HelpNDoc User Manual

Copyright © 2024 by IBE Software. All Rights Reserved.

 HelpNDoc User Manual

Table of contents

Welcome to HelpNDoc ..........................................................................................13

Getting started with HelpNDoc ......................................................................... 13

Introduction .........................................................................................................14

About HelpNDoc .............................................................................................. 14

System requirements ....................................................................................... 14

Getting help .....................................................................................................15

HelpNDoc editions and licenses ........................................................................ 16

HelpNDoc license agreement ............................................................................ 17

What's new in HelpNDoc 9 ............................................................................... 20

How to buy HelpNDoc ...................................................................................... 22

Overview of the user interface .............................................................................. 22

File menu ........................................................................................................ 24

Ribbon tabs ..................................................................................................... 24

Styles editor .................................................................................................... 26

Find and replace window .................................................................................. 27

Options window ............................................................................................... 29

Quick start guides ................................................................................................ 35

Launching HelpNDoc ........................................................................................ 35

Create a new project ........................................................................................35

Adding topics ................................................................................................... 35

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Setting up topic content ................................................................................... 35

Generating documentation ............................................................................... 36

Writing documentation ......................................................................................... 36

Create a new project ........................................................................................37

New project wizard ...................................................................................... 38

Open an existing project .................................................................................. 38

Import other formats ........................................................................................39

Split imported documents ............................................................................. 40

Import folders .............................................................................................. 41

Custom hyperlink types ................................................................................ 41

Project options ................................................................................................. 42

Date and time format settings ...................................................................... 43

Managing the table of contents .........................................................................46

Create topics ............................................................................................... 48

Delete topics ............................................................................................... 49

Rename topics ............................................................................................. 49

Move topics ................................................................................................. 50

Change topic properties ............................................................................... 50

Using the topic editor ....................................................................................... 53

Topic kind ................................................................................................... 53

Headers and footers .................................................................................... 53

Font properties ............................................................................................ 54

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Paragraph properties ................................................................................... 55

Working with styles ......................................................................................57

Working with hyperlinks ............................................................................... 58

Link to a specific topic .............................................................................. 59

Link to a relative topic ............................................................................. 60

Link to an Internet or e-mail address ........................................................ 61

Link to a file ............................................................................................ 62

Link to a counter ..................................................................................... 63

Working with tables ..................................................................................... 63

Working with pictures .................................................................................. 64

Working with the image map editor .............................................................. 64

Using the library .............................................................................................. 65

Import files dialog ........................................................................................67

Folder library item ....................................................................................... 68

Barcode library item .....................................................................................69

Barcode editor .........................................................................................70

Counter library item ..................................................................................... 71

Document library item ................................................................................. 75

Dynamic content library item ........................................................................78

Equation library item ....................................................................................80

HTML code library item ................................................................................ 82

Image map library item ................................................................................ 83

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Image map editor ....................................................................................85

Movie library item ........................................................................................ 86

Picture library item ...................................................................................... 90

Image editor ........................................................................................... 95

Snippet library item ..................................................................................... 96

Snippet editor ..........................................................................................98

Variable library item .................................................................................... 99

Using the keywords editor .............................................................................. 100

Manage keyword association ...................................................................... 101

Using the spell checker ................................................................................... 102

Publishing documentation ................................................................................... 104

Template settings .......................................................................................... 105

Customize documentation formats .............................................................. 106

CHM documentation settings .................................................................. 107

HTML documentation settings ................................................................ 108

Inline table of contents ...................................................................... 111

Setup Google tag manager ................................................................. 112

Word documentation settings ................................................................. 113

PDF documentation settings ................................................................... 113

ePub documentation settings ................................................................. 114

Kindle / Mobi documentation settings ..................................................... 115

Qt help documentation settings .............................................................. 116

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Markdown documentation settings .......................................................... 117

GitHub wiki Markdown documentation settings ................................... 118

Override library items .....................................................................................118

Override styles ............................................................................................... 121

Sign documents ............................................................................................. 123

Sign Word documents ................................................................................ 123

Sign PDF documents .................................................................................. 125

Encrypt documents .........................................................................................127

Encrypt Word documents ............................................................................ 127

Encrypt PDF documents .............................................................................. 128

Build actions .................................................................................................. 130

Build actions samples ................................................................................. 134

Call an API to display the current date time using build actions ................ 134

Copy files using the run program action .................................................. 135

Compress output using the run program action ....................................... 135

Show a warning message using build actions .......................................... 136

Store last generation date and time using build actions ........................... 136

Advanced usages ............................................................................................... 137

Keyboard shortcuts ........................................................................................ 137

Keyboard auto-completion ..........................................................................142

Customizing keyboard shortcuts .................................................................. 144

Topic status ................................................................................................... 144

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Conditional content generation ....................................................................... 145

Analyzing a project .........................................................................................147

General information ................................................................................... 148

Visualize the project's structure .................................................................. 149

Analyzing hyperlinks ...................................................................................150

Analyzing anchors ...................................................................................... 151

Analyzing library items ............................................................................... 152

Analyzing keywords ....................................................................................154

Analyzing conditions ...................................................................................155

Analyzing spelling ...................................................................................... 156

Vacuuming a project ...................................................................................... 157

Working with templates .................................................................................. 157

Using the template editor ........................................................................... 157

HTML based templates .......................................................................... 159

General settings ................................................................................ 159

Variables ...........................................................................................160

Script files ......................................................................................... 161

Assets ............................................................................................... 163

Editing assets ................................................................................ 165

HTML tags .........................................................................................165

Hooks script ...................................................................................... 167

Word and PDF templates ........................................................................168

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Text layout ........................................................................................169

Low-level template details ......................................................................... 170

Best practices ........................................................................................ 170

Template configuration file .....................................................................172

Template inheritance ............................................................................. 173

Code templates ..................................................................................... 174

CHM and HTML templates ...................................................................... 174

Handle the generated topic links ........................................................ 175

Methods available in templates .......................................................... 175

Generate multiple files from a single template file ............................... 175

Template variables ............................................................................ 176

Assets ............................................................................................... 178

HTML tags .........................................................................................179

Samples ................................................................................................ 180

Building a single page HTML template ................................................ 180

Template specifics ..................................................................................... 184

Default HTML template: JavaScript on page change ................................ 185

GitHub wiki Markdown template ............................................................. 185

Usage from the command line ........................................................................ 186

Legacy command line syntax for 5.3 and older ............................................ 191

Customize default project styles ..................................................................... 194

Using the Script Editor .................................................................................... 194

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Object pascal subset .................................................................................. 195

Base types ............................................................................................ 196

Built-in functions ....................................................................................200

HelpNDoc API methods .............................................................................. 203

Migrating scripts and templates .................................................................. 246

Migrating scripts from V4 to V5 ............................................................... 246

Migrating scripts from V5.0 to V5.1 ......................................................... 248

Migrating scripts from V6 to V7 ............................................................... 248

Using the integrated web server ..................................................................... 249

Using the AI Assistant .................................................................................... 251

Backing up projects ........................................................................................ 254

Documentation formats specifics .....................................................................254

CHM files and programming languages ....................................................... 255

.NET (C#) integration ............................................................................ 255

Delphi integration .................................................................................. 255

Older versions of Delphi ..................................................................... 255

Java integration .....................................................................................256

Microsoft Access integration ................................................................... 256

Visual Basic integration .......................................................................... 256

WinDev integration ................................................................................ 257

HTML help URL parameters ........................................................................ 257

Context sensitive HTML help ...................................................................... 258

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License key management ............................................................................... 259

Named licenses ..........................................................................................259

Grace period ..........................................................................................260

Floating licenses ........................................................................................ 261

Activating the floating license server ....................................................... 263

Check the floating license server's status ................................................ 264

