Can RoboHelp return codes with another

[zjillian]

Hi,

Our design manager would like to know if RoboHelp can return codes with another system, real time.

For example, when a user does a search - (on our corporate web site), for an address and then types a letter in the number field - he would like RoboHelp to pass an error message that says "You typed a letter in a number field". Can RoboHelp do this type of thing?

Thanks,

Jill

[Peter Grainge]

How are you going to get RoboHelp to do a search of your corporate web site?

Also RH only has one search field when it does search its content.

[zjillian]

Hi Peter,

Thank you for your time. I asked for a more granual description of what is needed - and it follows:

1. The corporate web site receives user input
2. The user input is incorrect and is identified as an error
3. The "system" asks RoboHelp for the latest version of the error message (assuming the system does this using some ID (map ID?)
4. RoboHelp return the latest version of the error message text.
5. The system displays the error message text.

Our developers want to do this so that our marketing department, who are always changing the way they want the error message to look, can do it without the development department having to go in and code the new message.

I hope that's clear - let me know if it's not.

Jill

[johnmccallum]

Jill,

You refer to "RoboHelp" but that is just the tool you use to create output files. Are these WebHelp or compiled help? It sounds like what you want is to include the error messages in your help file rather than as part of the application ("system"). You could do this with context-sensitive help. Basically, it works by having the application send a call to the operating system help engine, which then opens the help file to the appropriate topic. This is where you would have written the latest error messages. Look up "context-sensitive help" in your RoboHelp help file to get started.

Good luck. It can be confusing because there are numerous ways to implement this depending on your development tools and your company's own operating procedures.

John

[Peter Grainge]

Ah! A developer wanting the author to solve the developer's problem!

You could create an htm file that contains the required information and then the developer would call that. An htm page would be displayed. Not sure that would look right.

I wonder if a better solution would be the developer creates dialog boxes that display the contents of a text file. The text files would be in a specific location and the marketing people can access it. The times they can update would need to be restricted I guess to stop a user doing something wrong while the message the message is being edited.

Else get a marketing department that can decide once and for all what they want. Nah! That ain't gonna happen. :-)