Unable to view local HTML content from "Help Content Only" SSL iFrame

[johnstst]

Hi

Can anyone confirm whether it is possible to view local HTML files within an iFrame when generating Help Content Only SSL content which is also locally deployed?

I have had no problem viewing local html files from within an iFrame with a locally viewed Browser-Based Help project but despite trying a number of variations on the syntax, I simply cannot obtain the same result from a Help Content Only SSL that is then incorporated within a merged help system. I can however create hyperlinks to view local content using the following syntax (file:/C:\folderName\fileName.html - the only drawback for local preview is that you must right-click and select "open in new tab"). Essentially, I am trying to eliminate the requirement to have to right-click and open in new tab to view local html files.

The project I am working on is deployed both locally and remotely and this whole process is necessary for emergency management and business continuity purposes.

I hope my explanation isn't too convoluted and would be glad to clarify it further if required. I would appreciate any assistance!

[Captiv8r]

Hi there

Just so I'm certain I understand here.

You have a WebHelp system you are viewing from a web server. Perhaps at http://www.somesite.com

You also have a local HTML page you know will always reside at c:\foldername\filename.html

Is that correct?

Cheers... Rick

Helpful and Handy Links RoboHelp Wish Form/Bug Reporting Form Begin learning RoboHelp HTML 7, 8 or 9 within the day! Adobe Certified RoboHelp HTML Training SorcerStone Blog RoboHelp eBooks

[johnstst]

Hi Rick

I know its a little confusing. Long story short, the application I have developed runs both locally AND remotely but they are two completely separate systems. Locally, I use merged Adobe Air Help Content Only projects to access local HTML files. Remotely I use Adobe Air Browser Based Help to access remote HTML files. These 2 systems are targeted at disparate stakeholders who are all subject to various IT admin restrictions. The whole point of the local files is that I have designed this application for schools, fire services, EMS and police to respond to, and make informed decisions regarding school-based emergencies. We (the police) cannot always guarantee an internet connection and having the content available locally means that our ability to access information in a critical situation will not be compromised by connectivity. The remote portion (which is password protected) affords instant access to other resources who may require this information. The RoboHelp output accesses the HTML files which contain resources that aren't ideally delivered via RoboHelp but RH ties everything together and generates searchable content. The system I have in place makes the best of a bad situation. If interested, here's a link though the video itself is outdated as the deployment model has changed considerably: http://www.on-guard4schools.com/

Anyway, the issue I posted about is solely restricted to my inability to access my local HTML files via an iFrame from Adobe Air Help Content Only output. When I change the output type to "Browser based Help" the iFrame shows the desired HTML page without issue. I guess I'm wondering if this is some kind of security restriction though I wouldn't necessarily think that makes sense given that I can, in fact, access this content via my browser.

I hope this helps???

[johndaigle]

Hi, johnstst

Sorry to butt in here, but two things popped into my mind when I finally saw your mention of "AIR Help - Help Content Only"

1. I presume you have created an .RHA file to be viewed in the AIR Help Viewer. In that regard, there is mention in the Online Help about a ".helpcfg" file, an xml file to help the viewer locate the content. By chance could this be playing a role?
   http://help.adobe.com/en_US/robohelp/robohtml/WS5b3ccc516d4fbf351e63e3d11aff59c2a0-7feb.html
2. Also, it occurs to me that the AIR Help Viewer uses the opensource WebKit as the browser for viewing HTML. I wonder if it has issues with displaying iFrame content?  This could explain why it might work in the Browser-based version but not the Help Content Only version.
   

Sorry, I don't know definitively, but hopefully this may open up some workaround ideas.

Thanks

John Daigle
Adobe Certified RoboHelp and Captivate Instructor
Evergreen, Colorado
www.showmethedemo.com

[johnstst]

Hi John

Thanks for offering your thoughts and my apologies to Rick and yourself for not stating the issue as succinctly as you have. You are correct, I am creating multiple .rha files and have configured a .helpcfg file and an Air file in the Help Viewer Wizard through which I have been able to access the various .rha files. That was a smooth process due to some tutorials Adobe has on this.

