Global Variables Files

[LaKisha1]

Does anyone know what files are used for global variables?

I've found one - rhvariable.apj - but there's got to be another one (or more).

Here's my problem: developers need to be able to access and change these files without going into RH.

I've gone into rhvariable.apj, changed the value of a variable, opened RH and the new value was NOT displaying. Yet when I reopen rhvariable.apj, it still contains the new value of the variable that I changed (i.e., I changed "Certificate" to "Hello," and "Hello" was still the value of the variable. This leads me to believe that there is another file that I need to change since RH is not recognizing "Hello" as the new value.

[Peter Grainge]

Try an old trick. Set the default value of a variable to Redrabbit and then in an Output change the value to Greenrabbit. Given those words will not be in your text, using FAR or BKReplaceEm, you can find all the files with those values.

Not sure however that it will be of use to your developers. Don't forget those are source files that are used when you generate the output. At that point the values, default or otherwise, are hard coded into your content and no longer in separate files.

[Peter Grainge]

Make sure you search all file types, not just HTM

[LaKisha1]

Thanks, I'll try that.

And thanks for reminding me that this wouldn't actually help the developers b/c they're the source files.

[LaKisha1]

I forgot to ask you one thing though...in your sentence, "Given those words will not be in your text, using FAR or BKReplaceEm, you can find all the files with those values," what do FAR and BKReplaceEm mean? Please forgive my ignorance. 🙂

[Peter Grainge]

Sorry. Both are multi file find and replace tools that will search through many file types. The RH tool is just for HTML files.

[Fly_Molo]

Not that this will help you much, but variables are also stored in the Variables table of the project's .cpd file, and temporarily put into the project's .trv file during compilation.
I've experienced similar behavior to your's when changing a variable value in the rhvariable.apj, but not seeing the expected change in my output--the old value was still sitting there in the cpd.

On a side note, in one of my project's variables resolve correctly in my output (HTMLHelp) when compiled through the RoboHelp GUI, but do not when compiled via the command line. RoboHelp is not generating a <projectName>.trv during the command line compilation, so there is no variable definition for the compiler to work from. Has anyone experienced this? Any solutions? One out of the twenty projects I work on only this one behaves in this way. All others perfrom as expected.

[LaKisha1]

Peter and Eh-nonymous,

Thanks for the additional information.

[LaKisha1 · Accepted solution]

I'd have to say that in this case, both Peter and Eh-nonymous's answers are correct.

[Gravenstein]

There's another file that can contain variable information: the SSL file. In RH7, you can override the values specified in rhvariable.apj with values specific to a given single source layout. When you do so, the values are carried in the SSL file for that layout. The values might also be carried in the CPD file; I haven't checked that out yet.

G

[Peter Grainge]

In my topic on Opening Projects, I have added to the What will be lost section. The information there sets out what the files contain and how variables can be preserved if ever you have to delete the CPD file. Unless the steps outlined are followed, the default variable values will be lost.