shortcut link: possible to call another help window?

[i-tietz]

Hi there,
what I would like to do:
I would like to open topics of a given type, let's sy "X" in a second help window (let's call it "windowX").
If I click on another link to another topic of the sort "X" I don't want to open another window but would want to see it displayed in "windowX".

The list of WM_... functions is long and I have never done Windows programming.
If it could be done with the given functions - how?

shortcut_wm_lparam_w_param.gif

Thanx in advance!

Inge

[Pete Lees]

Hi, Inge,

Can you use an alternative method to link between the topics, such as a Related Topics link or Concept (ALink) link? These methods let you nominate a window in which to display the target topic, which I don't believe is possible with Shortcut controls. See:

http://forums.madcapsoftware.com/viewto ... 876#p42868

Pete

[i-tietz]

Can you use an alternative method to link between the topics, such as a Related Topics link or Concept (ALink) link?
These methods let you nominate a window in which to display the target topic, which I don't believe is possible with Shortcut controls.

It's also not possible with the Related Topics or Concept Links - or am I overlooking it?
Additionally I need to edit the link text for each link and it is no option to do that in the source code, because we will have tons of those links and I am the only one with HTML experience. This doesn't leave us with another choice.

[Pete Lees]

Hi, Inge,

It's also not possible with the Related Topics or Concept Links - or am I overlooking it?

This could be one of those instances where options that are available in tools like HTML Help Workshop aren't exposed in Flare. Perhaps that's understandable in this case, as even Microsoft's documentation of the Related Topics and ALink commands forgets to mention that a Window parameter can be specified in each case.

See my earlier message for an example of a Related Topics command that specifies a target window. For ALink commands, the syntax is as follows:

Code: Select all

<object id="hhctrl" classid="clsid:adb880a6-d8ff-11cf-9377-00aa003b7a11">
<param name="Command" value="ALink" />
<param name="Button" value="Text:Click Here" />
<param name="Window" value="TargetWindow" />
<param name="Item1" value="" />
<param name="Item2" value="keyword in target topics" />
</object>

Pete

[i-tietz]

This is your quote from the other post:

Alternatively, you can use a Related Topics control to open the second help file. Here's an example:

Code: Select all

<object id="hhctrl2" classid="clsid:adb880a6-d8ff-11cf-9377-00aa003b7a11">
    <param name="Command" value="Related Topics" />
    <param name="Button" value="Text:Click Here" />
    <param name="Window" value="TargetWindow" />
    <param name="Item1" value="This Text Not Seen;TargetHelpFile.chm::/TargetTopic.htm" />
</object>

The window type that you specify with the Window parameter is defined in the target help file and not the source help file.

As I said before: Editing the source code of the page is no option. And Flare doesn't let me enter a target name.

And how I would specify that in the target help file?

[Pete Lees]

And Flare doesn't let me enter a target name.

If Flare doesn't permit you to nominate a target window for a Related Topics or ALink hyperlink then it may worth submitting a feature request. The HTML Help ActiveX control can accept a window name as a parameter for both of these commands.

And how I would specify that in the target help file?

What I was trying to say is that the window type that you'd nominate in this instance is one that the author of the target help file has defined. So, you'd need to examine the target help file with a utility like KeyTools (Tools > Examine CHM File) to determine what the names and properties of the window types are.

The options that are available to you when using a Shortcut command to run hh.exe are very limited. In fact, they don't go beyond the options that are described here:

http://helpware.net/FAR/far_faq.htm#HHEXEParams

Pete