Authors can use fpHelp Builder to create online help for a software application or content for a multimedia title or web site. As an information delivery system, HTML Help is suited for a wide range of applications, including training guides, interactive books and electronic newsletters, as well as help for software applications.

However, help-authoring tools from Microsoft do not provide easy and comfortable interface for creating and editing HTML files or, managing content navigation structure. Fortunately, there are more suitable and powerful such utilities such as Microsoft® FrontPage and fpHelp Builder. These not only allow you to design HTML pages and navigation structures of web sites, but also apply themes, manage links, receive reports, etc. In addition, the main advantage of this solution is that the user does not need to learn new software but can use an already familiar one.

The fpHelp Builder is a very simple and powerful Microsoft FrontPage add-in that allows the conversion of a web site to a Microsoft HTML Help file (CHM file). Your workable of FrontPage is enough to construct the Help file from any web site.

Once your web site is complete, you can compile it to create the final compressed help file (CHM file). As a help author, you manage the locations of your topic, contents, index, and other files. You can also modify the web site to match the design of your help system or can make other changes depending on the size and complexity of your system.

Instead of creating the traditional Help files you can convert any web site into a single compressed help (.chm) file which is the help standard for Microsoft Windows. After that you can distribute your sites as single units which could be manuals, Helps, guides, readme files, e-books, etc..

fpHelp Builder Main Features:

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FrontPage source files are compressed into a compiled help file, which uses far less disk space than the original source files.

Compiled help files can be distributed along with a software product, or they can be quickly downloaded from a web site.

The main advantage of the fpHelp Builder is its simplicity and usability: in a few mouse clicks you will receive the CHM file from your FrontPage web site.

Glossary:

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CHM file - Microsoft HTML compressed Help file which is the standard de-facto in Microsoft Windows environment. You see the HTML Help file each time you press Help button.

Index tab - Tab in CHM Help file with the keywords. Each keyword listed in this tab is connected to the appropriate HTML Help page.

Navigation structure - FrontPage has a very simple tool to create navigation structure with the mouse drag and drop feature. After the compilation of the FrontPage web site, this navigation structure becomes the CHM Help File structure.

Microsoft® HTML Help is the standard help system for the Windows platform. Authors need not to know Microsoft HTML Help when they use fpHelp Builder. fpHelp Builder use Microsoft HTML Help in background.

WinHelp - HTML Help is the next generation standard help system for the Windows platform. HTML Help, like its predecessor WinHelp, is designed to allow applications to provide context-sensitive user help and to act as a delivery vehicle for training guides, interactive books, and newsletters. Additionally, new features in HTML Help make it easy to create multimedia titles or web site content.

HTML Help - is based on the standard HTML. However it offers additional features such as table of contents, index, keyword search, compressed packages (.chm) for easy distribution, etc.

System Requirements:

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Windows 9x/NT/ME/2000/XP

2 MB HDD

32 MB RAM

300 MHz CPU

These programs you need to start power authoring Help:

• Microsoft FrontPage 2000 (or higher)
  
• Microsoft HTML Help Workshop installed.