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The XML DTD dictates the allowable elements at any given place. (In
Frame, the DTD is incorporated with various presentation rules in a
document called an "EDD").
What Frame permits, therefore, is dictated by the structure rules.
That does not--or *should* not--limit the style of the document in
ways that you cannot deal with, however. If it does, then some
tinkering with the EDD might be helpful.
Any XML or SGML document has these requirements, and at first they may
seem rather nonsensical. In return, though, you gain a great deal of
flexibility and the ability to automate processing the documents in
many useful and interesting ways.
Since your shop is obviously not "doing XML" at present, the pain of
conversion will only be delayed until and unless your organization
chooses to do so. The more documents that must be converted at that
time, the greater the pain will be then. Thus, if you have the choice
and if you believe it is possible that your company might go to XML at
some point in the future, I suggest choosing an EDD that contains an
XML dialect you can work with and begin that transition now. The
output docs need not appear markedly different, but you will be light
years ahead if and when such a transition becomes necessary.
David
On 9/16/05, Claire Conant <Claire -dot- Conant -at- digeo -dot- com> wrote:
>
> Personally, I use *Un*structured Frame because it allows me more
> flexibility within my documents. Someone please correct me if I am wrong
> - but my understanding of structured frame is that it is more rigid in
> the placement of elements. For example, a heading two always follows a
> heading one, and so on (if you set up your template that way.)
>
> I am by no means an expert on structured Frame.
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