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CHW file created

Guest
May 31, 2007 May 31, 2007

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I created a .CHM file using RoboHTML 6 on Windows XP. When I run the .CHM on the XP machine and click the Index tab, no other file is created. But, when I run the .CHM on a Vista machine and I click the Index tab, a .CHW file is created. Has anyone else seen this, and is there a way to make the Help act consistently on both operating systems? Or is something else causing this? I tried to research it and found that .CHW files were created in earlier versions when Help files were merged. I did not merge Help files. This is a single project with a single TOC.
Any help on this topic is much appreciated.

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Participant ,
Apr 02, 2008 Apr 02, 2008

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I am getting this same behavior on XP. I have fooled around with it for two hours and not been able to get this behavior to stop -- which it must!

In my case, this WAS a merged help project, but now it is stand alone. We deleted the other help file from baggage and everywhere we could find it. But this CHW file is still created when we view the compiled help.

Please help!

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LEGEND ,
Apr 02, 2008 Apr 02, 2008

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Quite apart from the fact that only RH7 supports Vista, the CHW file is an index file that is automatically generated when multiple Compiled HTML Help (.CHM) files are merged together. It creates the table of contents and contains references to each CHM file. If you have removed all references to the merged projects it may be worth checking the projects .HHP file (backup and open in Notepad. In there, is there a MERGED FILES section that still contains the old merged project? If so, delete it, reopen your project and compile.

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LEGEND ,
Apr 02, 2008 Apr 02, 2008

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Hi all

I'm confused here. Is the presence of the .CHW file actually impacting anything other than the fact it exists? If not, why not simply ignore it?

Just thinking out loud... Rick

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New Here ,
Apr 26, 2011 Apr 26, 2011

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Hi,

This is regarding the issue "CHW file created", following is problem statement, review the same and provide your inputs. Thanks in advance.

create a product with an installer, etc, that includes not only the product binaries but also a Help file (.chm) as well.  The customer installs the product into the default location.  The product -- and its associated .chm Help file too! -- all get installed into the C:\Program Files\FooBarCo\ProdName directory.  So far so good.

The customer decides to uninstall the product.  The uninstaller removes everything it added to that directory.  Since it did not add the .chw file, it doesn't get deleted.

Now the customer sees a .chw file that still exists in our product's directory and calls us asking why our product failed to properly uninstall itself: "

We could easily re-design our uninstaller to always delete all/any .chw files it finds in the product directory, but is that the correct solution?  It seems risky to me.

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Community Expert ,
Apr 26, 2011 Apr 26, 2011

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Colum explained what the CHW file does earlier in this thread.

See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Compiled_HTML_Help and search on CHW.

I believe the filename will always be the same as you CHM so you can program to uninstall it.


See www.grainge.org for RoboHelp and Authoring tips

@petergrainge

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LEGEND ,
Apr 26, 2011 Apr 26, 2011

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Peter is right. The CHW file takes its name from the CHM file name. So a file called HTMLHELP.CHM would create a file called HTMLHelp.CHW.


  The RoboColum(n)   @robocolumn   Colum McAndrew

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Explorer ,
Aug 03, 2011 Aug 03, 2011

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Hi, Colum and others contributing to this thread:

I just received a new Windows 7 machine. I am seeing this exact same behavior when I access the index of a .chm I created on an XP machine, compiled using RH9 through TCS3. The source is all, wholly, in FM10 and I have not merged any other source into the compile. I will be submitting this as a bug momentarily. I cannot have this behavior on systems that our customers use out in the field. My workaround is to ensure that the .chm isn't on the desktop, so the user isn't aware of the .chw's creation. Since the .chm is in a folder that the users aren't likely to access, chances are that they'll never see it; additionally, thankfully, Windows 7 isn't making any noises about overwriting the .chw in the related folder.

Burtin

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Community Expert ,
Aug 03, 2011 Aug 03, 2011

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You say you are not installing it to the desktop. It cannot be on a network drive so where are you installing it?


See www.grainge.org for RoboHelp and Authoring tips

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Explorer ,
Aug 03, 2011 Aug 03, 2011

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It's on a local drive for every machine, and a registry tweak takes care of the security zone issue. There's more at: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/896358.

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Community Expert ,
Aug 03, 2011 Aug 03, 2011

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I am aware of that registry edit and it is covered in http://www.grainge.org/pages/authoring/chm_mspatch/896358.htm along with another solution. However that is only required for CHMs that are on a network drive.

When you said about the CHM not being on the desktop that implied it was on a network drive, hence my post to check you were aware of the security issue. Now however you are saying the CHM is local but the registry has been edited. That shouldn't be necessary.


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Explorer ,
Aug 04, 2011 Aug 04, 2011

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I will check with IT to confirm what I stated about the registry edit. I brought it to their attention. That, however, still does not detract from the fact that .chw files are being spawned and should not be.

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Community Expert ,
Aug 04, 2011 Aug 04, 2011

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I'm not arguing that point.

What I was getting at was simply that the registry edit should not be necessary unless you are putting the help on a server. Also pointing out that if you are editing the user's registry, there is an alternative to that which you might prefer until the real problem is fixed.


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Explorer ,
Aug 04, 2011 Aug 04, 2011

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My error, and my apologies. IT read the information I'd sent them and stored the .chm locally. They are aware of the registry modifications and opted out. The .chw-spawning issue appears to be a bug, as I reported. I have replicated the issue with .chm files generated/viewed on several different (XP and Win7) machines.

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