Preview Topics

[pencilsr]

After installing other files not related to RoboHelp, notices the glasses icon preview topic stops working, nothing happens on glasses icon click. Something is overriding something or something seems to be conflicting. This has happened before, this time I was updating my .net on my machine and the topic preview is no longer working.

Has anyone heard of anything similar to this?
Thanks in advance for your suggestions.
Susan

[Captiv8r]

Hi Susan and welcome to our community

Odds are that nothing you installed clobbered your preview ability. Sometimes this lil guy wanders off for reasons unknown. Fortunately, I know how to coax him back on the screen.

How to correct it

1. Close RoboHelp HTML.

You need to do this because the values we are about to change will be destructively changed once we close RoboHelp HTML and restart.

2. Open the Windows Registry Editor. Click Start > Run... and type Regedit
(All standard disclaimers apply. Back up the registry, sacrifice a chicken, yadda yadda yadda)

3. Locate the following key:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\version\RoboHTML\version\MontereyFrame\
(Note, you will need to replace the first instance of "version" with either eHelp or Adobe. The second instance may be 6 or 13.00 or 12.00 depending on what version you have.

3. Double click the item labeled Preview in separate window and ensure the value is set to 1. If it already is, terrific. If not, change it to 1 and click the OK button. It doesn't matter if the option is set to Hex or Decimal.

4. Double click the item labeled PreviewMaximized and ensure the value is set to 0. If it already is, terrific. If not, change it to 0 and click the OK button. It doesn't matter if the option is set to Hex or Decimal.

5. Double click the item labeled PreviewWindowCX. Make sure the option is set to Decimal and set the value to 50. Then click the OK button.

6. Double click the item labeled PreviewWindowCY. Make sure the option is set to Decimal and set the value to 50. Then click the OK button.

7. Double click the item labeled PreviewWindowX. Make sure the option is set to Decimal and set the value to 50. Then click the OK button.

8. Double click the item labeled PreviewWindowY. Make sure the option is set to Decimal and set the value to 50. Then click the OK button.

9. Close the Windows Registry Editor.

10. Restart RoboHelp HTML and preview a topic.

The window should now be floating above the RoboHelp HTML application in full view.

Hope this helps... Rick

[pencilsr]

Ok, very good, thank you. Would reinstalling certain or all components of robohelp do the same thing?

[Amebr-ke0mH4]

If the window has just wandered off the screen, you can use the following procedure to snap it to your mouse cursor (and without delving into the registry ) :

Click the View icon, so that the Preview is in focus.
Press Alt, Space, M.
Press any arrow key, then waggle your mouse around. The window should snap from wherever it is hiding onto your cursor.

Click to put it down.

HTH

[Captiv8r]

Hi Amebr

Geez, I love it when I've concocted some elaborate workaround only to find I've been yet once again trying to change the sparkplugs via the tailpipe!

If this works anything nearly as slick as the way you described it, well done and I applaud you! Good on ya!

Hmmm, I wonder if a way like this exists for toolbars?

Cheers and happy Thursday! Rick

[Amebr-ke0mH4]

It's not exactly an obvious feature. I stumbled upon it a few years ago. And it doesn't always work, depending on how the application was written. (There have even been a couple of apps where I've had to back-arrow through the entire application menu before it fliped to the window that's actually focused...)

Unfortunately I haven't come across a similar feature for toolbars - and I've need that a couple of times myself. :)

quote:

---

Originally posted by: Captiv8r
Geez, I love it when I've concocted some elaborate workaround only to find I've been yet once again trying to change the sparkplugs via the tailpipe!

If this works anything nearly as slick as the way you described it, well done and I applaud you! Good on ya!

Hmmm, I wonder if a way like this exists for toolbars?

[pencilsr]

Great tip, thank you so much, I could use this in other instances as I do have two monitors and some times lose location of the windows, especially when I rush on shutting my machine down properly!

Thanks so much.

[pencilsr]

would installing certain parts of robohelp do the trick as well.

[Peter Grainge]

1] How do you propose to install "certain parts"?

2] Two solutions have been put forward so I'm puzzled as to why you ask this question a second time.

[pencilsr]

Ok, why do I ask again? here it is, why is it being explained that this occurs for no known reason? This has happened very consistently after installing something else, not all things installed just after installing certain other components, so to tell the user that this is not the reason but the reason is not known is not exactly useful, if you don't know the reason maybe it could be affected by that. All you have to say is it would require installing all of robohelp, instead of asking me which parts - in cases where a user is not comfortable editing the registry. just a thought back at you. Wow

[Peter Grainge]

I am not sure I am following that reply. My point here is that with say Word, you can run a repair, uninstall certain parts and later reinstall those parts. With RoboHelp you don't have an option to reinstall certain components as you will have seen during installation. Hence my asking how you proposed to do that.

