Can RoboHelp 8 do this?

[emre_sb]

Hi, I have just met with RH and really liked it!

In my company, we create AIR applications with Flash and Flex. We want to use RoboHelp to create help files for these apps.

My question is; can you pass variable to RoboHelp exported Flash or Air file? I want to send a keyword to the help file to show it's related pages. Briefly, I need to fill the RoboHelp exported file's "search box" with my string from the Air application.

(Remember the Flash IDE's actionscript panel: when you press F1 on a word, it opens the help panel and shows related subjects...)

I really hope to find a way to send variable to RoboHelp's search box. Can you help me? Do you have any ideas?

[emre_sb]

wow! No answers. By the way I meant parameter not variable, sorry

[RoboWizard]

Hi there

I think you are in a bit of unfamiliar territory for most of us here.

• You are asking about a format that is new to most folks
• You are asking about a method of operating that is mostly foreign to help development

As a result, there aren't any pat answers just yet. Likely you will need to obtain the answers from Adobe themselves.

In most help systems we think of something similar. We call it Context Sensitive Help (CSH). We establish a link between the application and the help so that when F1 is pressed the relevant topic appears. We don't think in terms of supplying a search parameter. This is why I say you are in unfamiliar territory for most of us.

Cheers... Rick

Begin learning RoboHelp HTML 7 within the day - $24.95! Click here for Adobe Authorized Captivate and RoboHelp HTML Training Click here for the SorcerStone Blog Click here for RoboHelp and Captivate eBooks

[emre_sb]

Hi! Thanks for your answer.

But I couldn't understand well. So, is CSH possible with RoboHelp or not?

[RoboWizard]

Hi again

CSH is indeed possible for RoboHelp. Exactly how you implement it depends on a couple of different factors.

• Application code
  • Oracle
  • C
  • C+
  • C++
  • Visual Basic
  • Flex
  • Etc...
  • Each application uses a different manner to do CSH
    
• Output type
  • CHM
  • AIR Help
  • WebHelp
  • FlashHelp

I believe the help file that ships with RoboHelp has information on how to do CSH.

Cheers... Rick

Begin learning RoboHelp HTML 7 within the day - $24.95! Click here for Adobe Authorized Captivate and RoboHelp HTML Training Click here for the SorcerStone Blog Click here for RoboHelp and Captivate eBooks

[emre_sb]

Thank you again!

I have downloaded the robohtml help pdf ( a document with 374 pages ). 11th chapter is all about the CSH.

It says:

Call your Help projects with the function
RH_ShowHelp
. The source code for this function is contained in the support files which you import into your development project. Languages supported are Visual Basic, C/C++, JavaScript, and Java.

No actionscript May be I should follow the JavaScript function source to prepare a AS function. But isn't it interesting? It's Adobe's software, why there is not any Actionscript,flex example?..

[RoboWizard]

No actionscript May be I should follow the JavaScript function source to prepare a AS function. But isn't it interesting? It's Adobe's software, why there is not any Actionscript,flex example?..

Yes, it's Adobe's software today. But it wasn't always that way. Adobe got RoboHelp by way of purchasing Macromedia. And Macromedia got it by way of purchasing eHelp corporation.

For those of us that have been with the product for a long while (I began using it in 1992) it comes as no surprise that ActionScript isn't mentioned.

Cheers... Rick

Begin learning RoboHelp HTML 7 within the day - $24.95! Click here for Adobe Authorized Captivate and RoboHelp HTML Training Click here for the SorcerStone Blog Click here for RoboHelp and Captivate eBooks

[emre_sb]

Also again I apologise for the cross-posting.

[Praful_Jain]

hi,

As explained by other expert people here, RoboHelp support CSH functionality, where in you can call CSH API to show any Help topic in a particular help output(including AIR help).

The feature which you are asking, wherein given some word or variable, that word should start showing up in the Search input box of AIR Help output, this feature is currently not supported in RH8.

I recommed you to go to RoboHelp wish list page and add this feature request, so that the RoboHelp product team can look into this feature request.

Regarding the CSH API support, RoboHelp provide CSH API code in varity of programming languages, you can easliy make corresponding CSH API in ActionScript (try reading javascript API) as well.

-Praful