Commands on the Help menu display the How To Use Help file for Windows Help, place Help windows on top of other application windows, and identify the Help application.
The How To Use Help command displays the Contents screen of the Help file for Windows Help (WINHELP.HLP). This file provides instructions on how to use the Windows Help application and Help topics.
If the user opens Help as a stand-alone application, choosing this command displays the How To Use Help file in a second Help window. This second Help window remains open until the user closes it or until the user closes the first instance of Help (if there are no other instances of the Help window open).
In Windows Help version 3.1, Help authors can create their own How To Use Help file instead of using the default file by using the SetHelpOnFile macro in the [CONFIG] section of the Help project file. Replacing the standard file is important if you want the instructional file to reflect the particular features of your application’s Help system.
Note:
Use the SetHelpOnFile macro to specify a custom How To Use Help file, the DeleteItem macro to remove the standard How To Use Help item, and the InsertItem macro to place the new menu item on the Help menu. See Chapter 15, “Help Macro Reference,” for information about each of these macros and Chapter 16, “The Help Project File,” for information about how to use them in the [CONFIG] section of the Help project file.
To learn how to use the Help application
1.nFrom the Help menu, choose How To Use Help.
Help displays the Contents topic of the standard file or of a custom How To Use Help file if one has been authored (Figure 1.22).
The Always On Top command causes all Help windows to appear on top of other application windows on the screen. If you minimize a window that is on top, its icon also appears on top of other windows.
Note:
Other applications that use the topmost attribute, such as Windows Task List, may compete with Help for the top position. In that case, the Help window may appear beneath another window.
When you first ask for Help, the Help window appears on top of other windows on the screen. If you click inside another window, the Help window goes behind and the window you clicked appears on top.
You can choose to keep the Help window on top of other windows even when switching to other application windows. This can be especially useful if you are using Help to follow a step-by-step procedure in your application.
Note:
This command is available only with Windows version 3.1.
To make the Help window stay on top
1.nFrom the Help menu, choose Always On Top.
A checkmark appears next to the command, and a 2-pixel drop shadow appears around the window border to indicate that the Help window is on top (Figure 1.23)
To return Help to normal window behavior
1.nFrom the Help menu, choose Always On Top again.
Note:
If the Always On Top command is not checked, a secondary window that has been defined as an on-top window may remain on top. The main Help window can be made on top only by choosing this command.
The About Help command displays a dialog box that identifies the Windows Help application. It includes the Help application name, the Help icon, the version number, and the Microsoft Help copyright notice. In addition, the dialog box lists information about the user and the user’s hardware configuration.
Using the COPYRIGHT option in the Help project file, you can provide a custom copyright notice or other message about your application’s Help file. For details, see Chapter 16, “The Help Project File.”
Help uses the About Help dialog box stored in the SHELL.DLL file if it is available on the user’s system. Otherwise, Help uses the 3.0 version of the About Help dialog box.
To see information about Windows Help
1.nFrom the Help menu, choose About Help.
2.The About Help dialog box appears (Figure 1.24).