Tabbed text wrapping when not desired

[Jay Smith <jay@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi,

I am using FM 5.5.6 on Windows 95 (I know, I know.... please don't say it).

I have not been able to find the answer to this in my personal Frame 
mailing list archive of over 63,000 messages.  (The subject of tabs is very 
rare other than relating to TOC, Bleed, and tabbing in tables.)

I am having a problem with tabbed text wrapping in undesired ways. The 
situation is what I call "menu" (as in dining) listings.  The prices (one 
or more) are in the lower right, following the text.

In this situation, I do *not* wish to use tables to format the text. (The 
content is coming to me in the form of very simple MIF files that have been 
generated as database output.

There are tab stops before the first price and between the prices. I can't 
use hard spaces because of proportional fonts and varying numbers of 
digits; the prices need to line up.

DESIRED:  Notice that there are three price colums -- the prices are pushed 
over by tabs.  THIS IS THE APPEARANCE I WANT.

   This is a description listing that has various
   amounts of text that can be short or can go
   on and on and on.       123.00  456.00  789.00

When there is more/less text that does not allow the prices to fit in 
"their space", I DO WANT all three prices pushed TO THE NEXT LINE, intact, 
unbroken:

   This is a description listing that has various
   amounts of text that can be short or can go
   on and on. But now too much.
                          123.00  456.00  789.00

Instead, WHAT I GET looks something like:

   This is a description listing that has various
   amounts of text that can be short or can go
   on and on. But now too much. 123.00  456.00
   789.00

I have tried different combinations of tabs (left, right, decimal), run-in 
paragraph for the description, etc., etc.  I have not been able to find a 
combination that works when there is not enough space on the line for ALL 
the prices to be present intact and unbroken.

Each time the MIF files are (frequently) processed, several hundred FM 
files will be created or re-created.  There is not enough time to find the 
format problems and tweak them.  Even so, the tweaks would be lost the next 
time the cycle is run.

Is there anything that can be done in FM 5.5.6 to solve this problem?

Is the problem solvable in a later version of FM?  If so, how?

Jay

-- 
Jay Smith

e-mail: Jay@JaySmith.com  mailto:Jay@JaySmith.com
website: http://www.JaySmith.com

Jay Smith & Associates
P.O. Box 650
Snow Camp, NC  27349  USA

Phone: Int+US+336-376-9991
Toll-Free Phone in US & Canada:
	1-800-447-8267
Fax: Int+US+336-376-6750


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