Not displaying correct sibling topics in linked TOCs

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writer-sam
Jr. Propeller Head
Posts: 9
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2021 9:03 am

Not displaying correct sibling topics in linked TOCs

Post by writer-sam »

Hello hive mind!

Got a frustrating one here that I'm hoping to solve.

I have a TOC that is strutured as:

TOC
|_ Topic1.htm
|_ Linked_TOC1
|_ TopicA.htm
|_ TopicB.htm
|_ Linked_TOC2
|_ TopicC.htm
|_ TopicB.htm
|_ Topic2.htm

Our topics masterpage uses a menu proxy to show associated topics. The whole top-level TOC is always seen, so:

TOC
|_ Topic1.htm
|_ Linked_TOC1
|_ Linked_TOC2
|_ Topic2.htm

When you read a topic, the associated TOC is expanded so you can see sibling topics:

TOC
|_ Topic1.htm
|_ Linked_TOC1
|_ TopicA.htm
|_ TopicB.htm
|_ Linked_TOC2
|_ Topic2.htm

I'm trying to figure out why when the reader is in TopicC and uses the menu proxy to go to TopicB does the menu proxy display topics from LinkedTOC1 instead of LinkedTOC2.

This is the setup of the menu proxy in my masterpage:
<MadCap:menuProxy style="mc-toc-depth: -1;mc-context-sensitive: False;mc-include-parent: True;mc-include-siblings: True;mc-include-children: True;" />

I toggled mc-context-sensitive but this doesn't control which TOC is displayed. And I know the other ones don't either.

Has anyone else encountered a situation like this? Is it a case that the first mention of a repeated topic always takes precendence? Do I need some fancy JavaScript in here?

Thanks in advance!
NorthEast
Master Propellus Maximus
Posts: 6359
Joined: Mon Mar 05, 2007 8:33 am

Re: Not displaying correct sibling topics in linked TOCs

Post by NorthEast »

writer-sam wrote:Is it a case that the first mention of a repeated topic always takes precendence?
If a topic is included more than once in your TOC, then you'll get unpredictable results. Flare will use one instance of the topic in the TOC, so it might not be the menu position you expect.

There is a setting in the target Advanced tab to Synchronize navigation elements with TOC entries. That might fix the issue, but only if you open the topic direct from the menu. However, you'll still have the same problems when you open a topic via a link or from search results.

Generally, it's a good idea not to duplicate a topic in the TOC, as it invariably causes some problems.
A workaround is to create separate individual topic files, and just duplicate the content using a snippet.
writer-sam
Jr. Propeller Head
Posts: 9
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2021 9:03 am

Re: Not displaying correct sibling topics in linked TOCs

Post by writer-sam »

Thanks @Dave Lee

We're trying to do a role-based help centre so some topics apply to more than one role. You're right, think the snippet usage is the way to go.

Thanks for the tip.
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