Check that the floating license server is listening to incoming connections 264

Check the connection to the server from HelpNDoc ................................. 265

How to handle dead leases .................................................................... 266

Listen to HTTPS communication ............................................................. 266

Deactivating the floating license server ................................................... 269

FAQ and troubleshooting .................................................................................... 270

Error and warning messages ........................................................................... 270

HelpNDoc shows an exception when launched ............................................. 270

Project already opened by another software ................................................ 271

Project is too old to open ........................................................................... 272

Help compilers ............................................................................................... 272

What compilers of libraries do I need to install? ........................................... 272

Installing the Microsoft HTML Help Compiler displays a warning message? ... 273

CHM and HTML help .......................................................................................273

The CHM viewer indicates that the page cannot be displayed ...................... 273

CHM content is not displayed after Internet Explorer update ........................ 274

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Despite modifying the navigation pane's width the CHM file is not updated .. 274

The search feature is not working in the CHM documentation ...................... 275

Google Chrome shows an error when searching HTML documentation .......... 275

The HTML help is broken when hosted by CloudFlare ................................... 276

Missing files when generating a CHM file in the same directory as HTML ...... 276

The HTML documentation is not loading or behaving incorrectly ................... 276

Table of contents is empty or loading in default HTML template ................... 277

HTML documentation hosted on GitHub are broken ..................................... 278

Windows reserved file names ..................................................................... 278

PDF documentation ........................................................................................ 279

Adobe Reader won't print with "drawing error" message .............................. 279

Microsoft Word documents .............................................................................. 279

Table of contents page numbers are wrong in Word documents ................... 279

Qt Help ..........................................................................................................280

Modifications made to a Qt help file are not updated in assistant.exe ........... 280

Sales and license information ......................................................................... 280

What is HelpNDoc's update policy? ............................................................. 280

How much does HelpNDoc costs ................................................................. 280

Do you provide a discounted Educational license ? ....................................... 281

Do you provide a government license ? ....................................................... 281

I need a special license: site license or global license? ................................. 281

What kind of payment devises and currencies do you accept? ...................... 281

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How can I request a written quote before ordering? .................................... 281

Miscellaneous ................................................................................................ 281

HelpNDoc download problem ......................................................................281

Doc or DocX files can't be imported ............................................................ 282

Some panels are missing or HelpNDoc's Window is hidden ........................... 282

The table of contents is missing topics or behaving strangely ....................... 283

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 HelpNDoc User Manual

Welcome to HelpNDoc

HelpNDoc is an easy to use yet powerful and intuitive help authoring environment which
provides a clear and efficient user interface to build the most amazing CHM help files, responsive
WEB based documentation, PDF and Word documents, ePub and Kindle eBooks, Qt Help files
as well as Markdown files from a single source without worrying about the inner working of help
file generation.

This help documentation is designed so you can quickly learn HelpNDoc as a new user or enhance
your knowledge as a regular user:

· Introduction

· Overview of the user interface

· Quick start guides

· Writing documentation
· Publishing documentation

· Advanced usages

· FAQ and troubleshooting

Getting started with HelpNDoc

New to HelpNDoc
· Read the Introduction section to know more about HelpNDoc, its different editions and
system requirements.

· Follow the Quick Start Guides to familiarize yourself with the processes of creating and
generating your documentations.

Regular user of older HelpNDoc versions

· Read the What's new in HelpNDoc 9 section to have a quick look at major changes.

· Run through the Quick Start Guides to familiarize yourself with the new version.

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Introduction

· About HelpNDoc

· System requirements

· Getting help

· HelpNDoc editions

· HelpNDoc license agreement

· What's new in HelpNDoc 9

· How to buy HelpNDoc

About HelpNDoc

HelpNDoc is an easy to use yet powerful and intuitive help authoring environment.

HelpNDoc provides a clear and efficient user interface to build the most amazing CHM help files,
WEB based documentation, PDF and Word documents, ePub and Kindle eBooks, Qt Help files as
well as Markdown files from a single source without worrying about the inner working of help file
generation. You just have to enter or import your documentation in the built-in word processor
and hit the "Compile" button to obtain a fully functional help file which looks exactly as you
designed it.

Forget about bloated user interfaces and incomprehensible tools. HelpNDoc has been engineered
to provide the most advanced functionalities in their simplest form: creating and maintaining
HTML help files, Word and PDF documentation is usually a painful process but thanks to
HelpNDoc you may surprise yourself enjoying it!

You know how to use your favorite word processor, so you already know how to use HelpNDoc:
it's that easy! Add to that many powerful features such as live spell checking in a fully WYSIWYG
(What You See Is What You Get) environment and you'll begin to imagine how fast and easy it will
be for you to create your next help file and how professional it will look like.

System requirements

HelpNDoc’s recommended system configuration includes:

· Windows 10 or Windows 11
· 512MB of RAM

· 230MB of free disk space

· 1024x768 screen resolution or higher

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· Help Compiler: Microsoft HTML Help Workshop

· MobiPocket/Kindle Compiler: Amazon KindleGen

· Qt Help Compiler: Qt Framework

· Microsoft Edge WebView2 Runtime (already installed on updated versions of Windows):
WebView2 Runtime

Getting help

This help file can either be viewed on-line or off-line when installed with HelpNDoc. You can obtain
the latest version as well as other formats of this help file on line at
https://www.helpndoc.com/online-help

Off-line access
The off-line help file is part of the HelpNDoc installation. To launch it, either press the F1 key or
click the help button at the top right of HelpNDoc's main windows.

On-line access
To access and view the most recent HelpNDoc's help file on-line, launch a web browser to the
following URL: https://www.helpndoc.com/documentation/html/index.html

Printing the help file

Alternatively, you can download and print a PDF or Word version of HelpNDoc's documentation
from the following URL: https://www.helpndoc.com/online-help

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HelpNDoc editions and licenses

Three editions of HelpNDoc are available based on your needs:

· HelpNDoc Ultimate Edition: Fully functional licensed edition, which can export banner-free
CHM, HTML, Word, PDF documentation, ePub and Kindle eBooks, Qt Help files and Markdown
files. Includes all features;

· HelpNDoc Professional Edition: Licensed edition which can export banner-free CHM, HTML,
Word, PDF documentation, ePub and Kindle eBooks, Qt Help files and Markdown files. Some
features missing;
· HelpNDoc Standard Edition: Licensed edition, which can export banner-free CHM and HTML
documentation only. Some features missing;

· HelpNDoc Personal Edition: This edition is completely free for personal use only and adds a
small banner at the bottom of all the generated documentation formats. Some features
missing;

HelpNDoc Ultimate Edition

· Can be used for commercial purposes;

· Exports to all the formats handled by HelpNDoc without any banner;

· Includes all features

· No spy-ware, viruses or any kind of malware;

· More information, price and secure order links...

HelpNDoc Professional Edition

· Can be used for commercial purposes;

· Exports to all the formats handled by HelpNDoc without any banner;

· Some features missing

· No spy-ware, viruses or any kind of malware;

· More information, price and secure order links...

HelpNDoc Standard Edition

· Can be used for commercial purposes;

· Exports to CHM and HTML formats without any banner;

· Exports to PDF, Word, ePub and Kindle eBooks, Qt Help files, Markdown files with a small
banner at the bottom of the generated documents;

· Some features missing

· No spy-ware, viruses or any kind of malware;

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· More information, price and secure order links...

HelpNDoc Personal Edition

· Can't be used for commercial purposes or in exchange of any kind of compensation;

· Exports to all the formats handled by HelpNDoc with a small banner at the bottom of the
generated documents;

· Some features missing

· No spy-ware, viruses or any kind of malware;

· Download the free Personal Edition of HelpNDoc...

