to work fine---which is cool, but my document is in Frame right now. I know I can convert, but so far converting to Word appears to require me to redo all the cross-referencing I've done in Frame. Feasible but not my first choice.

==> I found a Framers thread at http://www.mail-archive.com/framers@lists.frameusers.com/msg18576.html re this problem. The recommendation, (edited here for brevity), was that the writer:

1. Locate [the] Maker.ini file and ideally make a backup of it, just in case.
2. In the [APIClients] section of the maker.ini file, add the following line:

RH4FMver9=Standard,RH4FMver9,C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Technical Communication Suite 2\Adobe RoboHelp 8\RoboHTML\RHFrameMakerServer9.dll,all

3. You should now be able to launch RoboHelp and when you "link" FrameMaker files, the FrameMaker application should launch correctly.

This doesn't seem to be my answer as I don't yet own TCS2. That path doesn't yet exist.

(I've nevertheless been getting great tips from training provided by this responder, RJ Raquez, at http://blogs.adobe.com/rjacquez/2009/05/linking_framemaker_9_books_in.html.)

Anyway, this is where I realized I was, at least for the moment, out of ideas. Anybody got any others?

Thanks---

Anne

[Arnis Gubins]

The stand-alone products are missing some of the "secret ingredients" that allow them to work together as in the TechComm Suite product.

From stand-alone FM9, you're probably better off going the mif2go route from Omni Systems. See: http://www.omsys.com/dcl/mif2gopg.htm

[Jeff_Coatsworth · Accepted solution]

If you don't want to go the miftogo route that Arnis mentions, you could always download the demo of TCS2 - it's fully functional for the demo period. I'd be tempted to install it into it's own virtual machine (or another machine entirely) so that you don't get the demo interfering with your legit copy of FM9.

[AnneOfParadise]

Hi-- & thank you.

My aim now is to try both mif2go and the demo version of  TCS2. I'm currently downloading that (... and downloading... and  downloading...) Nontrivial size. But no complaints! I'm grateful  to have the opportunity to look at it without dropping big bucks at this  point. The client hasn't yet paid me.

Will be back with a report once I see what's going on. Continuing in  RJ's training (on a different machine) while I download. Thank you,  again, for the responses.

Anne

[Arnis Gubins]

Anne,

You can also "test drive" the TCS suite  without downloading via: http://www.runaware.com/clients/adobe/techsuite/

[AnneOfParadise]

Thanks, Arnis. In fact I was already using Frame, PhotoShop, and Adobe  Pro prior to the crash of the XP machine, so it's probably reasonable to  go ahead and upgrade/integrate to TCS2 now that I'm on W7 (at least, as  soon as the client pays). Just wish the transition had been a little  less catastrophic.

As it happens, once I got the demo TCS2 version downloaded and installed  I probably went through RJ Jaquez's "Linking FrameMaker 9 Books in  RoboHelp 8" online session about four times. Finally got some of the  fine points and as a result am eager to continue with Robo.

Thanks to all for the help! I consider this one closed.
Anne

[AnneOfParadise]

I said a minute ago that this one was a wrap but probably should explicate. Downloading the demo version of TCS2, while time-consuming, eliminated the plugin problem.

I was using Frame 9 and a demo version of Robo 8. I also had standalone versions of PhotoShop and Acrobat Pro, so the leap to TCS2 was predictable.

The last time I used RoboHelp was, gee, back in the Pliestocene---version 5 or something. Grabbing the essentials of 8 took a few days, but help is out there. I've now managed to turn out a reasonable, if basic, draft OLH deck single-sourced from Frame.

Thanks to all for the help and suggestions.

Anne

[AnneOfParadise]

Hi--

I fervently hope that this will be the last installment on this issue! Just in case anyone else has the problem, though...

Situation: The TCS2 demo was working great---on a virtual machine running on a computer separate from my work machine. (Isolated it there to keep it away from my functioning Frame 9.) I was happy with it and so plunked down the $$, installing it on my work machine...

...where we bombed right back into the "Unable to install RoboHelp plugin for FrameMaker..." thing. Exasperating. I even opened a ticket with Adobe on it (sadly, to no avail).

In examining the differences between the two setups, two things popped:

• The virtual machine was a Windows 7 "Professional," while my actual work system was running Windows 7 "Home." Both are/were 64-bit.
  

• I had at one point installed the demo of standalone Robo 8 on my work system. (The fact that it wouldn't work with my standalone copy of Frame 9 was the initiating point in this thread.)
  

I upgraded the work machine to W7Pro. In the process I removed the last vestiges of the Robo demo, plus an antique copy of Frame 7.2 that I'd hung on to on behalf of a particular past client.

That worked! I've *just* delivered a matched PDF/CSH deck to a current client. However, having changed more than one thing---never a great idea---I now don't know whether the problem was over some artifact from the old/demo tools or an actual issue with the operating system.

But, hey, let's focus on the important part: it worked!!

OK. If you're having this problem on a Windows 7 machine, here's what I recommend:

1. Remove anything having to do with any previous copies of the tools that are part of TCS2. If that doesn't work,
2. THEN ensure that you're running W7Pro, and try again.

Allow me to add that I'm grateful for the existence of this Forum. I've come to rely on this crowd for help with pesky problems with this very powerful (and therefore complex) set of tools. I hope this follow-up contributes to solving a problem for someone else.

Onward, upward, etc.

Anne

[JayJM]

I have TCS2 on a 64-bit Win7 system. I'm having the same problems that Anne discussed. I tried the modification to maker.ini that is listed in this thread, and I've tried reinstalling the FM9 and RH8 components from the TCS2 installation DVD. I'm still getting the "Unable to install RoboHelp plugin for FrameMaker" message. Like Anne, this is happening when I try to Link to an existing, empty project or when I try to Import the FrameMaker book from the RH Starter screen.

Any ideas?

Jay

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

You know if the maker.ini hack is working when you see the RH menu item in FM. Are you seeing that part?

[AnneOfParadise]

Jay, by chance are you running a demo copy of Robo?

If not, did you have a demo copy on the machine prior to installation? As I recall, getting all vestiges of the demo version off the machine seemed to play a key role in clearing this up.

Anne

[JayJM]

Anne,

I'm running a registered version. I believe that I did download and install the trial version before I got the product key. Today, I uninstalled the entire TCS2 and reinstalled it from the DVDs. I've got the same problem.

Any other suggestions?

Jay

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

Contact Adobe Support - install calls are freebies.