Blank gaps in TOC

[madge0509]

Hi
My WebHelp is output using the Java applet option. The TOC is large and has many nested books and when you navigate through it, wide blank gaps are shown in the TOC pane. Does anyone know how I can resolve this issue?

M

[madge0509]

Well thank for the overwhelming response to my post

I have located the source of the problem. The gaps in the TOC are related to Books with links to topics. If I remove the links then the gaps disappear.

Any idea why this happening, come on, someone must know something!!
M

[MergeThis]

You might be one of a small, select group who use the "Java Applet > Pure HTML" option in the "Navigation Pane Preferred Format" feature; therefore were you met with a resounding silence.

I suspect that had you selected the "DHTML > etc." option, you would have experienced no gaps.


Good luck,
Leon

[madge0509]

Hi thanks for responding.
The reason I use Java Applet option is that if I use the DHTML option, the search generates the following message:

Line 688
Char 7
Error:'a Topics [...]s Topic Title' is null or not an object.

Any thoughts on this?

If I can change the search option to Optimise Speed for the Intranet then the search results are just plain wrong.

So I am using the Java option as I cannot resolve these issues.

m

[Guest]

Madge, you seem to be relatively new to the forum, so you need to understand that everyone else on the forum is just like you - a technical writer and / or trainer, who uses Adobe tools to get the job done. We aren't employed by Adobe, nor is forum-watching our full-time job. We all have varying levels of experience with the many features of RH, as alluded to by Leon above. Please have more patience with the forum. And if all you receive is the sounds of crickets chirping in response to your inquiries, that either means that no one has the answer, or at least temporarily, everyone else is too crazed by their own deadlines to respond immediately. It doesn't mean that no one wants to help.

For true emergencies, and when you don't get a usable response, consider contacting Adobe technical support.

Regards,

[HKabaker]

madge,

Did you look in the offending file to see what's at line 688?
If it's not one of your topics. what is the RH file name?

Harvey

[madge0509]

Hi

The name of the file where the error occurs is whfbody.htm.

Thanks
M

[MergeThis]

I would either:

Create an entirely new SSL layout for WebHelp (different path, etc.) and generate to that new folder.
or...
Just empty the folder you've been generating to (in Windows Explorer), and do a clean generate.

Either method effectively bypasses whatever corruption seems to have occurred in that output file.



Good luck,
Leon

[HKabaker]

Please post back after following Leon's suggestion, and report any error messages.

I know where that line is, but it's generated fresh in the output file whskin_pickup.htm. A new one should be OK, unless something has happened to the source template in RH program files for skins.

I'll explain more later, if this error persists.

Harvey

[madge0509]

Hi

Thanks v much getting back to me.

I tried creating a fresh SSL as suggested and unfortunately I still get the same error when searching.


M

[HKabaker]

madge,

In your WebHelp output directory, check these lines in the three files. Do they look the same?

The line
IndexSelectTopicTitle=Select a Topic
is in
RoboHHRE.lng


The line
<item name="IndexSelectTopicTitle" value="Select a Topic" />
is in
whres.xml


The five lines below are in
whskin_pickup.htm

Scroll to the end of the line.

Harvey

[madge0509]

Hi

I have checked the files that you mention and I can confirm that my entries are the same as yours.
Thanks again for your continued help in resolving this issue.

Madge.

[HKabaker]

madge, here's another shot:

Does every topic have the following line in the head section?

<title>Read this topic now</title>

Possibly one is missing, or maybe has some strange character in the text. And I'm not sure what the search compiler would do if it reads:

<title></title>

H

[madge0509]

Hi

I think this is the issue, many of the topics have characters such as &#@ in the titles. If I leave these topics out of the build, the search does not generate the Javascript error.

Is there any way I can get the search engine to treat these like alphanumerics?

M

[Linux Rules]

Hello madge0509 -

Harvey has taken the lead and I'll follow up.

You said your topic titles include spaces and non-alpha/numeric characters.

IF, when you created a new topic, you gave it a title like "I Hate This @#$&* Flash Stuff" -
AND you DID NOT enter a specific file name AFTER entering the title,
Then RoboHelp defaulted the html file name to the same as your title.

For example, add a new topic and the New Topic window opens.
Enter a Topic Title: of Test @#$%^*& Topic
RH defaults the File Name: to Test_@_$_^_&_Topic.htm

This can cause a lot of problems related to links, server related issues, search functions, etc. Problem is, non-alpha/numerics like !@#$%^&* and "space" are not acceptable in file names.

In this case the file name needed to be changed (after entering the topic title) to exclude _@_$_^_&_ from the name.

The search function also has limitations:
> Searches are not case-sensitive, so you can type your search in uppercase or lowercase characters.
> You may search for any combination of letters (a-z) and numbers (0-9).
> Punctuation marks such as the period, colon, semicolon, comma, and hyphen are ignored during a search.
> Group the elements of your search using double quotes or parentheses to set apart each element. You cannot search for quotation marks.

Poke around and see if anything I'm posting makes a difference to your situaiton.

Regards,
GEWB

[HKabaker · Accepted solution]

In the titles only? Or in the file names, too?

Is a topic titled, "Take a %$@% leap" in a file that has the filename:

Take a %$@% leap.htm?

Spaces in filenames also can cause problems.

You'll need to rename the files, and the titles can stay as they are, maybe.

If you're having problems when special characters are only in topic titles, that's probably related to Windows vs. UTF-8 character sets. I have coped with this, but I don't have a good step-by-step procedure to recommend. Maybe some our colleagues in the forum can help.

Harvey

[HKabaker]

Gary, a small quibble.

I think underscore_works OK. Please tell me if that's wrong.

H

[Linux Rules]

Hello Harvey -

Correct: unscore will work but space will not. My error in the example as I wanted to show that "center" section of the file name needed to be replaced - I shouldn't just cut-'n-paste. 8^)

Regards,
GEWB

[madge0509]

Thanks everyone for their input, it has been really helpful.
Just to update you all, if I rename the topic titles, the search works correctly and the javascript error does not appear. If I rename the filename and topic titles, the search works correctly, however if I only rename the filenames and leave the topic names as they are, the search fails.

Am I safe in simply renaming the topic titles or can anyone envisage any problems with me not renaming the filenames as well?

Thanks alot
M

[HKabaker]

You may run into some other nasty complications with strange filenames. Sorry I can't be more specific, but while you're at it, you should do both.

Also, FWIW, long long filenames should be avoided.

Harvey