HelpNDoc Licenses
For commercial use of HelpNDoc, it is possible to choose between:

· A named (per-seat) license: this license can only be used by a single named person and
installed on his computer

· A floating license: this license can be shared between multiple people with the limit of one
person using it at the same time per purchased license

· More information, price and secure order links...

See HelpNDoc's Store page to learn more about available editions and licenses.

IBE SOFTWARE HelpNDoc End User License Agreement

IMPORTANT: THIS SOFTWARE END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT (“EULA”) IS A LEGAL AGREEMENT
BETWEEN YOU AND IBE SOFTWARE. READ IT CAREFULLY BEFORE COMPLETING THE
INSTALLATION PROCESS AND USING THE SOFTWARE. IT PROVIDES A LICENSE TO USE THE
SOFTWARE AND CONTAINS WARRANTY INFORMATION AND LIABILITY DISCLAIMERS. BY
INSTALLING AND USING THE SOFTWARE, YOU ARE CONFIRMING YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THE
SOFTWARE AND AGREEING TO BECOME BOUND BY THE TERMS OF THIS AGREEMENT. IF YOU DO
NOT AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THESE TERMS, THEN SELECT THE "CANCEL" BUTTON. DO NOT
INSTALL THE SOFTWARE AND RETURN THE SOFTWARE TO YOUR PLACE OF PURCHASE FOR A
FULL REFUND.

THIS EULA SHALL APPLY ONLY TO THE SOFTWARE SUPPLIED BY IBE SOFTWARE HEREWITH
REGARDLESS OF WHETHER OTHER SOFTWARE IS REFERRED TO OR DESCRIBED HEREIN.

DEFINITIONS
(a) "HelpNDoc" and "Software" refers to IBE Software's HelpNDoc program, in each case, supplied
by IBE Software herewith, and corresponding documentation, associated media, and online or

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electronic documentation.

(b) "IBE Software" means IBE Software.

(c) "Free Version" or "Freeware Version" or "Freeware Edition" or "Personal Edition" means a free
version of the Software for personal use only, so identified, to be used only for non-profit
projects. The Free Version is fully functional, without restrictions of any kind but may contain
messages in the end product stating that they have been created using the Free Version of the
Software.

(d) "Registered Version" means a version which has been bought to IBE Software.

(e) "Educational Version" means a version which has been bought to IBE Software by an
educational institution and may only be provided to students and employees of the institution.
The Educational Version may have limited functionalities and/or usage restrictions.

LIABILITY DISCLAIMER
THE HELPNDOC PROGRAM IS DISTRIBUTED "AS IS". NO WARRANTY OF ANY KIND IS EXPRESSED
OR IMPLIED. YOU USE IT AT YOUR OWN RISK. NEITHER THE AUTHORS NOR IBE SOFTWARE WILL
BE LIABLE FOR DATA LOSS, DAMAGES AND LOSS OF PROFITS OR ANY OTHER KIND OF LOSS
WHILE USING OR MISUSING THIS SOFTWARE.

RESTRICTIONS
You may not use, copy, emulate, clone, rent, lease, sell, modify, decompile, disassemble, otherwise
reverse engineer, or transfer any version of the Software, or any subset of it, except as provided
for in this agreement. Any such unauthorized use shall result in immediate and automatic
termination of this license and may result in criminal and/or civil prosecution.

FOR HELPNDOC FREE VERSION ONLY

(a) Any Help File or associated intermediate files generated by HelpNDoc Free Version MUST NOT
be used for, or in relation with, any commercial or business purpose, whether "for profit" or "not
for profit". Any work performed or produced as a result of use of this Software cannot be
performed or produced for the benefit of other parties for a fee, compensation or any other
reimbursement or remuneration.

(b) The HelpNDoc Free version may be freely distributed, with exceptions noted below, provided
the distribution package is not modified in ANY WAY.

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(c) The HelpNDoc Free version may not be distributed inside of any other software package
without written permission of IBE Software.

(d) The HelpNDoc Free version allows the user to publish its work according to the license
agreement, but nor IBE Software nor any member of the company can be held liable for the
content of the publication.

FOR HELPNDOC REGISTERED VERSION ONLY

(a) Single-User (per seat) Licenses: You may install and use the Software on a single computer to
design, develop, and test the Software's output. Installation on a second computer, such as a
laptop and a desktop computer, is permitted if it is guaranteed that you are the exclusive user of
both computers.

(b) Multiple-User (floating) Licenses: You may install and use the enclosed Software on a server to
design, develop, and test the Software's output. Use of the Software is limited by the number of
floating licenses owned. Only one user per floating license owned may use the software at the
same time.

(c) The HelpNDoc Registered version allows the registered user to publish its work according to
the license agreement, but nor IBE Software nor any member of the company can be held liable
for the content of the publication.

(d) The HelpNDoc Registered version guaranties to the registered user free updates for a whole
version cycle and for at least 12 (twelve) months.

FOR HELPNDOC EDUCATIONAL VERSION ONLY

(a) You may install and use the Software on a single computer; OR install and store the Software
on a storage device, such as a network server, used only to install the Software on your other
computers over an internal network, provided you have a license for each separate computer on
which the Software is installed and run. A license for the Software may not be shared, installed or
used concurrently on different computers.

(b) The Software may be used on a single computer solely for individual and personal "technology
enthusiast" purposes, personal education and study (including educational-related research), or
administrative use in support of the educational institution. It may not be used for any commercial
or business purpose, whether "for profit" or "not for profit." Any work performed or produced as
a result of use of this Software cannot be performed or produced for the benefit of other parties
for a fee, compensation or any other reimbursement or remuneration.

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(c) The HelpNDoc Educational version allows the registered user to publish its work according to
the license agreement, but nor IBE Software nor any member of the company can be held liable
for the content of the publication.

(d) The HelpNDoc Educational version guaranties to the registered user free updates for a whole
version cycle and for at least 12 (twelve) months.

TERMS
This license is effective until terminated. You may terminate it by destroying the program, the
documentation and copies thereof. This license will also terminate if you fail to comply with any
terms or conditions of this agreement. You agree upon such termination to destroy all copies of
the program and of the documentation, or return them to the author.

OTHER RIGHTS AND RESTRICTIONS

All other rights and restrictions not specifically granted in this license are reserved by authors.

What's new in HelpNDoc 9

You can check the detailed release history in HelpNDoc's what's new page.

Built-in AI Assistant
Leverage OpenAI's API using HelpNDoc's built-in ChatGPT-like AI Assistant for content creation,
revision, clarification, explanation, summarization, translation, and more... See: Using the AI
Assistant

New FTP(S) and SFTP build actions

HelpNDoc 9 introduces new FTP-related build actions, allowing users to directly upload their
generated documentation files to FTP(S) and SFTP servers. This feature streamlines the process of
distributing and publishing documentation by enabling automated, secure file transfers to web
hosts or other online platforms supporting these protocols. See: Build actions

Library items overrides: Customize them for each build individually

HelpNDoc now allows users to override all types of library items (such as pictures, documents,
equations, variables, snippets...) for each individual build. This enables the creation of an unlimited
number of variations of the main documentation project. See: Override library items

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New library item type: Dynamic content

Create scripts that dynamically generate HTML-based content, which can be seamlessly integrated
within the topics of your project. These scripts have access to the full suite of HelpNDoc's API
methods to produce dynamic content. See: Dynamic content library item

Completely rewritten HTML importer

The enhanced HTML importer in HelpNDoc is now quicker and more dependable, offering better
support for modern HTML and CSS features. This improvement ensures a smoother, more
accurate import of web content into HelpNDoc projects, facilitating easier integration and better
formatting consistency. See: Import other formats

Greatly improved PDF generator

The updated HelpNDoc PDF generator now produces smaller PDF files with optimized font
embedding settings, and handles symbol fonts more effectively. Other PDF improvements include
enhanced drawing accuracy for various elements and a fix for over-sized images, ensuring better
layout and visual quality.

