WebHelp Question

[JeffSteele]

When I generated WebHelp with an old (~v5) version of RoboHelp I got the TOC in a panel down the left hand side of the screen.  I am now using RH v10 and I don't get the panel on the left.  The TOC appears at the top of the document (when I look at the html file in IE9) and the links work correctly.  Can anyone tell me how get the TOC panel on the left?

[Peter Grainge]

Hmm! That's something we have seen people ask for over the years. A method was posted but it required a lot of work and there's you getting it for nothing!

Can you please reply via the web interface and add a screenshot showing us what you are seeing?

Is it the same in all browsers?

---

See www.grainge.org for RoboHelp and Authoring tips

@petergrainge

[Captiv8r]

Hi all

Certainly the screen capture will help!

Before we see it though, it should be noted that although this was posted in the WebHelp forum category, it's possible the output is actually FlashHelp. Of course we won't know until we actually see it.

But in FlashHelp output, there are actually a few "vertical" type of skins.

Cheers... Rick

[JeffSteele]

The above is with RoboHelp 10

The above is with old (~5?) RoboHelp

[Captiv8r]

Hi Jeff

Is this a context sensitive call?

I note the first image (RH10) depicts pointing directly to an existing topic at a bookmark while the second image (RHX5) depicts what appears to be the start page followed by a topic page.

Basically, I'm seeing what I would expect to see given the conditions. It's not unlike comparing spiders to hedgehogs.

Cheers... Rick

[JeffSteele]

Hi Rick,

These are both context sensitive calls. Same call just with two different versions of webhelp. Yes, the RH10 image is pointing to a bookmark in the html file.

The RHX5 image is doing the same thing with an older version of webhelp. In this case, however, I get the topic at the bookmark but also the complete TOC in a panel on the left. If you can see it, the topic “Fatigue Analysis” is highlighted, in gray, in the TOC. This was a nice feature that allowed user’s to navigate to other help topics from the same display.

I was thinking that the difference in the two displays was from selecting different webhelp options in RH10.

Unfortunately the RHX5 help was built years ago. RH10 options and GUI have changed and people’s memory has faded.

Jeff

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

Looks like in your RH10 build, you didn’t turn on the “Show” bit that allows you to “expand out” the full ToC, etc. in the skin.

[JeffSteele]

Jeff,

Where is the “Show” bit that you are referring to?

When I generate webhelp, there are a number of settings. I see two “Show” items, under Navigation, and have them both turned on.

I get the panel on the left when I “View Result” after generation,

But, when I look at the html file (double click and let IE9 bring it up) I see only the page. TOC is at the top of the file, but not in its’ own panel.

Jeff Steele

[Captiv8r]

Jeff, it would appear you simply replied to this thread using email. While it's generally fine to do that, if you include images they don't survive the trip to the forums. So if you really want us to see images, you need to visit the link to view the thread using your browser and add the images that way.

Here's the dialog:

Cheers... Rick

[JeffSteele]

Rick,

Thanks and sorry - here is the screen shot that I intended to attach to my e-mail.

I note that I am checking that box.  Then after I "Save and Generate" here is what I see with the "Text Only - Blue and Yellow" skin selected.

However, when I open the html file from IE9 (double clicking the html file from explorer) I no longer have the TOC panel at the left.

Jeff Steele

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

IIRC, that “Show Navigation…” flag only applies if you launch the help via a CSH call.

[Captiv8r]

Hi there

Well, I certainly would have expected to see a "Show" link somewhere near the top of the topic as shown here:

I also notice something that is present that I managed to overlook before. Where you are showing things aren't working quite right, I'm noticing that this is actually running from a location with "temp" in the path. What's up with that? Normally, when you generate, you don't use any temp folder of any sort.

Can you upload a screen capture of what the General section of that dialog looks like? Where it shows the output folder and file name?

Cheers... Rick

[JeffSteele]

Thanks to everyone for their help.  My problem is resolved.

Here is what I found:

There are 2 html files.  The 2nd one (which I should have been using) is in ....\!SSL!\WebHelp\xxxx.htm 

And, if I make my .ali file point to "index.htm" with a bookmark to my desired location I automatically invoke the "Show" link; i.e.

...\!SSL\WebHelp\index.htm#xxxxx.htm#yyyy

this is the string in my .ali file where xxx is the name of my html file and yyy is the page name.

Jeff Steele

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

Well, I’m referring to the “Show Navigation Pane Link in Topics” flag in the WebHelp SSL, but, yes, you need to show us what you’re encountering.

[Captiv8r]

Hi Jeff

Even with RoboHelp 10, it's possible to open topics with the full navigation frame in view by using the URL. And yes, the GUI has indeed changed a lot over the years.

One of the things to look at here is to see if your context sensitive calls are using the WebHelp API. Here's how to tell. Look at the web based application that calls the help. Mouse over the link that would open the help and note what appears in the Status bar. Does it look something like this?

javascript:RH_ShowHelp(0,'webhelp/help.htm>CSH',%20HH_HELP_CONTEXT,%2045)

or does it simply look like what was shown in the image?

If you discover you are using the WebHelp API for the call, then you need to look inside the Project Set-up pod in RoboHelp and ensure the window definition is correctly configured.

So how are the calls being made to open the help?

Cheers... Rick