how to evaluate help authoring software?

[Rosemary J Horner <rhorner -at- quellos -dot- com>]

Hi all,

I've posted here before about the limits of the proprietary application I'm
using to write online help for my company's many other proprietary
applications. (Limits include no HTML, no links, no layout flexibility, no
preview, no image management.) This company leans much more toward
developing rather than buying, and for some apps, that's what gives us the
edge in our business.

But, with all the enhancements I've requested since I started, I've been
given permission to research outside software for this. (Yay!!!)

The problem is, I have no idea what to look for. I've never used anything
BUT this proprietary tool, this being my first tech writing job, and apart
from the things that frustrate me about it, I don't know what else is
important. 

I've looked at the websites for various different authoring tools: RoboHelp,
Doc-to-Help, AuthorIT, SevenSteps, MS HTMLHelp, HyperText Studio, DotCHM,
HelpBreeze... And I've searched the archives here and at HATT. But I feel
like I don't know enough about the terminology involved and the use of these
types of tools to be able to evaluate them. 

One of the things my supervisor thought was a problem first time around when
they decided to build it, was that we have so many web-based applications
that are related but separate. Our current help system allows the user to
press F1 or click Help from any page in an application--that opens the help
viewer window with the help for that page and navigation for that app
displayed. There's a search button in the help viewer window that allows you
to search for a term across all our apps or in a specific one, or to view
all help for a specific app. All the apps that have help are listed. Is this
an uncommon feature or likely to be an issue?

I think all our development is done in asp.net. And I only need to be able
to create online help, not printed manuals. 

I want to be able to make an intelligent sounding recommendation on whether
it would be worth enhancing our existing tool or just purchasing something.
If anyone has any advice on selection, personal recommendations, or
resources that would help me figure this out, I'd really appreciate it.

Thanks!
Rosemary




^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Check out RoboDemo for tutorials! It makes creating full-motion software
demonstrations and other onscreen support materials easy and intuitive.
Need RoboHelp? Save $100 on RoboHelp Office in May with our mail-in rebate.
Go to http://www.ehelp.com/techwr-l

Free copy of ARTS PDF Tools when you register for the PDF
Conference by May 15. Leading-Edge Practices for Enterprise
& Government, June 3-5, Bethesda,MD. www.PDFConference.com

---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as: archive -at- raycomm -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com
Send administrative questions to ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com -dot-  Visit http://www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.