Improved generation of HTML-based documentation formats

HelpNDoc 9 includes improved HTML/CSS generation for better modern style support and fixes
issues with exporting bullets with font symbols to HTML formats. It also enhances HTML code
clarity for ePub and Kindle eBooks, reducing validation errors and ensuring smoother
compatibility.

Some other improvements and bug fixes

Many bugs are fixed with each release as indicated in the "What's new" page. Some of them
include:

· Added ability to cancel the generation process at any stage

· Added a project starter kit editor which can be used to rapidly create new project's starter kits

· New GitHub Wiki Markdown template: generate GitHub-compatible Wikis from HelpNDoc
projects
· Improved HTML library item's user interface with ability to load and save content to the hard
drive

· Projects styles can be imported from an existing DocX document or HTML web page

· Redesigned script editor's user interface with better logging support; ability to quickly locate
info, warning, errors and more...

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· Added ability to copy an overridden build style to another build

· Improved Markdown import / export capabilities

· And much more...

How to buy HelpNDoc

HelpNDoc can be purchased worldwide, either on-line or off-line, and paid using various payment
methods (Credit Cards, Check, PayPal…) and currencies (US Dollars, Euros…). As soon as the
transaction is complete, you will receive instructions on how to obtain the full version of
HelpNDoc.

To get more information on the order process and purchase HelpNDoc, launch your web-browser
to the HelpNDoc store page at https://www.helpndoc.com/store

Overview of the user interface

1. File menu
· Manage projects: create new, open existing, save...

· Access to recent projects and places

· Access the application options

· Access to help and resources on HelpNDoc

· Exit the application

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2. Quick access tool-bar

· Access to frequently used actions such as "Save project", "Undo" and "Redo"

3. Ribbon tool-bar
· Contains all actions available within HelpNDoc

· Can be minimized to provide greater documentation editing screen estate

4. Table of contents
· Define and manage the topics hierarchy for the currently opened project

· Root topic is the project topic, used to view and modify project settings

· Selecting a topic will display its associated content for editing

5. Topic editor
· Used to edit the selected topic's content

· Setup the topic's source and behavior

6. Library
· Define and manage the multimedia and reusable items such as images, movies, snippets,
included documents...
· Add items to topics

7. Keywords editor
· Define and manage the keywords hierarchy for the currently opened project
· Associate keywords with individual topics

8. Topic properties
· Define topic's system properties

· Manage topic's custom properties

9. Status bar
· Get stats about your documentation

· Manage dictionaries and spell checker options

· Get information about keyboard status

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File menu

The HelpNDoc's file menu can be displayed by clicking the "File" button at the top left of the main
window. It is used to:

· "Save" or "Save as" a project

· Create a new project or open an existing one

· Import a project in another format such as CHM, HLP, HTML, Word, ePub files

· Close the currently opened project

· Access to recent projects and locations

· Access help and product information

· Manage the license

· Access the options dialog and exit the application

Ribbon tabs

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Presentation
The HelpNDoc's ribbon tabs are located at the top of the main window and provide all the
features available within HelpNDoc in a categorized fashion. The ribbon tabs parts are:

1. The main tabs - They are always visible and are used for the most important actions
2. The tabs groups - When a tab is selected, it will display actions grouped by similar purpose

3. Contextual tabs - Those tabs are only shown when needed. For example, the "Picture Tools"
tab is only visible when a picture is selected

The Home tab

This tab provides access to the basic actions:

· Generate the documentation and change the project options

· Manage the table of contents and topic properties

· Manage the keywords hierarchy and association

· Manage the library and import library items

The Write tab

This tab gives access to actions needed to manage and format the topic editor's content:

· Copy and paste text

· Manage font and paragraph properties

· Use and manage styles

· Find and replace content throughout the project

The Insert tab

This tab provides access to inserting and importing actions:

· Insert a picture, movie, document, HTML code, variable, snippets...

· Insert a table, symbol, horizontal line, page break, condition...

· Insert or Edit hyperlinks and anchors

The Tools tab

Access to various tools to manage HelpNDoc or the currently opened project:

· Transform text

· Syntax highlighter

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· Edit and run scripts

· Vacuum the project

· Template Editor
· Launch the integrated web server

Styles editor

The style editor is where style are created, customized and organized. The styles editor can be
accessed via the arrow at the bottom right part of the "Styles" group in the "Write" ribbon tab.

Each style added in the style editor can be used throughout the project to format texts,
paragraphs and links. Styles inherit from their parents any properties they do not explicitly define.

1. The style hierarchy shows a list of all the existing styles and their parents. A style can be selected
to be edited. Styles can be added, deleted, imported and exported via the buttons bellow;

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2. Common style properties including:

o Name - The name of the style

o Applicable to - Specify if the style is meant for text only, paragraph only or both;
o Based on - Parent style this style refers to. Every parent properties are inherited except
the ones edited for that specific style;
o Style for following paragraph - Which style should be automatically applied when
creating a paragraph after that style;

o Quick access - If checked, the style will appear in the list in the "Styles" group of the
"Write" ribbon tab;

3. Use the "Edit" links to access to customization dialogs for font, hyperlink, paragraph, border
and background. Use the "Reset" button to reset to default.

Find and replace window

Access the find and replace window

The find and replace window can be accessed using either:

· The "Find and replace" button in the "Editing" group of HelpNDoc's "Write" ribbon tab

· The CTRL-SHIFT-F keyboard shortcut

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How to use it
Use the find and replace window to look for content (text, regular expression or library items)
within the current topic or entire project and optionally replace found occurrences with another
text or library item.

The parts of the find and replace dialog are:

1. Find scope - Define the scope of the search options. Only in the current document or in the
entire project;
2. Find text - Content to search: simple text, regular expression, or library item;

3. Replace with - Specify the text or library item to use as a replacement for the found content;

4. Options - Specify the search options. Match case will find the specified text with the exact
same case as it has been written. Match whole word will only search for a complete word.
Search forward will specify whether to search forward (from top to bottom) or backward (from
bottom to top)

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Options window

HelpNDoc's options can be customized by using the "File" menu then "Options" button. This
shows the options window with various sections.

General Settings
· Application language: choose HelpNDoc's user interface language. This requires a restart of

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HelpNDoc.

· Load and display RSS news: keep up-to-date with latest news about HelpNDoc as the RSS
feed will be displayed in HelpNDoc's welcome page. This may trigger a Windows firewall
warning as this requires Internet Access.

· Show ruler: displays or hide a ruler at the top of the topic editor for greater control over
paragraph indentation, tabs and table cell sizes.
· Show the navigation bar with breadcrumb editor: displays or hide the navigation bar at the
top of the topic editor.

· Automatically hide scrollbars: only show the scroll bars when the mouse is over the control to
simplify the UI.

· Smaller library items: when enabled, library items are displayed smaller in the topic editor

· Default HTTP server port: Specify the default settings for HelpNDoc's integrated HTTP server.

Importers
· Use built-in CHM decompiler: Built-in CHM decompiler is faster, uses less memory and better
imports CHM help files. If some help files are problematic, un-check it to use the Microsoft
HTML Help Workshop decompiler instead

Compilers
· To generate some documentation formats, HelpNDoc requires external compilers. This section
can be used to setup their path and download them. See also: System requirements

Custom paths
Use this section to define the default custom path HelpNDoc will use.

· Default output path: define the default path where project output will be generated when no
path is defined. Default is "My Documents\HelpNDoc\Output".

· Backup path: define the path where project backups are stored. Default is "My
Documents\HelpNDoc\Backup".

