This is a list of Frequently Asked Questions for Microsoft Windows Help like WinHelp, HTMLHelp, Help2 and AP Help. Use STRG + F to find keywords! What is actually AML? Microsoft Assistance Markup Language (AML - formerly also known as MAML) is a XML based markup language used by Windows Vista Help. What is actually AP Help 1.0? AP Help 1.0 is shipped with Windows Vista (Jan 30 th 2007 is official launch) and includes content for the Help and Support Center. Only Microsoft, Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) and corporate users will be able to customize this help content for the operating system and OEM help. What is actually AP Help 2.x? AP Help 2.x is not available yet. Microsoft no longer have immediate plans to release a public version of AP Help. So, Microsoft has not decided if it will be an assistance platform for third-party vendors or another Microsoft-only platform. Prior to Vista I want to use a .hlp file as applications online help and from Vista on a .chm file should be used. So how do I add the right thing to the installer? You may check for MinVersion 6.0. But it would be the best if you made your application only use the .chm file and get rid of the .hlp file entirely. Compiled Help Modules (CHM files) are supported on all current versions of Windows, and even for the older versions (such as Windows 95) the user just needs to install a downloadable package first. I can't see any Guided Help topics in my Help and Support window. Any Ideas? Switch the Help and Support viewer to "Online Mode" (see Options). Is there a free HTMLHelp compiler I can use? To compile CHM's you can use HTMLHelp Workshop. How to go about redistributing the HTMLHelp compiler? HTMLHelp compiler cannot be redistributed. How do I set the default size and location for the Help Window? You do this by creating or modifying a window type and specifying the dimensions, position, and other characteristics of the window. For information on how to do this, see "Creating secondary windows" in the online help for HTML Help Workshop. You may also find following link to an HTML Help Workshop tutorial useful, as it covers this in some detail. Have a look at "Customizing the Window", Position. Char James-Tanny's HTML Help Workshop tutorial Steps: 1. Open your .hhp project file with HTMLHelp workshop 2. Click Add/Modify Window Definitions 3. In a existing project the Window Types dialog box appears 4. Go to the Position tab 5. Set the size and position for the specified window. Which purpose does the file hh.dat serve? The hh.dat file stores user-specific information on all the HTMLHelp files (*.CHM) on your system (position, favourite topics, search history, etc.), and can cause a error if it has somehow been corrupted. Delete or rename the file hh.dat to reset all (!) CHM windows on your system to their default settings. You should find hh.dat in this directory: \Documents and Settings\%username%\Application Data\Microsoft\HTML Help Windows will create a new version of hh.dat when you next open any .chm file. Is there any documentation on the [WINDOWS] section of the HTML Help 1.x .hhp file? This section is documented in Rick Stone's Tips and Tricks file, available from the link below. And there is some further information at chmspec: Rick Stone's Tips and Tricks CHM Viewer Window Specification When I do search with a Help 2.0 help or CHM I see a quick popup. It is too fast to read. Is it a error or is it saying something else? It's saying "Click Cancel to stop the search", and is designed for use with help files that contain many thousands of topics. There is no option available to hide the dialog. Is there a way to set default page to be displayed when a .CHM file is opened? You can do that with Microsoft HTMLHelp Workshop: Open your HHP file with HTMLHelp Workshop. Click the first icon "Change project options" on the "Project" tab. Set the "Default file" from the file list of the combo box. Compile your project again. MSDN Topic Is it safe to install the HTML Help Workshop file (apparently version 1.3), currently available for download on the Microsoft web site, on a machine running Windows XP Professional? The reason I ask is that the file contains a file hhupd.exe (dated 3 March 2000) and I'm worried that it will be automatically installed during the install process. I'm using HTMLHelp Workshop only with Windows XP Home - and there are no problems. hhupd will detect a new version and fail to install, so there's no need to worry. I would like the user to be able to click on a help button and it moves my application window to the left (i.e 2/3 of the screen) and shows the help file in the right 1/3 of the screen like the help features in products like Excel. The Ht lHelp() API function opens a help window and returns the handle to that window. (Read the HH Workshop online help for more info on the HH API). Once you have a handle to any Window you can use standard Windows API calls to manipulate that window. Helpware - VB and HTML Help Helpware - Help Window Control Any idea how to reference the icon file in HTMLHelp 1.x CHM files? This functionality worked at one time, but it was broken by one of the HTML Help updates. It's possible to reference the icon strip using a relative path. You can force the icon file into the Windows directory which is available with an Environment string from within the HHC file: <OBJECT type="text/site properties"><param name="ImageList" value="file://%systemroot%\wwhelpicons.bmp"><param name="Image Width" value="16"><param name="Color Mask" value="0xff00ff"></OBJECT> Help Technology Centre - HTML Help