Problems converting context sensitive help to Robohelp 6

[carenb]

I’m new to Robohelp and have inherited about 60 WinHelp projects which were created several years ago by a previous tech writer, using Blue Sky Robohelp Classic 2000.
I am having a problem with converting these projects to Robohelp 6. The same three compile errors are coming up in every project I convert to Robohelp 6. Yet, when these same projects are compiled in Robohelp Classic 2000 they are error free.

These are the basic steps I follow:
1. Open Robohelp 6.0 for Word.
2. Open the .hpj
3. Choose the “Generate Primary Layout” icon to compile the project.

The Primary Layout for these projects is WinHelp3.

At completion, the compiler says the WinHelp 3 project has been built successfully, although the error log contains three errors.

When viewed, the help files appear as normal. However, the projects are used for context-sensitive help which is activated by the user pressing F1 or Shift + F1.

When I test the help files with our software, I receive the following WinHelp error message: The topic does not exist. Contact your vendor for an updated help file (129).

The following three compile errors come up in every project:

Error 1230: line...21 of MENU0000.hpj : File '!HPJ-OPT.TXT' not found.
Error 1230: line...52 of MENU0000.hpj : File '!HPJ-CFG.TXT' not found.
Error 2050: line...42 of MENU0000.hpj : Invalid #include syntax.

In larger projects, the Invalid #include syntax error appears many times, in smaller projects just once.

The two .TXT files that are not found during the compile are present in the project folder for each project, but RoboHelp seems to think they are not there.

As for the #include statement, I can only find one #include statement in the project. It’s in the Project > Startup Macros area and it calls HPJ-CFG.TXT. The syntax is correct. I have tried deleting this startup macro and recompiling. This removes the “HPJ-OPT.TXT' not found” error but still leaves the other two errors. I cannot find the reference to HPJ-OPT.TXT anywhere in the project , so I haven't been able to delete it and see what effect this would have.

I am running Robohelp for Word, version 6.0 with Word 2002 (10.6826.6825) SP3 on Windows XP Pro operating system.

[RoboColum_n_]

Hi Carenb and welcome to the RH community. Although you don't specifically say it does sound like you are continuing to output winhelp. Can I ask why? It would be wise to think about converting to another format (e.g. HTML Help or WebHelp) in order to keep up with recent Microsoft announcements. Anyway, RH Classic 2000 was a very different product than RHX6. For a start it uses a completely different set of project files (.HPJ are now .XPJ) which I think explains the error message you are getting. If you want to continue using winhelp I suspect you may have to rebuild your map files. If you migrate to another help format you can concert your existing project by creating a new project in RoboHelp HTML and importing your .HLP file or word documents.

[carenb]

Hi Colum, thanks for your response. Yes, I am continuing to output Winhelp but in the short term only. Longer term we are most likely moving to HTML Help. While we develop and test the HTML help we still need to be able to update our existing help for upcoming software releases. My intention was to move everything into Robohelp 6 on the Winhelp platform (as I thought this would just be a simple process using the wizard) and then move on from there, but we may have to rethink that now.

You mentioned rebulding the map files. Can you give me any pointers on what I would need to do? Thanks, Caren

[RoboColum_n_]

Well it's been awhile since I worked in Winhelp but if I remember rightly there is a MapId sub folder in your Project folder. You can create a map file by right clicking on this folder and then create mapids mapped to the required topics in the same way. You could try looking through the help which would have a more detailed description than my rather flakey memory.

[carenb]

Hi Colum, thanks for taking the time to reply back.

So far I've been manually maintaining the map files outside of Robohelp, using Notepad (.txt files). These map files were already created by the previous author and I've just been updating them as needed. After reading your post I removed the map files from the project, and the "Invalid #include syntax" message disappeared when I compiled. This seems strange, but it seems to confirm your hunch that the maps might need rebuilding.

Cheers,
Caren