FrameSLT

(Purchase/Download Trial).

FrameSLT is a versatile and flexible structure management utility that greatly enhances FrameMaker's native structure tools. Its wide array of functionality is unique even among other structured authoring tools and is a must-have for anyone who performs any kind of frequent structure management tasks, including conversions, cleanups, and general purpose maintenance. The features of FrameSLT can literally reduce hours or even days of work into seconds, over and over again.

The feature set of FrameSLT is generally divided into two categories:

• XPath, the Node Wizard, and Node Wizard scripting
• The transformation engine

The capabilities of FrameSLT are quite diverse and can be difficult to understand at a glance. If you have questions about what FrameSLT can do, please contact us. Note that the installation package contains a complete User Guide and a wealth of tutorials and sample files.

XPath, the Node Wizard, and Node Wizard scripting

FrameSLT is an XPath-based structure management utility, the first of its kind to really capitalize on the XML-style markup available in a structured FrameMaker document. Using the advanced power of XPath, you can perform precise queries of your structure tree based on elements, attributes, and content, and you can perform a wide variety of automated structural modifications based upon these queries. If you thought search and replace was cool, you haven't seen anything yet.

Because FrameSLT is XPath-based, the true power of markup is at your disposal. With FrameSLT you get the versatile Node Wizard utility, a necessity for structure management within FrameMaker. If you ever thought that there should be a quicker way to perform repetitive structure management activities, you were right. The Node Wizard harnesses XPath to navigate your FrameMaker structure trees and automate a wide variety of common activities, such as:

• Wrapping, unwrapping, retagging, moving, inserting, and deleting elements
• Setting, deleting, moving, and swapping attribute values
• Searching and replacing text within attribute values
• Assigning conditional text
• Pasting anything from the clipboard in precise locations

Version 2 has added an exciting new scripting feature to the Node Wizard, allowing you to automate virtually anything that the Node Wizard can do. By automating repetitive structure management tasks, you can save enormous amounts of time during activities such as structure conversion and advanced EDD maintenance. With the support for nested, recursive actions in version 2.2, you can move content to and from virtually anywhere within a document, including the seamless transfer of content between attributes and elements.

FrameSLT includes a conditional text management tool which automates the assignment of conditional text based on structural qualities such as element names and attribute values. It's like having an EDD context rule that allows you to assign conditional text, except far more powerful because it is based on the broad evaluation qualities of XPath.

In addition, FrameSLT's XPath parser and navigator are fully exposed to external utilities, such as other API clients and FrameScript® scripts. If you have FrameScript or other programming resources, you can use FrameSLT to facilitate any nature of content management and structure manipulation.

FrameSLT documentation includes comprehensive XPath examples and lots of tutorials to get you started. If you don't know XPath, you have few better ways to learn than FrameSLT. It parses all XPath on the spot and provides detailed error reporting for any mistakes.

The transformation engine

FrameSLT includes an XSLT emulator for structured FrameMaker, allowing structural transformations and extensive, granular single-sourcing of your structured FrameMaker content. With FrameSLT, you can reuse and repurpose information at will, without a complicated XML workflow and without any expensive databases or content management systems.

In concept, FrameSLT acts much like an XSLT processor, in that you build "stylesheets" with transformation elements, which then become "transformed" into other content. Like XSLT, your transformation elements can query any structured document and perform simple operations, such as the basic retrieval of content, or complex content alterations such as table-building and cross-reference generation.

But here is the real advantage... you don't need any XML, only your own structured FrameMaker documents. You never have to leave FrameMaker, because all stylesheet and source documents are structured FrameMaker documents themselves. With minor EDD alterations, you can turn any structured document into a stylesheet, and you can query and transform whole FrameMaker books at a time. And, unlike a typical XSLT processor, the transformations occur right in front of you... you can watch your documents being built, as it happens.

If you've thought that you should be able to get more out of your structured FrameMaker markup, FrameSLT is your answer. And, if you've never pursued XSLT before because it seemed complicated, you'll be pleased to know that FrameSLT makes it as simple as possible, with features such as detailed dialog boxes and instant, comprehensive error reporting. In fact, if you've put off learning XPath/XSLT for any reason, you'll find few easier ways to learn than FrameSLT.

By the way, even though you don't need XML, that doesn't mean that you can't use it. FrameSLT can query and repurpose information loaded into FrameMaker from XML, just as it can with structured documents created in FrameMaker. In fact, you can open "raw" XML directly into FrameMaker with no structured application, then transform the content directly into your production template. That means XML content brought straight into your files and formatted, without the need for read/write rules or any of the other traditional overhead.

Please note that although FrameSLT behaves like an XSLT processor in some ways, it is not true XSLT, and is not endorsed by or associated with the W3 Consortium in any way.