FAQ I have a CHM file and search highlighting dosn't work for all files. There is a bug in the compiler where if you want to keep something hidden from the full text search parser you can simply give it a name like xxxxxxxx.Mxxxxxxx.htm Since the compiler only looks at the first char after the first dot -- and if its an H then it parses. XXXX.HXXX.gif -- Incorrectly flag as a HTML file for Parsing with FTS. Binary file can Crash the compiler. XXXX.XXXX.HTM -- Missed by FTS Parser because first char after dot was X not H XXXX.HXXX.HTM -- OK Is there a way to specify that as soon as a page loads in the "main" window of the CHM viewer, I should be able to immediately use the PgUp, PgDn, Up-Arrow or Down-Arrow keys on the keyboard, without having to first click the mouse arrow somewhere in the "main" window? You need to set the focus to the page in which you want to scroll, by changing its BODY start-tag to this: <body onLoad="self.focus()"> Are there any recomendations on a good decompiler for chm files? There's no real difference between the decompilation facilities in most help authoring tools, including HTML Help Workshop and FAR or for that matter the facility to decompile a help file from the MS-DOS command line with this command: hh -decompile <target directory> filename.chm Microsoft HTMLHelp Workshop - Downloads Helpware - FAR In each case, decompiling the file produces a slew of HTML and image files, together with the table of contents (.hhc) file, index (.hhk) file, and a few other supporting files. The only decompiler with any additional features is KeyTools as this can try to rebuild the project (.hhp) file. Keyworks - KeyTools Decompiler You will need this file if you want to recompile the help project. One thing to note is that the decompile/recompile process isn't a "round-trip" process; certain features that the help author added to the original help file can't be recovered when you decompile it, so these may no longer work properly after you've recompiled. This is especially true in the area of context-sensitive help, which may be broken in the new version of the file. How do I print a chm file with page numbers? CHM's use Internet Explorer's settings. Open Internet Explorer and choose File/Page Setup. Type &p in either the Header or the Footer box. Then when you print from the .chm, you should get page numbers. How to search for a word or phrase in CHM files? In a single topic if you click the topic pane and then pres CTRL+F, you can display a Find dialog box and search fpor a word or phrase in the current topic. Having a Search button you can use Full Text Search with the help viewer. See also: Help-Info - CHM Full Text Search Can an HTML Help file coontain any virus? The answer is Yes. Like WinHelp, HH has a Shortcut command that allows a helpfile to launch any application/Executable on your machine. Also HTML (inside or outside a CHM) can play host to an ActiveX controls. So a bad CHMs can do damage. So treat CHMs from unknown authors with the same care as you would Executables. All good virus scanners now scan CHMs. And this is why Microsoft no longer allow you (by default) to view a CHM located on a remote server. Hope that answers your question. I've never heard of a CHM being used to deliver a virus but its certainly possible so take care what you open (like you do with Executables). Where the Favorites for a CHM are stored? The favorites are stored in the hh.dat file but this isn't a human readable file format. Can CHM files be opened by MAC's? On Microsoft Windows the .chm files can be read without installing any other software, but on MAC and Linux you have to install a special reader (ActiveX not supported). You can find such a reader for MAC at: http://chmox.sourceforge.net How to use custom icons in a compiled HTMLHelp 1.0 CHM file? You can use external icon files although Microsoft did not provide a way to compile the external icon strip right into the help file and use it. Instead you have to link the external strip externally. West Wind: http://west-wind.com/weblog/posts/1520.aspx How can I positon the CHM help window in the screen? All Help authoring tools or the Microsoft HTMLHelp Workshop allow you to position and size the main and any other secondary windows in HTML Help. With the HTML Help Workshop 1. Click the Add/Modify window definitions button 2. Select the Position tab and set the Window Size and Position. Make sure that the Save user defined window position after first use is not checked if you want to make sure that your positioning is maintained. Is there a way to expand the topic list when I do a single-click on it? If you apply the style "Only expand a single heading" to the TOC, each heading will expand with a single click. The procedure for applying this style with HTML Help Workshop is as follows: 1. Open the contents (.hhc) file in HTML Help Workshop. 2. Click the Contents Properties button at the top of the left toolbar. 3. Click the Styles tab. 4. Click Add, and then select "Only expand a single heading". 