Other programs can use FAR as a Help file viewer. FAR recognizes command line parameters in the form "ms-help://namespace". Also you can view .HxS help files using the command line "/O somefile.HxS".
The H2 Viewer allows you to view MS Help 2 collections. The viewer is available whenever you view a H2 help file (preferred viewer must be set to FAR.EXE in Preferences dialog). This window is also available from the Authoring menu (main window).
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Other programs can use FAR as a Help file viewer. FAR recognizes command line parameters in the form "ms-help://namespace". Also you can view .HxS help files using the command line "/O somefile.HxS". |
New to MS Help 2? Read the MS Help Primer.
This viewer is similar to the MS HTML Help viewer. It has a standard tri-pane window layout. As time goes by we will add more features to assist the author in testing help files.
Tip: Use F6 to toggle focus between Browser and navigation pane.
Known problems: Arrow keys don't work on the Help 2 TOC and Index controls.
The navigation pane (Left) contains the Table Of Contents, Index, Search and Favorites pages. To select each navigation page use the View menu or the toolbar buttons above the navigation pane. By selecting "View > Page Tabs" you can display page tabs at the top of the Navigation pane, similar to those in the MS HTML Help 1.x viewer. In this mode the Navigation Toolbar buttons will become hidden.
Select a filter from the dropdown list. The button to the right of the drop down allows you to edit the filters, or create new filters. Only collections created with topic attributes are able to provide filtering capability. Filters are stored with the collection. If your collection contains one or more child collections (plug-ins) that have filters, then these will also appear in the filter list. Click the [...] button to add/remove/modify the filters. The Edit Filter dialog is also available from the Edit menu.
An expandable tree like a site map. Click on [+] [-] controls to expand and collapse branches. Click on other icons or text to display the topic. The + and - keys (Number Pad Keys) will also expand and collapse branches, while Alt+* keys (Number Pad Keys) will expand all branches.
The index is similar to past indexes with a few minor variations. The top dropdown allows you to select or enter any H2 Index Moniker. It contains all the standard Index Monikers currently used by MS Help 2.
!DefaultKeywordIndex - Normal keyword Index (KLinks).
!DefaultAssociativeIndex - Associative keyword index (ALinks).
!DefaultContextWindowIndex - F1 keywords index.
!DefaultNamedUrlIndex - Named URL Index contains HomePage and DefaultPage URLs.As you select each Moniker you will see the list of keywords change. If the list clears then it means the index does not exist in the current help file or is empty. Indexes are optional. Some authors use custom indexes. In this case you will need to type in the name of the Index Moniker. All Monikers are defined in the HxC project file.
At the bottom of the Index window is a list of results. As you click each keyword you will see the result list (below) fill with results. The first result is always automatically loaded into the browser control (right). Often a keyword will produce several topic results. Click on each result item to view it in the browser control.
Again search is similar to past search windows with a few minor variations. The top drop down allows you to select which area of the help to search in.
!DefaultFullTextSearch - Normal Full-text search database.
!DefaultKeywordIndex - Search KLink index.
!DefaultAssociativeIndex - Search ALink index.If you use a custom index then you can type in the name of the custom index Moniker.
In the second field type in the name of the text you want to search for. The area to search is defined by the selected Moniker above. Once you have entered you search text, press Enter or click the Search button. MS Help 2 also allows you to perform some variations in search via the 4 check boxes.
When you perform a search, results will fill the results list. The first result topic is automatically displayed in the browser pane. Single click each result item to display it in the browser control.
This page displays the contents of the Windows favorites folder. The functionality is much the same as in Internet Explorer. At any time you can bookmark the currently displayed topic by selecting "Add to Favorites" from the Favorites menu, or by clicking the Favorites page "Add" toolbar button. To recall a stored topic, select the topic from the favorites list, and press the Enter key (or double-click). To move down into a folder, select the folder and press the Enter key (or double-click). To move back up a folder, select the [Up...] item at the top of the list. To delete an item press the Del key on your keyboard. To Rename an item press the F2 key.
File Menu
- Open Namespace - Select this command to display the "Open Namespace" window. Select a namespace and click "Open". The collection will be loaded into the viewer. The Key short cut is Alt+N as Ctrl+N is used by the Browser control.
- Open File - This is a quick way to register and open a single help file (.HxS) collection. When you select a .HxS help file, FAR registers the HxS under the Namespace tmp.FAR.Filename, then opens that Namespace in the viewer. The Key short cut is Alt+O as Ctrl+O is used by the Browser control.
Save As - See Note #1- Properties - See Note #1
- Print - See Note #1
- Print Preview - See Note #1
- Close - Close this window.
Tip: You can remove registered Namespaces from the system via the H2 Utilities window.
Edit Menu
- Filters - Opens the Edit Filters dialog. Filters only work if the current collection (or one of its plug-ins) have defined one or more topic attributes. Once a filter is defined, it can be selected in the Filters drop down list (above the navigation pane). Filters are designed to reduce the number of visible documents in a collection. They can effect TOC, Index, Full-text search and content. Note that it is possible for the author to define a filter but not expose any of the attributes for the editing of the filter.
View Menu
- Table Of Contents - Switch to the table of contents navigation pane. This command (and toolbar button) is disable when a collection is opened that does not contain a table of contents.
- Index - Switch to the Index pane. Always available.
- Search - Switch to the Index pane. Always available.
- Favorites - Switch to the Favorites pane. Always available.
- Toolbar - Show / hide the toolbar.
- Address Bar - Show / hide the URL address bar.
- Statusbar - Show / hide the statusbar.
- Page Tabs - Show / hide the Page Tabs above the navigation pane. When the Page Tabs are hidden, navigation pages buttons will appear in the main toolbar.
- Font Size - See Note #1
- Stop - See Note #1
- Refresh - See Note #1
Favorites Menu
- Add to Favorites - Add the currently displayed topic to the favorites folder.
- Organize Favorites - Opens the Internet Explorer Organize Favorites dialogs.
Go Menu
- Home Page - Opens the Home Page as defined in help file. If the collection does not define a Home Page, FAR uses the first URL found in the Table of Contents.
- Default Page - Opens the Default Page as defined in help file. If the collection does not define a Default Page, FAR uses the first URL found in the Table of Contents.
- Back - See Note #1
- Forward - See Note #1
- Next - Displays the Next topic found in the Table Of Contents control that contains a valid URL.
- Previous - Displays the Previous topic found in the Table Of Contents control that contains a valid URL.
- Sync - Select the Table of Contents item that matches the currently displayed topic.
Reader Menu
This menu allows you to read the selected text of the current page, or all the current page (if nothing is selected). It uses Microsoft Speech API 5.x to read the text.
Requires Microsoft SAPI 5.1 runtime or greater.
- Read Text (F9) - Select this command to read the text in the browser pane.
To read a portion of text, first highlight the section of text then press F9. Press the Escape key at any time to stop the talking. Alternately click the Stop button in the toolbar.Help Menu
- Displays this help.
Note #1 - These commands relate to the browser control only (not to MS Help 2). They are the same as the commands in Internet Explorer.
The toolbar contains commonly used items from the main menu.
The address bar, like in Internet Explorer, displays the URL of the topic currently displayed in the browser control. Type in your own URL and press Enter to go to a topic or web page.