After you install the files on your hard disk drive, you can begin using Help Author. To use Help Author you simply choose menu commands and complete the dialog box options. Each option corresponds to a specific part of the authoring process. Although there is no fixed method for using Help Author, you can follow these general steps to get started.
1.1.Open the Help Author group in Program Manager and double-click the Help Project Editor icon.
2.2.Enter project information (Edit Project command).
3.3.Add topic files to the project (Add New Or Existing File command).
4.4.Edit the topic files (add text, graphics, and so on.) to create the content for the Help file (Edit File command).
Note Because Windows Help versions 3.0 and 3.1 differ considerably, Microsoft provides a separate template for each version. If you plan to create a Help system that uses Help version 3.1 features, use the 3.1 template (WHAT31.DOT). Otherwise, use the 3.0 template (WHAT30.DOT) as the authoring template. If you use the 3.1 template, your Help file will not work in Help version 3.0. When creating topic files, Help Author assigns the appropriate template based on your selection in the Project dialog box.
5.5.Save the topic files and close your editor. The Help Authoring Templates always save your documents in rich text format.
6.6.Define the Help build options (Edit menu commands).
7.7.Save the Help project file (Save or Save As command).
8.8.Build the Help file (Start command).
9.9.View the built Help file (Run Help On command).
10.10.Fix errors and make revisions, then rebuild the Help file.