5. Click OK back to the main HTML Help Workshop window, and then recompile. It may be worth noting that this feature works with "site map" TOCs but not with binary TOCs (you can switch between the two via the Compiler tab of the Project Options dialog box). How can I then launch hh.exe from the command line to display a topic in a 'small' window? Well, it's a bit weird. You can append an angle bracket and the name of the secondary window to the command; for example: hh.exe myfile.chm:://mytopic.htm>customwin I believe that is the way it is intended to work. However, there is a bug. Let's say your main window is named "mainwin". Whenever you run the above command, HH actually tries to open a window named "customwin>mainwin". As a workaround, you can actually define a window called "customwin>mainwin" in your project, and then the above command line will work. I believe you would still need to keep the one called simply "customwin" for links within the Help file (Related Topics and such), so for full functionality you actually need two identical window definitions. We have long used uncompiled html help for our software products. Our TOC and Index frames contain the ActiveX code. Virtually overnight we've gone from having all our help work beautifully to having no TOC or Index functionality. Any ideas? Yes, a recent Microsoft security update prevents the use of the HTML Help ActiveX control in a Web page unless you add the URL of the page to an "allow list" in the Windows registry. Uninstalling the Windows update #890175 can do the the trick for you if possible. Note: That's what I had to do for our Intranet (which at least we can control the users boxes). For the external web site, I had to edit the hhc file manually and change it to an html file (losing the expanding tree capability). Helpware - HTMLHelp Version Info Which file or setting contains the text that appears in the VS.NET 2003 Dynamic Help window? They are in the XML files located in: C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio .NET 2003\Common7\IDE\HTML\XMLLinks\1033 Following article describes how to setup an XML file and also offers a dynamic help demo. Helpware - Help 2 Dynamic Help Prior to Vista I want to use a .hlp file as applications online help and from Vista on a .chm file should be used. So how do I add the right thing to the installer? You may check for MinVersion 6.0. But it would be the best if you made your application only use the .chm file and get rid of the .hlp file entirely. Compiled Help Modules (CHM files) are supported on all current versions of Windows, and even for the older versions (such as Windows 95) the user just needs to install a downloadable package first. How to open a WinHelp file (.hlp) from VB.NET or C#? System.Diagnostics.Process.Start("c:\windows\help\help.hlp") I suggest you to use CHM files instead of HLP files. It's the recommended help format from Microsoft, and now most of the help files are CHM files. After compiling an RTF into a WinHelp (.HLP) on some systems it cannot be displayed with a message "Help file was created for a language not supported by your version of Windows". Is out there any detailed information on solution? The help file needs to be compiled on a machine with an o erating system (OS) that is the same as what you will be running it on. The error is telling you that you compiled with an OS for one language and are trying to run the HLP file on an OS with a different language. Will WinHelp run under Vista but not ship with Vista? Yes, there are some good news on the Windows Vista / WinHelp front. Microsoft have now decided that Windows Vista users can download the WinHelp32 engine. Originally Microsoft indicated WinHelp would not work on Windows Vista at all. The notice has been published as a KB article KB917607 at: Microsoft - WinHelp and Vista "... Users who want to view .hlp files must download the program from the Microsoft Download Center, and then install it on their computers. The download for Windows Help is still in development and will not be available for the release of Windows Vista Beta 2..." How to launch an external EXE with HTMLHelp Workshop? By default, HTML Help shortcuts will only work on local drives now, so make sure you're not running on a network or removable drive. Have a look at Helpware - HTMLHelp Version Info Why is MS dropping 32 and keeping 16? Microsoft removed the 32-bit WinHelp engine as one step toward retiring this old code base and simplifying the range of Help systems Windows customers encounter. They left in the 16-bit WinHelp engine because of requirements of the 16-bit system that ships in Vista (NTVDM). However, Microsoft still strongly encourages all developers who use the .hlp file format to move to a supported format, such as .chm or .html. How to work with HTMLHelp API and Visual Basic for Applications? You'll find some further information at: Help-Info - Visual Basic for Application How to work with HTMLHelp API and Visual Basic 6? Have a look at: Help-Info - Visual Basic 6 and Online Help How to add XP Visual Styles to a Visual Basic .NET application? If using Visual Basic .net 2002 then a manifest file needs to be added to the directory in which the binary resides. If using Visual Basic .net 2003 then System.Windows.Forms.Application.EnableVisualStyles() needs to be called before any form is loaded. How to get the .NET Framework 1.1? The .NET Framework version 1.1 is a component of the Microso t Windows operating system used to build and run Windows-based applications. This page can help you determine whether or not you have the .NET Framework 1.1 installed already, and how general users and developers can obtain the .NET Framework. Microsoft - .Net Framework 1.1 I have a fairly complex VB.NET application and would like to integrate some context-sensitive "Press F1" style help into the application, but haven"t the foggiest idea where to start or what tools to use. You can use HTML Help Workshop to create help. The HelpProvider component (available in the toolbox) can be used to integrate help with Windows Forms forms and controls. What tools do y'all use for authoring and creating help files? Microsoft - Downloads