RE: MS Help 2.0 for newbies [WAS .NET tech writers?]

["Lydia Wong" <lydiaw -at- fpoint -dot- com>]

John and some other folks asked "What is MSHelp2?" Since I brought this up
most recently, I'll try to summarize what little I know myself for folks.

Indeed, MS has created another new help format, which is being called
various names, including MSHelp2. A "preview" CD of the new help format and
some limited tools for working with it was given out at WinWriters back in
March. I do not know if this preview is available for download from the MS
web site.

In brief (and folks, please correct me if I'm mistaken!), MSHelp2 is a help
format based on HTML and XML. MS will be providing a viewer tool for this
format, but they will also make it possible for you to write your own
viewer. (In fact, some intrepid soul created a viewer, which you can
download at http://www.mvps.org/htmlhelpcenter/beta/viewer.htm.) Word is
that MSHelp2 will be integrated into MS Visual Studio .NET, their next
generation development tool, to be released sometime in the 6 months to one
year.

Various MS Help MVPs are working on learning this new help format, and
learning about udpates to it, whenever those updates might come along. Many
of these MS Help MVPs subscribe to and respond to questions posted to the
Yahoo MSHelp2 group, which you can join at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MSHelp2. There is no information at this time
about when we will receive a beta or a final version of MSHelp2 (though
Rob's site, linked in next paragraph, says mid-2001 for beta, and public
release at end of 2001).

For more information about MSHelp2, visit
http://www.helpware.net/mshelp2/h20.htm. Rob Chandler has a lot of
information on his web site, and his tool, FAR, has a beta version with some
support for MSHelp2.

Several people have asked about tool support. Most major tool vendors say
they will provide MSHelp2 support once the final version of MSHelp2 is
released. However, nobody will say when that will be. Besides Rob's FAR
tool, the other tools I know of include Document! X for .Net (for more
information, contact Richard Sloggett at richard -at- innovasys -dot- co -dot- uk), and a
tool that is not released yet from ComponentOne (www.componentone.com).
However, FAR is the only tool I know of that you can actually use to play
with MSHelp2 right now (and you need to have the preview, also). The preview
released at WinWriters provides a conversion tool to convert from .CHM files
to the new MSHelp2 format.

I hope this helps explain a little about MSHelp2. I'm hoping to learn a lot
more myself in the upcoming months!

Lydia
__________________
Lydia Wong
Technical Writer
FarPoint Technologies, Inc.
www.fpoint.com


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