auto-building a .h file from TopicAlias markers

[pdxwordsmith]

FM 8.0p266, Flare 4.1.40, WebHelp output

I added TopicAlias markers to the topics to hook up to the UI and Flare generated the .h and alias files perfectly. Then, I added a new TopicAlias marker to a heading early in the book. When Flare generated the new .h file, the new topic ID was inserted in the .h file approximately where it appeared in the book, incrementing the numeric values of all topic IDs following the new ID.

If the developer is supposed to use the numeric value (in his code) to associate a topic ID with a UI element, shouldn't the value be static - and not subject to change if I add new topic IDs with TopicAlias markers?

Is there some setting I'm missing to generate a .h file and include new TopicAlias markers at the END of the .h file, keeping all previous IDs static?

Thanks,
Hanna

[NorthEast]

If the developer is supposed to use the numeric value (in his code) to associate a topic ID with a UI element, shouldn't the value be static - and not subject to change if I add new topic IDs with TopicAlias markers?

I would suggest that the developer doesn't use the numeric value for CSH calls, and instead uses the identifier name - i.e. what you put in your TopicAlias markers.

I can't see any real reason/advantage of using numeric values in preference to identifiers; and in your situation the values are generated automatically during the import, so it isn't really a viable option.

[pdxwordsmith]

Thanks. That's what we ended up doing. The Flare help suggests otherwise...