Help Technology Centre MS Help Wiki How to open a WinHelp file (.hlp) from VB.NET or C#? System.Diagnostics.Process.Start("c:\windows\help\help.hlp") I suggest you to use CHM files instead of HLP files. It's the recommended help format from Microsoft, and now most of the help files are CHM files. Is there a listing about all the classes included in vb.net? Press the F1 key and enter "ms-help://MS.MSDNQTR.2003FEB.1031/cpref/html/cpref_start.htm" into the address box. If you don't have the current version of the MSDN Library installed, you will have to replace the "MS.MSDNQTR.2003FEB.1031" by the string your version of the documentation uses. Does anyone know if the process for creating integrated online help for VS.NET 2005 is the same as for 2003? There will be no VSHIK 2005 as all that was in VSHIK is now freely available as part of the VSIP package. It used to be that there was a fee to join the VSIP program, but as that's no longer the case, anyone who needs VSHIK tools can just get them as part of the VSIP release. Microsoft - VSIP Does anyone have an idea if VS.NET.2005 will be shipped with Longhorn help or with Help 2? Help 2.x What is the parent shell collection for 3rd party content for all VS 2005 related products? You should plug your content into the following namespace: MS.VSIPCC.v80 How to ensure that a component documentation appears in the VS 2005 Express editions and Visual Web Developer? In the TOC, the top level is MSDN Library for Visual Studio 2005 Express Editions with Visual Web Developer as a node. The URI/namespace for the top-level page is ms-help://MS.VSExpressCC.v80/MS.NETFramework.v20.en/dv_vsref/html/259dfa46-a3bd-4b77-8acb-1cfab3eaae5a.htm You'll need to put the following in the data island of all your topics to get included in their namespace: <MSHelp:Attr Name="DocSet" Value="VisualWebDeveloper" /> <MSHelp:Attr Name="DocSet" Value="ExpressLibVS" /> How to install Installing Help 2 SDK (H2 compiler) without Visual Stusio dependency? This solution allows authors to install Visual Studio Oct SDK (H2 Compiler) without first installing VS 8. Many thanks go to James Chaldecott who has updated Martin Sojdr's Beta solution and made it work with the latest RTM version (VS 2005 October SDK). We are grateful to both Martin Sojdr and James Chaldecott for making this solution available. Download and Instructions see Helpware - Unblocking VS 2005 SDK Why do we want this? Because VS is very expensive and authors can write and compile help using authoring tools such as FAR or Help Studio etc without the need for purchasing VS. Also if you are integrating help into a 3rd party systems such as Borland's Delphi 2005 then purchasing VS not required and a waste of money. Does anyone know where I can find usage instructions (specifically a full list of command-line options) for keyhh.exe from KeyWorks Software? They're all documented in the accompanying help file (\Program\Files\KeyWorks\KeyHH.its). However, although this file is an HTML Help file, its non-CHM filename extension will probably cause it to malfunction on your machine. Just rename a copy to KeyHH.chm How to decompile AP Help file (.h1s) by xHelpMarkup without having Windows Vista (e.g. with Windows XP) installed? 1. Download Microsoft - Business Desktop Deployment 2007 2. See following note: Help-Info - SetUp AP Help SDK 3. Install the Business Desktop Deployment 2007 or copy the Microsoft AP Client Content Compiler (apcompnt.exe) and Microsoft InfoTech Storage System Library (apss.dll) from another machine having BDD 2007 installed. I have no icons, only red crosses, on help and support pages. Any ideas? Here is the fix for the missing art icons: 1. Close the Help and Support window. 2. Start the Registry Editor by clicking Start, typing "regedit" (no quotation marks), and pressing ENTER. (You need administrator privileges to do this.) 3. Navigate to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.png. 4. Right-click the .png folder, point to New, and then click String value. 5. Add a new string named "Content Type" (without quotation marks). 6. Double-click the new Content Type string and set the Value data to "image/png" (without quotation marks). 7. Close the Registry Editor, and then open Help and Support. How to enable Run Command on Windows Vista Start Menu? You should note that one can always get to the run dialog by just hitting Win + R on the keyboard, which is the simplest way to do so, and would probably be worth getting used to. Otherwise, you can re-enable the run dialog by right-clicking on the Start Button, selecting Properties, and then clicking Customize on the ensuing dialog window. You'll be taken to the Customize Start Menu screen. Set option Command "Run". The developers at Microsoft have kept us oldtimers in mind. Here's a trick for Vista users that I don't think many people are aware of. Right-click on any folder on your Windows Vista machine while holding down the shift key. You'll see an extra context-sensitive menu item there: Open Command Prompt here. Just click on this menu and a command window will open with the current working directory set to the folder's actual location. Is there a way to convert an automatically generated TOC to plain text? Click inside the TOC and press Ctrl+Shift+F9. This converts the field code to plain text, so you can manually update the page numbers, without losing formatting. After pressing Ctrl+Shift+F9, you may need to select the text and press that key combo again because, depending on your version of Word, there may still be {PAGEREF} fields that were embedded inside the {TOC} field.