HTML Help Technology Information

• HTML Help Technology Information TOC
• Basic
• Advanced
• Problems

Basic

• What is CHM?
• What is CHM Root Directory?
• How to get the latest HTML Help run-time files?
• Is it possible to open a specific topic from the hh.exe command line?
• 

• What is CHM?

CHM means 'Compiled Windows HTML Help files'. It is a set of technologies for delivering help and Web contents using Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). HTML Help is designed for authors or developers who create contents for software programs, multimedia titles, intranets, extranets, or for the Internet. HTML Help provides navigational controls that enable users to easily find and sort information. HTML Help also provides a set of tools that assist authors in creating and organizing contents delivered with the navigational controls.

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• What is CHM Root Directory?

A CHM file is a self-contained file system, equivalent to a hard driver. You cannot refer to items "above" the root of a CHM file. It is similar to that you can not refer to items "above" the root of a hard driver. Unlike real hard drivers, you also can't access other "drivers" through an inter-CHM file jump because a CHM file only has one "driver".

Let's say you've got the following directory structure:

c:\projects\test\foo.pcm
c:\projects\test\foo.hhp
c:\projects\test\default.htm
c:\projects\image.gif

and in default.htm you have an IMG tag:

<IMG src="c:\projects\image.gif">

Since \projects\test is where your project file is, that is also where the root of your CHM file is, which means you have tried to refer to a file in a hierarchy above the root -- which is simply not possible. That's like saying if my current directory is c:\ then I want to refer to a folder whose hierarchy is higher than it -- you can't because there are no folders higher than the root. What is supposed to happen at this point is that the compiler recognizes that you have referred to a file above the root of the CHM file.

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• How to get the latest HTML Help run-time files?

You can download the latest HTML Help Installation and Update Package (HHUpd.EXE) from http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/en-us/htmlhelp/html/vsconHH1Start.asp

The HTML Help Installation and Update Package (hhupd.exe) will install the latest Html Help run-time files to your computer.

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• Is it possible to open a specific topic from the hh.exe command line?

Yes, try:
hh mk:@MSITStore:/path/filename.chm::/path\topicname.htm

For example, with the compiled help file htmlhelp.chm, you can use:

hh mk:@MSITStore:htmlhelp.chm::/api.htm
hh mk:@MSITStore:c:\windows\help\htmlhelp.chm::/flash\browse.htm


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