2.6 Establishing a conversion environment

If your FrameMaker files are on a network server, you might find that FrameMaker sometimes has trouble accessing those files. It is best to make a local copy, and use Mif2Go to convert from that copy.

Follow these steps to establish a working environment for your conversion project:

1. Establish a conversion project folder. By default, Mif2Go places output files in the same folder as the FrameMaker files to be converted. We strongly advise you to create a separate subfolder for the output (see §3.5 Specifying conversion settings); do not use the folder that contains your FrameMaker files. If you plan to convert the same FrameMaker document to several different output formats, create a separate project folder for each, to avoid overwriting a configuration file.

2. If you plan to generate WinHelp 3, copy bullet.bmp into the folder where you will compile RTF files. You can modify or replace bullet.bmp for a different default bullet; see §7.2.2.4 Converting bullets.

3. Decide about a configuration file:

New project:	If you are setting up a brand-new conversion project, remove from the project folder any existing configuration file intended for the same output type (RTF or HTML).
Existing project:	If you want Mif2Go to use a configuration file already created for the document, or one based on a different FrameMaker document, place that configuration file (or a copy of it) in the project folder.

To use an existing configuration file instead of creating a new one, you must edit the configuration file (for RTF output) or the FileID file (for HTML output) to specify appropriate file identifiers in the [FileIDs] section. For instructions, see §4.4.4 Working with Mif2Go FileIDs.

Restart FrameMaker between conversions

4. Restart FrameMaker. If you have already set up a Mif2Go conversion in your current FrameMaker session, close FrameMaker and restart it. Sometimes Mif2Go "remembers" settings used in a prior conversion, causing unexpected results (such as crashes). Whether this is likely to happen seems to depend on your operating environment and on Mif2Go configuration settings. In some situations you might be able to get away without restarting FrameMaker, especially if you delete output files and conversion files (but not project or configuration files) between runs; see §C.2.4 What not to do with conversion files. You should never have to reboot the system, unless you have hit the Windows 9x/ME GDI resource-leak wall; see §7.5.2 Avoiding the GDI resource leak.

5. Close previous output files. If you are converting to Word, close any RTF files from a previous conversion that you have open in Word. Mif2Go cannot write a new version if Word has the old one open.

6. Select a book or document. In FrameMaker, open and select a book or document.

7. Start Mif2Go. Follow instructions in §3 Converting a book or document.

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