Some useful tips for beginners by Microsoft Help MVP Pete Lees.

Which Help Format?

The WinHelp (.hlp) format has been around since the very early 1990s and has now largely been superseded by HTML Help 1.x (.chm). WinHelp no longer ships with Windows Vista and later. On the other hand, HTML Help's dependence on Internet Explorer may be the deciding factor. For a list of the Windows versions that come with Internet Explorer installed, see:

• http://helpware.net/htmlhelp/hh_info.htm#BoxedWindows

Of course, if you can't be sure that Internet Explorer is installed or sufficiently up-to-date on your users' machines, you can install or upgrade it for them. For more information on this:

• http://www.workwrite.com/helpthink/deploy_chandler.htm
• Rob Chandler: This information is now out of date. I think today most people have at least Windows XP or greater which means that HTML Help (which is now part of the Operation system) is guaranteed to be installed. Same goes for Internet Explorer. In some countries IE Browser may not be installed but the Browser Help engine itself (used by programs like HTML Help) is part of the OS and always installed.
  

In the last few years Microsoft has been delivering selected help files in a new format, Microsoft Help 2.0. For example, the help system for Visual Studio .NET and the MSDN Library and TechNet products all make use this format. Unfortunately, though, Microsoft has now decided not to release Help 2.0 as a general help platform; you can create files in this format if you want to integrate them into the help system for VS .NET, but are otherwise encouraged to use HTML Help 1.x instead. If you want to read more about Microsoft Help 2.0, see:

• http://helpware.net/mshelp2/h20.htm

WinHelp, HTML Help, Microsoft Help 2.0, and AP Help (Vista Help) are all in "maintenance mode"; no new features are expected, and only critical updates will occur from now on. The focus of help development at Microsoft has moved on to the new help system for "Visual Studio 2010", which is the successor to MS Hep 2.0. Details of the new format are sketchy at this stage. For more information on MS Help 3, see:

• http://www.helpware.net/mshelp3

WinHelp (.HLP) 

WinHelp engine no longer ships with Windows Vista and later. Although when you click a .hlp file in Vista you will be prompted to download the WinHelp engine.

• KB917607

If you want to create WinHelp files then, as a minimum, you'll need to get Microsoft Help Workshop, which is available from:

• http://www.helpmaster.info/hlp-developmentaids-hcw403.htm

This comes with a Help Author's Guide that provides extensive information on how to build WinHelp files. You may also find this site useful:

• http://www.freelancestoryteller.com/the_freelance_storyteller/help_index.htm

And it's a good idea to get the WinHelp decompiler from:

• http://www.helpmaster.info/help-developmentaids-helpdeco.htm

You can point this at any .hlp file on your system and extract the source files — and then see how the author put the file together.
All the following books provide detailed information on how to create WinHelp files.

• "Designing Windows 95 Help", by Mary Deaton and Cheryl Lockett Zubak
  (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0789703629)
• "Building Windows 95 Help", by Nancy Hickman
  (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1558514775)
• "Developing Online Help for Windows 95", by Scott Boggan, David Farkas, and Joe Welinske
  (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0967064201)
• "Microsoft Windows 95 Help Authoring Kit"
  (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1556158920)

HTML Help (.CHM)

Microsoft's HTML Help Workshop is available from:

• http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms670169.aspx

There's a useful tutorial on how to build help files with HTML Help Workshop at:

• http://www.mvps.org/htmlhelpcenter/htmlhelp/hhtutorials.html#char_hhw

And there are several books on the subject:

• "Building Enhanced HTML Help with DHTML & CSS", by Jeannine Klein
  (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0130179299)
• "Official Microsoft HTML Help Authoring Kit", by Steve Wexler
  (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1572316039)

Jeannine Klein's book is the more up-to-date and detailed of the two, but it does not cover certain subjects that Steve Wexler's book describes in some depth (notably context-sensitive help and uncompiled HTML help).

Help Authoring Tools

You can spend a lot of money on "bells and whistles" tools that simplify and streamline the process of creating help files. Before you do so, it is worth trying out a few freeware/shareware tools, available from http://www.helpmaster.info. Then, if you decide to buy one of the more expensive tools, have a look at these resources:

Help Authoring Tool Comparison Matrix:

• http://hat-matrix.com/
  

For reviews of four popular help authoring tools, see:

• AuthorIT V4: http://www.winwriters.com/aitv4review.htm
• Doc-To-Help 6.0: http://www.winwriters.com/dth6.htm
• RoboHelp Office 2002: http://www.winwriters.com/robohelp02_pt1.htm
• WebWorks Publisher 2003: http://www.winwriters.com/articles/webworks/index.html

Finding Help Information

Besides the Microsoft sites, the best places to look for information on HTML Help are:

• http://mshelpwiki.com
• http://helpware.net
• http://www.mvps.org/htmlhelpcenter
• http://www.smountain.com
• http://www.helpfulsolutions.com
• http://www.jmek.net/html_help
• http://www.keyworks.net

Also check out the MSHelpWiki run by the Microsoft Help MVPs:

• http://mshelpwiki.com

and the Helpware HTML Help FAQ:

• http://helpware.net/FAR/far_faq.htm

Support Groups

If you can't find the answer you're looking for, try posting your questions to one of the online support groups, such as:

• microsoft.public.helpauthoring: news://msnews.microsoft.com/microsoft.public.helpauthoring
• HATT: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HATT

For a complete list of help support groups, see:

• http://www.mshelpwiki.com/wiki/tiki-index.php?page=SupportGroups