Through the Air Help Viewer I can successfully access the local HTML files BUT this requires the user to right-click on a hyperlink and select "open in new tab" with the following syntax (file:/C:\folderName\fileName.html). This text must be entered in HTML view though and not in Deisng view or the link will be reconfigured and no longer functional.

I would like to avoid forcing the user to right-click but you may be correct that this is a limitation of the WebKit browser - I wasn't aware that there was a difference between the Air Help Viewer and browser based help.

Your thoughts?

[johndaigle]

Right. Browser-based help is designed to run in whatever browser happens to open it (IE, Firefox, etc.) Whereas, RHA files are hosted and viewed in the special AIR Help Viewer which happens to be WebKit-centric. Googling shows me quite a few iFrame issues with WebKit. I better not speculate any more since I rarely use RHA except for occasional testing. So, I'm going to see if Adobe can enlighten us. Perhaps Rick has more flying time on the RHA format? Thanks for your patience.

[johnstst]

Excellent. Thanks again and I look forward to any further light that can be shed on this.

[Peter Grainge]

I need to read through all this again but is this the nub of the problem.

• You have browser based help for those who have internet access.
• For those who do not, you have to supply local help and the chosen vehicle is AIR Help.
• Rather than use the supplied viewer, you have created your own and supply that with the content.
• Some of the content is HTML pages that are local but for technical reasons cannot be part of the help so they are displayed in an iFrame.

One thing that is throwing me right now is that locally installed AIR Help cannot be merged but you say the output is part of a merge.

---

See www.grainge.org for RoboHelp and Authoring tips

@petergrainge

[johndaigle]

Hi. Peter and I have communicated with Adobe engineering and got this response:

<snip>

iFrames  are supported in local AIR Help (.rha) as well. We need to check with  the user what kind of URL is he trying to open in iFrame. Is it from the  local file system, or some file within the same .rha package only or  some online URL. And these urls pointing to HTML file or some other file  format.

There  could be some security restriction going out of local AIR Help domain  and AIR Help viewer will not render other than HTML and PDF in the  iFrame.

Thanks,

Vivek.

<snip>

In light of that, johnstst, could you explain a bit more about whether your iFrame contains content that takes the user across to a different domain? I have seen issues where there is tighter security when cross domain links are made. If you could please elaborate on your original description. I'm not completely following you on the URL "video" link you sent. Is that video the content that you want to show up in the iFrame? I'm confused because you say, "Locally, I use merged Adobe Air Help Content Only projects to access local HTML files."

As Peter mentions, merged help does not function properly in locally installed AIR Help output.

Elaborate a bit more and we'll see if that unlocks something we're not understanding.

Thanks

john

John Daigle
Adobe Certified RoboHelp and Captivate Instructor
Evergreen, Colorado
www.showmethedemo.com

[johnstst]

Hi John

I appreciate you and Peter obtaining this  information from Adobe and I appreciate your continuing patience in  trying to understand what I am doing.

I will start  from the beginning and hopefully clarify my process when deploying my  application locally (my remote process differs somewhat but is not  germane to this discussion). Obviously this will contain some repetition from previous posts but I hope it helps...

1. The project itself integrates content created from Adobe RoboHelp with content created within Adobe Dreamweaver
2. First, I should mention that I am using RoboHelp 8 as I don't believe I have addressed which version I am using. There's nothing particularly unusual about the project itself.
3. Utilizing Dreamweaver I have created a self-contained HTML-only (no server-side functionality) website which is placed at the root level of the C: drive
4. Within the RoboHelp project I create a hyperlink to access the local HTML files from the RoboHelp topic pages. The process I use to do so is from within the HTML view of the specific topic page and I use the following file path: "file:/C:\folderName\fileName.html". The only end-user requirement is that they must right-click and select "open in new tab", otherwise the link does not work. Please note, this is ONLY required for accessing the local HTML files.
5. I output my RoboHelp project using the Adobe Air SSL, with the output type set to "Help Only Content" which creates the .rha files. I utilize multiple .rha files within my project as each .rha file constitutes a module specific to an individual municipality (in my particular instance)
6. I use the Help Viewer Wizard from the RoboHelp "Toolbox" pod to create what I refer to as the "shell" .air file. Once the "shell" .air file created from the Help Viewer Wizard is  installed, it creates a shortcut on my desktop.
7. I place an XML .helpcfg file within the directory on C:Program Files where my "shell" .air file has been installed to reference each .rha module which must be placed at the root level of the C: drive in order to be properly referenced by the .helpcfg file
   