· Dictionaries path: define the path where custom dictionaries are stored. Default is "My
Documents\HelpNDoc\Dictionaries".
· Projects path: define the path where projects are opened from or saved to the first time.
Default is "My Documents\HelpNDoc\Projects".

· Scripts path: define the path where custom scripts are stored. Default is "My
Documents\HelpNDoc\Scripts".

· Styles path: define the path where the default project styles is placed. SeeCustomize default
project styles to learn more. Default is "My Documents\HelpNDoc\Styles".

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· Syntax highlighters path: define the path where customized syntax highlighters are stored.
Default is "My Documents\HelpNDoc\Syntax".

· Templates path: define the path where custom templates are located. Default is "My
Documents\HelpNDoc\Templates".

Keyboard shortcuts
Some keyboard shortcuts can be customized. Select a keyboard shortcut in the list and:

· Use the "Edit" button to customize it

· Use the "Reset" button to reset it to its default value

Script Editor
Customize the look and feel of the script editor used to interact with HelpNDoc API and customize
templates:

Setting Description

Bookmarks / Visible Show or hide the bookmarks

Bookmarks / Enable Enable bookmarks keyboard shortcuts

Fonts / Editor Specify the font name and size of the the editor

Specify the font name and size of the editor's

Fonts / Gutter gutter. Note: Gutter / Use gutter font must be
checked too

Gutter / Autosize Specify if the gutter resizes to fit content

If checked, leading zeros are added to line

Gutter / Show leading zeros
numbers

Gutter / Start at zero Specify if line numbering starts at zero or one

Gutter / Show line numbers Specify if line numbers are shown in the gutter

Gutter / Use gutter font If checked, a specific gutter font can be used. If

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not, it will use the editor's font

Gutter / Visible Show or hide the gutter

Position of the right margin in number of

Right Margin / Position
characters

Spacing / Extra line spacing Add extra pixels to each line for better clarity

Specify how many characters are used to

Spacing / Tab width
display tabs

Automatically close the script editor run from

Options / Auto close after successful run the quick script popup when script successfully
runs

Options / Auto indent Automatically indent based on previous line

Options / Brackets highlight Highlight matching bracket

Hitting the home key moves to the start of the

Options / Enhanced Home key
line or start of code

Hitting the end key moves to the end of the line

Options / Enhanced End key
or end of code

Editing cursor is moved when right mouse is

Options / Right mouse moves cursor
clicked

Specify if special (invisible) characters are shown

Options / Show special chars
or not

Tabbing checks previous line for faster

Options / Smart tabs
alignment

Delete multiple tabs at once to match previous

Options / Smart tab delete
line

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When checked, hit the TAB keyboard shortcut to

Options / Tab indent indent all selected lines, and the SHIFT+TAB
keyboard shortcut to decrease indend

Options / Tabs to spaces Automatically converts tabs to spaces

Options / Trim trailing spaces Remove any spaces and tabs at the end of lines

Long lines are displayed without horizontal

Options / Word wrap
scroll bars when enabled

Syntax highlighter
Customize default settings for the automatic syntax highlighter:

Setting Description

The font name to use for the highlighted

Font name
content

Font size The font size to use for the highlighter content

When selected content has multiple paragraphs,

it can useful to convert them to single line
breaks so that the highlighted content is
Convert paragraphs to line breaks
converted to a single paragraph for easier
paragraph settings such as background,
borders...

AI Assistant
HelpNDoc's AI Assistant related settings:

Setting Description

The URL to use to call the API. Default value:

API's base URL
https://api.openai.com/v1

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The API Key to use to authenticate with the API.

Authentication token It can be generated at
https://platform.openai.com/api-keys

Specify which organization and project is used

Organization
for API requests (Optional)

Select the model to use for API requests. See:

Model https://platform.openai.com/docs/models/over
view

The number of milliseconds to wait at

Connection timeout
connection before showing an error

The number of milliseconds to wait for a

Response timeout
response before showing an error

The number of milliseconds to wait during the

Send timeout
sending process before showing an error

Reset
Use the "Reset" button to reset parts or all options. Note: some reset actions require a restart of
HelpNDoc. Available reset options are:

· Reset History: Clear the history of recently opened projects, folders and HTTP server's served
folders;

· Reset Forms, Panels and Toolbars: Clear save forms, panels and toolbars size and position and
toolbars customization;

· Reset General Settings: Reset the "General Settings" tab to its default values;
· Reset Importers: Reset the "Importers" tab to its default values;

· Reset Compilers: Reset the "Compilers" tab to its default values;

· Reset Custom Paths: Reset the "Custom Paths" tab to its default values;

· Reset Keyboard Shortcuts: Reset all keyboard shortcuts to their default values;

· Reset Everything: Reset all HelpNDoc settings and options to their default values;

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Quick start guides

Quickly getting started with HelpNDoc:

· Launching HelpNDoc

· Create a new project

· Adding topics

· Settings up topic content

· Generating documentation

Launching HelpNDoc

To launch HelpNDoc, either:

· Locate the HelpNDoc shortcut on the desktop or Windows start menu

· Double click the shortcut in the desktop or single click it in the Windows start menu

· Double click on a HelpNDoc project to open it in HelpNDoc

Create a new project

· Click the "File" menu
· Click the "New project" menu item

· Enter a project title, language

· Select the Starter kit that you'd like to use

· Click the "OK" button
· Alternatively, click the "Create empty project" button to create a new blank project

See the Create a new HelpNDoc project step-by-step guide.

Adding topics
· Click the "Home" ribbon tab item if it is not already selected

· In the "Topic" section, click the "Add a topic" button

· The new topic's title is made editable, enter a custom title if needed and press enter

See the How to create a new topic in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Setting up topic content

· Click the topic to be edited in the "table of contents"

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· The topic's content is displayed in the topic editor

· Type in the updated content in the topic editor

Generating documentation
· Click the "Home" ribbon tab item if it is not already selected

· Click the "Generate help" button in the "Project" section

· Choose which documentation format you want to generate

· Click the "Generate" button

See the How to publish your documentation step-by-step guide.

Writing documentation

Learn how to use HelpNDoc to write documentation:

· Create a new project

· Open an existing project

· Import other formats

· Project options
· Managing the table of contents

· Using the topic editor

· Using the library

· Using the keywords editor

· Using the spell checker

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Create a new project

To create a new project, use the "File" menu and click the "New project" button. This will open the
new project wizard dialog. The various parts of this dialog are:

1. Project title: specify the title of the new project

2. Project language: specify the main language of the project

3. Start a new empty project (without any entries in the table of contents) or run thenew project
wizard

4. Start a new project using one of the available starter kits

See the Create a new HelpNDoc project step-by-step guide.

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New project wizard

The new project wizard can be accessed from the Create a new project dialog and can be used to
quickly define an initial table of contents:

1. Project title: specify the title of the new project

2. Project language: specify the main language of the project

3. Toolbar: Include actions to increase or decrease the current line's indentation and to import the
table of contents from another project

4. Table of contents editor

Open an existing project

To open an existing project in HelpNDoc. Either:

· Use the "File" menu, click the "Open project" button and choose the existing project to open

· Use the "File" menu, click the "Recent projects" tab and choose a project which has been
opened recently

· Double click on an HelpNDoc project file in the Windows explorer

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Import other formats

Using the "File" menu, then "Import" action, HelpNDoc can import various existing documentation
formats, including:

· Compiled CHM help files as well as source HHP projects;

· WinHelp HLP files;

· ePub eBooks;

· HTML web pages. This format can be split into multiple topics based on heading level or font
size;

· Markdown files. This format can be split into multiple topics based on heading level;

· Text files;

· Word documents including DocX and RTF file formats. These formats can be split into multiple
topics based on heading level or font size;
· Folders that can contain one or multiple of the previously mentioned formats. Each file will be
imported into its own topics. See: Import folders

Additionally, for some sources (such as HelpNDoc projects, the CHM help format or HHP
projects), it is possible to only import the table of contents into a new project:

1. Create a new project

2. In the new project wizard dialog, click the "import from existing project" link to import the
table of contents of the specified file.

