3.1 About Windows Help Files

Windows Help files can display information by using the following elements:

Text in multiple fonts, sizes, and colors

Bitmaps and metafiles with up to 16 colors

Segmented-graphics bitmaps with embedded hot spots

Cross-reference jumps for links to additional information

Pop-up windows to present text and graphics

Secondary windows to present information without the full menus and buttons of Windows Help

Keywords to help users find the information they need

You create help files by creating topic and graphics files and a Help project file. A topic file contains the text for the help topic and contains the Help statements and macros that define the format of the text and the position of graphics in each topic. The graphics files contain the bitmaps and metafiles you want to display in the topics. The project file contains a description of how to build the help file.

You use the Microsoft Help Compiler to build the final help file. Combining the topic, graphics, and project files, the compiler creates a single help file (with the filename extension .HLP) that you can open and view by using Windows Help.