8. By double-clicking on the desktop shortcut created in Step 6 it opens the "shell" module which, in turn, loads in each individual .rha file which can be accessed individually from the drop-down menu in the top-right corner
   
   

Why do I do it this way?? My organization severely restricts admin privileges on our workstations. We have one IT person / several hundred officers so I needed to create a system where the only time we need IT assistance is in the initial installation of the "shell" .air file created from the Help Viewer Wizard and placement of the .helpcfg file within the C: Programs folder. Once this is done, because the .rha files are on the C: drive, I can swap these out and update as necessary (we currently have an annual renewal cycle) and we require no further IT intervention. The local system I have just described has hyperlinks to the online browser-based help so that users can also access it and see any content updates made throughout the course of the school year

Having said all that, based on the model I have just described, I have been trying to create iFrames from within my RoboHelp 8 topic pages (placed on my C: drive) to access the local HTML Dreamweaver site (also on my C: drive). The problem I have been having is that the resultant iFrames display only a blank white page and I have tried a number of variations on the syntax of the file path without success.

The process I have been using to create the iFrame is as follows:

1. In Design view, select Insert >> HTML >> iFrame
2. In the iFrame dialog box, provide a name for the iFrame and then navigate to the local file on my C: drive level Dreamweaver HTML-only website that I want to link to.
3. Click "Apply" and from the resulting dialog box states that "This action will create an external link to the help system... Do you want to continue?", I click "Yes"
   
4. The resultant file path is "../../../../../folderName/fileName.html" which obviously won't work but I have created the iFrame and now I switch over to HTML view and insert the file path that I have been using for the hyperlinks ("file:/C:\folderName\fileName.html"). I also modify the width to 100% and the height to 1000 px
   

The user is not being directed to a different domain. So, if as Adobe states, that iFrames are "supported in local AIR Help (.rha) as well" then I don't know why it will not work for me. Again, this is the file path that allows me to create a hyperlink which will access my local Dreamweaver HTML files: "file:/C:\folderName\fileName.html" so if that syntax works for a hyperlink, why will it not work for the iFrame?

The videos I referenced are also contained within the local Dreamweaver HTML site

My usage of the term "merged help" may have been unclear and hopefully steps 1-8 outline what I am doing

Again, I am very grateful to all who have joined this discussion to try to help me! I think it should be manifestly evident by now that I am self-taught and basically that's the only excuse I can offer in my defense for my poor articulation. Not too many years ago I wanted nothing whatsoever to do with computers!

[johnstst]

Hi Peter

Thanks for responding, I'll answer your questions individually:

• You have browser based help for those who have internet access.

Correct.

• For those who do not, you have to supply local help and the chosen vehicle is AIR Help

A school crisis would require the establishment of an incident command post in an area immediately adjacent to the school. We cannot always count on a connection due to atmospheric / environmental conditions, hence the requirement for a local system as a fallback. I create this local system as a .rha file accessible through the Adobe Help Viewer and set the file paths in a .helpcfg file (I learned this process via an article written by Praful Jain; "Merging Multiple Help Systems in RoboHelp AIR Help Output").

• Rather than use the supplied viewer, you have created your own and supply that with the content.

I'm unclear what you mean here - I create an Adobe Help Viewer .air file through which I can access the individual .rha files.

• Some of the content is HTML pages that are local but for technical reasons cannot be part of the help so they are displayed in an iFrame.

Let me clarify. The HTML pages contain jQuery tabs, Slideshow Pro photo galleries and video walkthroughs using the JWPlayer. Essentially, the point behind the user interface I have created is to allow access to as much information as possible without requiring the user to open multiple pages etc. The photo galleries and video walkthroughs require external files to function properly so creating a website and then integrating that within the overall application has seemed the best route. The iFrame integration is a very recent effort to try to bypass the necessity for users to have to right-click on a hyperlink in order to be able to access the "website" content. This entire process is only an issue for the locally deployed version as I have been able to successfully integrate iFrames within the online version.