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Split imported documents

Some documentation formats such as HTML, Markdown and Word documents (DocX and RTF
files) can be split into multiple topics. When selecting one of the supported file in the "File" /
"Import" dialog, the "Try to split document into multiple topics" checkbox will be enabled. When
checked, it is possible to split documents by:

· Font size - Use text with the specified font size as topic caption and place subsequent content
into the topic;

· Outline level - Use text with the specified outline level (heading level) as topic caption and
place subsequent content into the topic;

Note: Only checked levels will be imported as topics into HelpNDoc. Other levels will be placed as
content within higher level topics.

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Import folders

When importing a folder, HelpNDoc will list all known types of files in the specified folder. Click
the "Import" button to import all files with a check mark.

Available actions

Options
· Include sub-folders: Import files which are located in sub-folders of the selected folder

· Recreate hierarchy: Recreate the folder hierarchy in the project's table of contents

Refresh
The "Refresh" button forces checks the selected folder again and updates the list of files to import,
based on the selected options.

Check
Quickly check or un-check all files in the list.

Custom hyperlink types

When importing an external document, or when using the scripting API to control the topic editor,

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it is possible to define a specific kind of hyperlink to mimic HelpNDoc's hyperlink capabilities:

Scheme Description

hnd-topic://[TOPIC_ID] Link to a specific topic using its internal ID. Check the API
documentation to learn how to get a topic's internal ID.
Ex: hnd-topic://0E16C6CF7A5D42F580EC89876ED08435

hnd-nav:// Link to a relative topic. Possible [RELATIVE_TOPIC] values are:

[RELATIVE_TOPIC] default, first, last, parent, previous, previous-sibling, next, next-sibling
Ex: hnd-nav://parent

hnd-counter:// Link to a specific counter using its ID.

[COUNTER_ID] Ex: hnd-counter://figure1

Project options

Each project is saved with its own set of configuration options, which include all the project
settings such as copyright, author, and language information.

Access project options

The project options panel can be accessed either by:

· Selecting the "Home" ribbon tab and clicking the "Project options" button in the "Project"
group

· Or selecting the project topic in the table of contents, which is the root of all topics and the
very first on in the list

Project settings
Various information about the project such as the project title, author information... Some of these
options may be exported to the final documentation and overridden for each build. See also
Publishing documentation

Language settings
Specify the project's language and character set. See also Date and time format settings

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Automated settings
Various settings regarding to automation in HelpNDoc.

· Default properties for new topics: specify the properties to set to a newly created topic,
such as icon, kind, header, footer, status, included in build or visibility

· Always synchronize Help ID with topic caption : when this option is checked, a topic's Help
ID will be automatically updated when its caption is changed. E.g. changing the topic's caption
to "Hello World" will update its Help ID to "HelloWorld". See also Change topic properties
o Synchronize now... will replace every Help ID based on the current topic's caption
· Compress un-compressed included library pictures: when the library contains
uncompressed pictures (E.g. Bitmaps BMP files), they will automatically to a non-destructive
PNG format in the HND project file to save disk and memory space

Date and time format settings

Some system variables available in an HelpNDoc project can output current date and time
information. The following variables are available and will be replaced by the current date and time
value at generation time:

Variable name Meaning

Current Date/Time Display the current date and time

Date Display the current date, short format

Date - long Display the current date, long format

Day Display the current day, short format

Day - long Display the current day, long format

Month Display the current month, short format

Month - long Display the current day, long format

Time Display the current time, short format

Time - long Display the current time, long format

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Year Display the current year, short format

Year - long Display the current year, long format

Customizing the formats

By default, the date and time variables are displayed based on the project's language settings. It is
possible to customize the format for each of those system variables using the "Date / Time format
options" dialog.

To show the date and time customization dialog: from the "Home" ribbon tab, click "Project
options" then "Customize" next to "Date / Time format" in the "Language settings". The following
table explains the various specifiers which can be used when formatting date and time settings:

Specifier Displays

d Displays the day as a number without a leading zero (1-31)

dd Displays the day as a number with a leading zero (01-31)

Displays the day as an abbreviation (Sun-Sat) using the translated

ddd
strings according to project language

Displays the day as a full name (Sunday-Saturday) using the

dddd
translated strings according to project language

Displays the date using the format given by Windows' short date
ddddd
format

Displays the date using the format given by Windows' long date
dddddd
format

Displays the year in the current period/era as a number without a

e
leading zero (Japanese, Korean, and Taiwanese locales only)

Displays the year in the current period/era as a number with a leading

ee
zero (Japanese, Korean, and Taiwanese locales only)

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Displays the period/era as an abbreviation (Japanese and Taiwanese

g
locales only)

Displays the period/era as a full name (Japanese and Taiwanese

gg
locales only)

Displays the month as a number without a leading zero (1-12). If the

m m specifier immediately follows an h or hh specifier, the minute
rather than the month is displayed

Displays the month as a number with a leading zero (01-12). If the

mm mm specifier immediately follows an h or hh specifier, the minute
rather than the month is displayed

Displays the month as an abbreviation (Jan-Dec) using the translated

mmm
strings according to project language

Displays the month as a full name (January-December) using the

mmmm
translated strings according to project language

yy Displays the year as a two-digit number (00-99)

yyyy Displays the year as a four-digit number (0000-9999)

h Displays the hour without a leading zero (0-23)

hh Displays the hour with a leading zero (00-23)

n Displays the minute without a leading zero (0-59)

nn Displays the minute with a leading zero (00-59)

s Displays the second without a leading zero (0-59)

ss Displays the second with a leading zero (00-59)

z Displays the millisecond without a leading zero (0-999)

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zzz Displays the millisecond with a leading zero (000-999)

Displays the time using the format given by Windows' short time
t
format

Displays the time using the format given by Windows' long time
tt
format

Uses the 12-hour clock for the preceding h or hh specifier, and

displays 'am' for any hour before noon, and 'pm' for any hour after
am/pm
noon. The am/pm specifier can use lower, upper, or mixed case, and
the result is displayed accordingly

Uses the 12-hour clock for the preceding h or hh specifier, and

displays 'a' for any hour before noon, and 'p' for any hour after
a/p
noon. The a/p specifier can use lower, upper, or mixed case, and the
result is displayed accordingly

Uses the 12-hour clock for the preceding h or hh specifier, and

displays the contents of the AM Symbol Windows setting for any
ampm
hour before noon, and the contents of the PM Symbol Windows
setting for any hour after noon

/ Displays the date separator character given by Windows settings

: Displays the time separator character given by Windows settings

Characters enclosed in single or double quotation marks are

'xx'/"xx"
displayed as such, and do not affect formatting

It is possible to reset to the default format for the project's current language by using the "Reset"
button. Warning: this will discard any previously entered custom date / time format.

Managing the table of contents

The table of contents editor is used to create, manage and organize a hierarchical structure of the
documentation projects. Learn more about managing the table of contents:

· Create topics

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· Delete topics

· Rename topics

· Move topics
· Change topic properties

Display the Table of Contents toolbar

To simplify table of contents management, instead of navigating to the global ribbon tab to
manage the table of contents, an optional toolbar can be shown at the top of the table of
contents panel. To toggle it, click the "Show / Hide table of contents toolbar" in the title bar of the
table of contents panel.

