OpenOffice (Build 680) vs Frame Maker 7.1
A short and quick OpenOffice (build
680) comparision vs Frame Maker
7.1. Both are running os Solaris 9.
Jim Balson
January 6th 2004
I was looking to use Open Office as a way of
providing what I considered professional level documentation. One of
the things I looked into was their PDF creation capabilities. In this
regard, OO couldn't compete with Frame.
Somthing I fould lacking were the following:
- OpenOffice could not create PDF files with Bookmarks. This was a
killer.
- OpenOffice could not create PDF files that contained graphics
that were clean and did not bleed. (Not sure if that is the correct
term?)
Here is an example of the graphics/bleeding problem:
I used OO to create a graphic. I converted the
graphic to JPEG (100%) and a TIFF file. I then brought up OO Writer and
imported the JPEG and TIFF files into writer, then exported to a PDF
file. I then imported the same JPEG and TIFF file ito Frame 7.1. Note
the difference. The Frame generated PDF is clean. To see this problem
clearly, zoom in a little on the lines in the graphic file.
View OpenOffice PDF file here
View FrameMaker PDF file here
In the end, I did not think that OpenOffice was a "professional" level
tool for documentation and went with Frame 7.1 on Sun Solaris.
Caveats: Although I get paid to write documentation, I am not a
professional writer, but rather a software developer.