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Subject:Re: How to Create Online Help? From:Mark Magennis <markmagennis -at- YAHOO -dot- COM> Date:Wed, 20 Jan 1999 01:59:06 -0800
---"Deborah L. Crossman" <DLCrossman -at- AOL -dot- COM> wrote:
>
> Hello,
>
> I have reviewed the archives and can't find anything that actually
tells me:
>
> What is the process a tech writer goes through to produce online help
> documentation? And how is an application, such as Robohelp,
employed to
> accomplish this task?
To create a simple working help file in about 5 minutes, you will need:
1. A word processor capable of saving files as RTF (Rich Text Format).
Microsoft Wor will do.
2. A copy of the application Microsoft Help Workshop (hcw.exe). This
is free from Microsoft. I'll tell you where to get it later.
The procedure is:
1. Write some help topics. At the start of each topic, include a
footnote using the # symbol which states the topic title. Separate
topics by manual page breaks. For example:
# First Topic Heading
blah blah blah.
---------------<page break>----------
# Second Topic Heading
blah blah blah.
3. In Help Workshop, create a new help project and add your .rtf file
to it. Save it.
4. Still in Help Workshop, compile and run the new project (you'll
also need the Microsoft help compiler hcrtf.exe), also free.
Voila! You now have rudimentary working help file. What you won't have
is a table of contents, index, find tab, or context sensitive help and
it won't be linked to an application. In fact you won't have any way
of getting to the second topic! You have to do more work for these
things.
What RoboHELP and other help authoring tools (HATs) give you is an
easy way to create and manage all this content, but if you're serious
about starting to author help files and you don't mind getting your
hands a little dirty it's not a bad idea to begin with just Word, Help
Workshop, and a WinHelp book. Otherwise things the HATs do can be a
bit confusing.
I would recommend the book Developing Online Help for Windows by Scott
Boggan, David Farkas, and Joe Welinske. It takes you right from the
begining, explains everything brilliantly, and includes a free CD
containing Help Workshop, the WinHelp compiler and a load of other
tools and examples.
I started that way a year ago and I've just completed my third
complete help project (I now use RoboHELP), with all bells and
whistles attached. It was fun!
There are of course other books and HATs. Personally, I think it's
difficult to decide which HAT will suit you until you've figured out
what WinHelp is by creating a few simple examples using the bare
necessities. Different HATs can take a very different approach.
Have fun!
Mark
==
_________________________________________________________
Mark Magennis | Information Developer
FM Systems Ltd. |
Leopardstown Office Park | Tel: +353 (0)1 295 2549
Foxrock, Dublin 18 | Fax: +353 (0)1 295 2554
Ireland | markmagennis -at- yahoo -dot- com
_________________________________________________________
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