You say about this occurring "after installing certain other components". Components of what.

Sorry but I for one cannot follow your last post.

[Cynthia331-ZRVrBk]

Help!

Ever since I upgraded from RoboHelp HTML 6 to 7.01, I cannot preview my topics.I am the only writer in my group who cannot do this, and we all upgraded at the same time and have the same version. RH is actually creating the preview topic because I can "see" it when I press Alt-Tab, but no matter what I do, I cannot fully display it. The only way I can preview is if I generate the output.

I do not want to alter the registry files as suggested below. Would you recommend a re-install? Or, does anyone know if the latest upgrade (7.10, I think) might address this issue? I will probably upgrade regardless on Monday.

Thanks!!

[RoboWizard]

Welcome to our community, Cynthia

I experienced this earlier today. Sometimes the fix is as simple as restarting RoboHelp. Or if that fails, restarting the PC. At least, restarting RoboHelp was the fix for me. Seemed that regardless of what topic I tried to view, the preview was blank. After I closed and restarted RoboHelp, voila!

Cheers... Rick

[johnmccallum]

I, for one, would not recommend a re-install. I think it would work but isn't it rather like buying a new car because you got a flat tire? After reinstalling you would get a temporary fix but you would still have the same problem - the preview pane would still wander off screen occasionally.

I couldn't get Amebr's solution to work for me - I purposely moved my window off screen and then couldn't get it back. I use Windows XP, but of course it has a few thousand settings so an option that would make it work could be somewhere in the morass.

I know there is a fear of tweaking the registry out there but it is the place Microsoft recommends to hold application constants - such as window positions. If those constants get horked (a technical term I learned from Rick), isn't that the place we should go to fix them?

John

[Amebr-ke0mH4]

Hi John,

I retried the method and can confirm it works for the Preview window for RH6. The only time I couldn't get it to work was when I accidentally clicked my mouse somewhere in my screen, or clicked the preview icon twice, so the Preview window was no longer the focus. (which obviously you can't tell when it's not visible to start with. ) All I can think of in that case would be to close and reopen Robohelp and try again.

One other instance where it won't work is if the window is maximised. So you'd have to do Alt, Space, R to "unmaximise" the window first. That wouldn't have been your issue, as you said you manually moved it off screen, but it's something to keep in mind.

[Cynthia331-ZRVrBk]

Many thanks to Rick, John, Peter, and Amebr for each of your replies. I appreciate your help.

I've tried everything except altering the registry files. I even upgraded to 7.02.001, but to no avail. I'm convinced that the preview topic is hiding somewhere in Robohelp, as I can see it whenever I press Alt-Tab. It's there alright, but is simply not viewable. If I release the Alt key upon seeing the preview window, it simply maximizes my Robohelp project, not the preview window! I've tried each way of previewing topics - View>View Item; right-click in topic>Preview Topic; and the View Selected Item icon - but none of them work. I'll probably try re-installing and will advise if this solves the problem.

Thanks again.

Cynthia

[Cynthia331-ZRVrBk]

Hi,

It is with chagrin that I must reply to my own message. I finally fixed the problem, and its source originated with my dual-monitor configuration. I knew that the preview window was hidden somewhere, but I did not want to believe that it was hidden somewhere "in between" my laptop monitor and my secondary display! It's true... Configuring dual monitors is a tricky one to establish and maintain for ongoing use. Not only do you have to set the right configuration for your personal productivity, but you can encounter issues such as this one if you don't set up the two monitors correctly in which one is the primary, another is the secondary -- and you choose which one onto which to "extend" your desktop. Lo-and-behold, after playing with these settings for the umpteenth time since acquiring my secondary display, the preview topic amazingly appeared. Thank you again, everyone, for your help, and maybe my vexing issue will be able to help someone else in the future. At least I didn't have to change those registry files!!!!! :)

[Peter Grainge]

Have you tried Amebr's solution 09/06/2007? No registry stuff there.

[Peter Grainge]

Did you not see my message pointing you to Amebr's solution.

[Captiv8r]

Hi Cynthia

You might be interested in a utility called Force Window Visible

Click here for the site

Cheers... Rick

[Cynthia331-ZRVrBk]

Wow, thanks!! Good to know about.

Now I just need management permission to download it. :)

[Cynthia331-ZRVrBk]

Hi, yes thanks, I did see it and tried this as well, but it did not work in my case. In my experience, any "missing" window will not re-appear as long as it is literally "stuck" right in between two incorrectly configured monitors. At least it does not snap back in my case. Good idea, though.