Sorry, I haven't used the CSH method which, by the way, was
designed to show only the topic at first, I think.
I give my developers a list of path/filenames for topics, and
they use this form:
.../helpdirectory/myproject.htm#targettopic.htm
There are some shortcomings to this method, which leaves the
window open and, when you call another topic, another new window
opens. In other words, you have to close the help window manually
to avoid windowmania.
A solution is a little js that checks to see if a window is
already open, closes it and opens a new one. (If no help window is
open, it's a harmless js error.) It's fast enough that you wouldn't
notice.
The downside here is losing the browser history. Forward and
back buttons work only so long as the help window stays open.
In my opinion, this is not a major concern, since many Web
based applications these days tell users not to use the back
button. Production users won't mind so much.
For ordinary people doing e-shopping and online banking, the
browser back button is anathema.
The bottom line is, if you have a decent set of navigating
options built into the design -- TOCs, left or right rail lists,
useful links at top and/or bottom of the topic page, the back
button can become superfluous.
Browe sequences work fine from any point in the lineup (I
know, it's not the same as browser history -- unless you give them
a really useful set of sequences).
The forever-loading left pane is gone in RH 7.
Hope this is useful.
Harvey