Toggle from compact to extended view

By default, the table of contents only shows a subset of topic properties, such as the status, icon
and caption. It is possible to display the topics' Help ID and Help Context numbers in the table of
contents by clicking the "Switch to compact / extended view button", which can be found in the
"Table of contents" group of the "Home" ribbon tab, or in the table of content's toolbar.

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Filtering topics
The table of contents toolbar includes a Filter popup menu to filter topics based on various
properties such as their visibility or status. The table of contents panel's title is changed to indicate
when a filter is currently applied.

Create topics

Creating a new topic in an opened project can be achieved via two ways:

· Select the "Home" ribbon tab then click the upper part of the "Add topic" button

· Right click on any existing topic in the table of contents (including the project topic) and click
the left part of the "Add topic" menu item

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By default, a new topic is added at the bottom of the table of contents and becomes the last topic
overall. HelpNDoc can optionally create a new topic at the following positions:

· Before the currently selected topic

· After the currently selected topic

· As a child of the currently selected topic

· As the last topic overall (Default behavior)

These actions are available from a sub-menu which can be accessed via the following ways:

· Select the "Home" ribbon tab then click the arrow on the bottom part of the "Add topic"
button

· Right click on any existing topic in the table of contents (including the project topic) and hover
the arrow on the right part of the "Add topic" menu item

When a new topic is created, its title will become selected and editable for easier modification: it
becomes faster to create multiple topics and rename them.

See the How to create a new topic in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Delete topics

Deleting an existing topic can be achieved via two ways:

· Select the "Home" ribbon tab then click the "Delete topic" button after a topic has been
selected in the table of contents

· Right click on any existing topic in the table of contents to open the topic management menu
then choose "Delete topic"

A word of caution: Deleting a topic containing children will also delete its children. When a topic
is deleted, its associated content is also deleted. Library items used by the topics and keywords
linked with the topic are not deleted.

See the How to delete topics in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Rename topics

The topic's title as displayed in the table of contents can be changed using one of the following
ways:

· Right click on the topic and select "Rename"

· Select the topic then hit the "F2" keyboard shortcut

· Select the topic then go to the "Home" tab then click the "Rename" button in the "Table of

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contents" section

See the How to rename a topic in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide

Move topics

Topics are managed as a tree-structure from the table of contents. A topic can contain any number
of children topics which itself can contain any number of children topics and so on. Also topics are
not sorted in any way in the table of contents so they can freely be positioned. To move a topic in
the table of contents:

· Select the topic then from the "Home" ribbon tab, choose one of the move topic action: move
up, move down, move left, move right

· Right click on the topic to move then from "Move topic" menu item, choose one of the action

· Drag and drop the topic to the desired position by clicking and holding it, moving the mouse,
then release the mouse button where needed

Note: The project topic can't be move. It is always the root of all the topics available in the project.

See the How to move topics in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Change topic properties

Topic icon
The topic icon is displayed before the topic title in the table of contents. By default, topics
containing children will be given a book icon, whereas topic without child will be given a note icon.
To change the icon for each individual topic:

· Select the "Home" ribbon tab, then click the "Topic properties" item and choose the new topic
icon

· Right click on any existing topic in the table of contents to open the topic management menu
then choose the new topic icon

See the How to select a new icon for a topic in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Topic kind
Each individual topic in HelpNDoc can be either:

· A normal topic - This is a standard topic where new content can be entered in the topic editor

· An empty topic - No content will be entered in that topic and will make it a chapter topic

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· An URL topic - This topic will show an external URL instead of the content

· An external included file - The file specified will be included at compilation time in the content
of the topic

To change the topic's kind:

· Select the "Home" ribbon tab, then click the "Topic properties" then "Topic kind" item and
choose the topic kind
· Right click on any existing topic in the table of contents to open the topic management menu
then go to the "Topic kind" item to choose the topic kind

· At the top of the topic editor, click the "Change..." link to choose the topic kind

See the How to assign topic kind in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Description
This field can be used to describe or summarize the current topic. It is used by the default HTML
template to generate the HTML description tag for better Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

Help ID
This is one of the most important part of a topic when using the generated documentation. The
help ID is a unique alpha-numeric identifier used to locate the topic. This ID will be used to name
individual HTML files in the generated HTML documentation, and can be used to open that specific
topics from any programming language in the CHM documentation.

To change a topic's Help ID:

· Select the "Home" ribbon tab, then click the "Topic properties" item and enter the new Help ID
· Right click on any existing topic in the table of contents to open the topic management menu
then enter the new Help ID

Note: If the "Always synchronize Help ID with topic caption" project option is checked, HelpNDoc
will automatically replace a custom Help ID when the topic's caption is changed.

Note: The Help ID can only contain alpha-numeric and "-" characters. HelpNDoc will ensure this
rule by automatically removing any unwanted characters (such as spaces) from the input.

See the How to manage your topic identifiers in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

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Help Context
The help context is a numeric value which is unique to each topic. It can be used to uniquely
identify a topic, or open a specific CHM topic using Windows APIs.

To change a topic's Help context:

· Select the "Home" ribbon tab, then click the "Topic properties" item and enter the new Help
context
· Right click on any existing topic in the table of contents to open the topic management menu
then enter the new Help context

See the How to manage your topic identifiers in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Topic Header
The topic header is a simple text which is usually displayed as the title of the topic. By default,
HelpNDoc will use the topic title as the header, but it can be configured to either:

· Hide the header - No header will be displayed for that topic

· Display a custom text - A custom text can be specified as the header of that topic.

To change a topic's header:

· Select the "Home" ribbon tab, then click the "Topic properties" then "Topic header" item and
choose the topic header
· Right click on any existing topic in the table of contents to open the topic management menu
then go to the "Topic header" item to choose the topic header
· At the top of the topic editor, click the topic header link to choose the topic header

See the How to define a header for a topic in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Topic Footer
The topic footer is a simple text which is usually displayed at the bottom of the topic. By default,
HelpNDoc will use the project copyright as the footer, but it can be configured to either:

· Hide the footer - No footer will be displayed for that topic

· Display a custom text - A custom text can be specified as the footer of that topic.

To change a topic's footer:

· Select the "Home" ribbon tab, then click the "Topic properties" then "Topic footer" item and

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choose the topic footer

· Right click on any existing topic in the table of contents to open the topic management menu
then go to the "Topic footer" item to choose the topic footer

· At the top of the topic editor, click the topic footer link to choose the topic footer

See the How to define a footer for a topic in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Custom Properties
Each topic can have a set of custom properties. The "Topic properties" panel can be used to
manage them: add, rename, delete them as well as edit their values. Custom properties can have
any name and value and can be used by templates or scripts for additional custom processing.

Using the topic editor

The topic editor is where each topic's content and properties are defined.

Topic kind

Kinds of topics
A topic can be of different kind. When first created in HelpNDoc, the topic is a normal topic with
content. The different topic kinds are:

· Normal topic - This is the default topic kind where text, tables, library items... can be added in
the topic's content
· Empty topic - This is a topic without any content of any kind attached to it
· Show external URL - The topic will show the specified URL when shown in supported
documentation formats

· Include external file - The specified file will be included as the topic's content when the
documentation is generated

Changing a topic's kind

Changing the kind of a specific topic can be done by either:

· Right-click the topic in the table of contents and choose a new topic kind
· Change the current topic's kind by clicking the "Change" link at the topic of the topic editor

Headers and footers

Each topic can have a specific header and footer. By default, the topic header is set to display the

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topic's title as defined in the table of contents and the topic footer is set to display the project
copyright. This can be changed to:

· Hide the header / footer - Do not display anything for that topic

· Display custom header / footer - Specify the text to use for that header / footer

To change the header and footer for a specific topic, either:

· Click in the header and footer links at the top of the topic editor and choose the new option
· Right click on the topic and change its header and footer options.