Here's a screenshot of the application (browser based help) where you can see how the iFrame displays the HTML content.

One  thing that is throwing me right now is that locally installed AIR Help  cannot be merged but you say the output is part of a merge

This may be a due to poor terminology on my part. In its locally deployed version I have an Adobe Help Viewer .air file which references multiple .rha files via the .helpcfg file. The individual .rha files correspond to individual school boards.

I hope this helps. Essentially, I want to be able to view the local HTML files through an iFrame in the local Adobe Help Viewer as the screenshot above indicates. John has indicated that this may, in fact, be a limitation of the WebKit browser.

I hope that I am finally articulating this properly so that it helps everyone who has so kindly offered assistance. While I've had my share of frustrations working with RoboHelp, it and the Technical Communication Suite, has allowed me to create a fairly complicated application that is relatively easy to deploy and maintain despite a number of unique deployment requirements and challenges.

[Peter Grainge]

That has clarified a lot.

What Praful covers in the blog enables different help outputs to be viewed from one place with the user selecting the help they want from the dropdown. It's rather naughty to call it merged help as that is a different thing. Merged help is where various projects are effectively generated as one, the end user sees one system. For want of a better term, what you have I will refer to as combined help, one viewer that accesses individual help outputs. It does indeed use the standard viewer so we now know exactly what you are showing your users.

So we get back to the real problem. In locally installed AIR help, your problem is displaying some HTML pages.

The HTML pages contain jQuery tabs, Slideshow Pro photo galleries and video walkthroughs using the JWPlayer. Essentially, the point behind the user interface I have created is to allow access to as much information as possible without requiring the user to open multiple pages etc. The photo galleries and video walkthroughs require external files to function properly so creating a website and then integrating that within the overall application has seemed the best route. The iFrame integration is a very recent effort to try to bypass the necessity for users to have to right-click on a hyperlink in order to be able to access the "website" content.

It would be easy to think the problem was with running those pages locally and the response from Adobe does refer to permissions. What then throws me is you say if you right click and select Open in New Tab, then it does work. I'm thinking if permissions are the issue, left or right clicking would make no difference.

Is it really as simple as left click doesn't work and right click does? Is it just TOC links that work that way or does it also include topic links and links in Favourites?

---

See www.grainge.org for RoboHelp and Authoring tips

@petergrainge

[johnstst]

Hi Peter

Guilty as charged - I will henceforth call this "combined help". My problem is restricted solely to displaying local HTML pages within an iFrame in a local combined help project. I can, in fact, access the local HTML files through a hyperlink but the user must right-click in order to do so. I agree with your assessment that the "permissions" issue does not make sense in light of the fact that the content can be accessed from a hyperlink.

So far, the only thing that makes sense to me is that either the WebKit browser has some issue with iFrames (but that contradicts what Adobe has told yourself and John) OR my file path needs to be modified (but why would it work properly as a hyperlink?)

For my project, each individual school has a topic page within the TOC. Each topic page contains hyperlinks to additional related topic pages (see image on Post # 9) AND the local HTML files. The links to additional topic pages can be left-clicked BUT the link to the local HTML files must be right-clicked and opened in a new tab. The whole point of wanting to integrate an iFrame is so that this additional content is much more obvious to the end user.

At the end of the day, its not a deal breaker, it would just be a nice feature for my end users.

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

This may have been fixed/improved in RH9 - thus the response from Adobe. Maybe you should try out the trial version on another machine to see if a copy of your project behaves itself when published?

[Peter Grainge]

No worries re the terminology, it was called merged help on Adobe's blog!

Can you create a project with just one or two topics set up to to see it in a RoboHelp project? The stuff that is accessed would be in another folder in what you send. I would like to see the setup and the problem first hand. The content can be made anonymous if necessary.

See my site for contact details and how to send the project.

---

See www.grainge.org for RoboHelp and Authoring tips

@petergrainge

[johnstst]

Hi Peter

Thank you for your offer of assistance! I will gladly send you a demo project I have been working on though it make take a day or two to put it together.

To you and everyone else who has provided assistance / suggestions, I just want to state that these forums are an invaluable resource for those of us who work on our own without any support chain. I have been very impressed!