On-Line Help Research

TEXTnology is dedicated to delivering state-of-the-art, user-accepted help systems available. We offer the following research findings and observations regarding current comparisons of HTML and Windows help systems.

Help authoring and development tools have evolved and continue to do so. The original Windows 3.1/3.11 help system offered many features and many limitations. Then, with the growing popularity of HTML, some writers turned from Windows 3.1/3.11 help to HTML. However, two factors are apparent:

• HTML requires the use of a browser for reading the documentation (e.g., Internet Explorer or Netscape). The user must run both the software application and the browser. And, because the browsers are not truly designed as on-line help vehicles, they offer fewer on-line help mechanisms than a true help system.



• The Microsoft help system is an integral part of the Windows operating system. Thus, the new Windows 95 help offers extensive and widely-used features. And, it is compatible with traditional 3.1/3.11 help files.

TEXTnology is prepared to develop both HTML and Windows help. However, if you are in the process of defining only one delivery vehicle, we recommend the Microsoft Windows 95 help system. It provides extensive authoring features, significant conversion support from standard word processing (WP) and desktop publishing (DTP) tools, familiarity-based user acceptance, varying navigation mechanisms, and future stability.

The familiar Windows 95 "Contents-Index-Find" help window, enables writers to carefully create a hierarchy of topics by content and complexity. Search and indexing features provide flexibility for diverse audiences while keywords make it easier to find information from different perspectives.

In addition to the basic help features, we expect to soon see:

• WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) help-authoring tools. Currently, we must create help files from a standard DTP/WP base. The DTP/WP file is then converted to help format. Technology reports indicate that we should soon see a help system tool that will eliminate the need for the DTP/WP version.



• Direct conversion to the common Web browser formats: text files to HTML and graphics files to GIF. This would enable you to publish documents on the internet.



• Complete user printing including pagination and stylistic definitions. Currently, the user can open and print topics and/or books although the output is more like a computer "dump" than a familiar printed book style.

After analyzing Windows 3.1/3.11, 95, and emerging 97/NT help systems, we currently recommend the mainstream Windows 95 version and anticipate a smooth transition to more advanced 97/NT features in the near future.

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