Font properties

Basic font properties

The most often used font properties are easily accessible from HelpNDoc's "Write" ribbon tab.
These include: font name and size control, styling options (e.g. bold, italic, underline...), and color
options.

Advanced font properties

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For greater control over font properties, the "Font" window can be accessed either:

· From the "Write" ribbon tab, click the arrow at the bottom-right of the "Font" group

· Right-click in the topic editor to show the popup menu, then click "Font..."

Font window

The Font window includes:

· A "Font" tab where common font settings can be defined, such as font name, size, color,
background color, style and effects;
· A "Layout" tab where advanced spacing, offset and scaling settings can be defined

· A "Sample" preview of the currently defined font settings

Paragraph properties

Basic paragraph properties

The most used paragraph properties are easily accessible from HelpNDoc's "Write" ribbon tab.

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These include: paragraph alignment, spacing, indentation, color options.

Paragraph borders and background

From HelpNDoc's "Write" ribbon tab, in the "Paragraph" group, click the "Paragraph Borders and
Background" button to access borders and background settings for the currently selected
paragraph.

Advanced paragraph properties

For greater control over paragraph properties, the "Paragraph" window can be accessed either:

· From the "Write" ribbon tab, click the arrow at the bottom-right of the "Paragraph" group

· Right-click in the topic editor to show the popup menu, then click "Paragraph..."

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Paragraph window

Indents and spacing

Specify paragraph alignment, spacing and indentation properties.

Tabs
Define tab stop position, alignments and leader characters for that paragraph.

Advanced

Define outline level (heading level) and pagination settings:

· Outline level: Define the heading level of that paragraph (e.g. heading 1, heading 2...). This is
used to define the topic's inline table of contents.

· Keep lines together: Paragraph is exported on one page, if possible

· Keep with next: Paragraph is exported on the same page as the next paragraph, if possible

· Widow/orphan control: Prevents page breaks after the first line and before the last line of the
paragraph

Working with styles

Styles are an important part of HelpNDoc as they provide a way to keep an uniform look
throughout the documentation's topics. A style is applied to a piece of text which then becomes
linked to it: when the style changes, the format of the text changes too.

HelpNDoc comes with a set of predefined styles. Styles can be added and managed using the
styles editor.

To apply a style to a piece of text:

· Select the text to apply the style to

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· From the "Write" ribbon tab, choose the style to apply from the "Styles" group and click it

Note: By default, any custom font attribute applied to the selected content won't be overwritten
when a style is applied. To reset custom first attributes before applying a new style:

· Selecting the content to style in HelpNDoc's topic editor

· Press the CTRL keyboard shortcut and keep it pressed

· Apply the desired style

See the following step-by-step guides:

How to customize the default styles for new projects
How to create a style to display a note or a warning message

Working with hyperlinks

The text contained in a normal topic with content can contain hyperlinks. Those links will redirect
the reader to the specific element they link to. To create an hyperlink:

· Select the text to transform to an hyperlink

· Select the "Insert" tab and click the "Insert / Edit hyperlink" in the "Links" panel (Keyboard
shortcut: CTRL+L)

· Specify the links' attributes

An hyperlink can link to:

· A specific topic: the specified topic will be shown

· A relative topic: the relative topic, based on the currently viewed one, will be shown

· An Internet or e-mail address: the Internet page will be shown or a new e-mail will be created

· A file: the specified file will be shown or downloaded

· A counter: the specified counter instance will be shown

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Link to a specific topic

Linking to a specific topic will allow the end-user to navigate to that particular topic by clicking the
link. To create a link to a specific topic:

1. Provide the link text. This field is not enabled if you have already selected the text in the topic
editor

2. Choose which topic to link to by selecting it in the hierarchy

3. Optionally choose the topic's anchor to link to

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Link to a relative topic

Creating a relative link, or navigation link, will provide a way to link to a topic relative to the current
one. HelpNDoc can create navigation links to:

· Default topic - The topic which has been set as the default one in theproject options

· First topic - The very first topic in the table of contents

· Last topic - The very last topic in the table of contents

· Parent topic - The parent topic of the topic containing the link

· Previous topic - The topic just before the one containing the link. If "Sibling topic only" is
checked, it will link to the previous topic at the exact same hierarchy level

· Next topic - The topic just after the one containing the link. If "Sibling topic only" is checked, it
will link to the previous topic at the exact same hierarchy level

To create a navigation link:

1. Provide the link text. This field is not enabled if you have already selected the text in the topic
editor

2. Choose what kind of navigation link to create

3. For previous and next topics, specify whether to link to a sibling topic or not

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Link to an Internet or e-mail address

Create a link to an Internet or e-mail address by:

1. Provide the link text. This field is not enabled if you have already selected the text in the topic
editor

2. For an Internet link, specify the URL and whether this link should open in a new window or not

3. For an e-mail address, specify the e-mail address and optionally a subject for the e-mail to
send

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Link to a file

Based on the end-user Windows configuration and documentation format, an hyperlink to a file
will either:

· Show the file directly in the help viewer

· Show the file in an external application if the file format is registered to that application
· Provide a download file box to let the user download it locally

To create an hyperlink to a file:

1. Provide the link text. This field is not enabled if you have already selected the text in the topic
editor

2. Indicate the file path and name

3. Indicate whether the provided path is an absolute or relative path

The help file won't be included with the generated documentation. This means that the help file
must be deployed with the final documentation and placed in the correct folder when installed on
the end-user computer:

· For a non-relative file: the file must be placed in the exact same folder and have the same
name as the one defined in the file path field. Example: c:\doc\myfile.txt

· For a relative file: the file must be placed in a relative folder based on the main documentation
file. Example: the relative path is set to "file\myfile.txt" so the file must be placed in the "file"
sub-folder of the documentation output folder

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Link to a counter

Create a link to a specific counter instance by specifying its unique identifier:

1. Specify the unique identifier of the counter to link to

Working with tables

Tables are used to either display tabular data or create complex layout in the final documentation.
To create a new table in HelpNDoc, from the "Insert" ribbon tab, click the "Insert table" button in
the "Items" group and either:

· Choose the number of rows by columns to add by clicking the desired table size
· Click the "Insert table" button to specify the size and some properties for the new table

Once a table is present in a topic, clicking it will display the "Table tools, Layout" ribbon tab. This
can be used to create, delete, change properties for the cells and the table.

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Working with pictures

Pictures are inserted in the library then in the topic editor. This provides a way to use the same
picture multiple times and modify it from the library without the need to find it in the topics. To
insert a picture, either:

· From the "Home" ribbon tab, click the "Add item" button in the "Library" group and choose
"Add picture". Then drag the picture from the library in the topic editor

· From the "Insert" ribbon tab, click the "Insert picture" button then "Insert another picture". This
will add it to the library prior to inserting it in the topic editor

When a picture is clicked in the topic editor, the "Picture tools, format" contextual ribbon tab is
shown to modify the picture's properties. From there, it is possible to:

· Replace the picture with another one

· Reset the picture properties such as size and alignment

· Align the picture in the text flow

· Adding the picture's alternative text: this is used in HTML based documentation as a place-
holder text while the picture is being loaded
· Specify the picture's width and height

See the How to add an item to the library step-by-step guide.

Working with the image map editor

Image maps can contain one or multiple interactive shapes. A shape can be a rectangle, circle or
polygon and can link to any kind of links handled by HelpNDoc: topics, relative links, URLs, EMails,
or file links. See how to use the image map editor.

Note: Image maps are only compatible with CHM and HTML documentation formats as well as
some ePub readers.

Manage shapes
To create a shape in the image map editor, choose the kind of shapes in the "Create Shapes"
section and draw it over the image.

To select a shape, click on it in the editor, or choose it in the "Shape" list of the "Properties" section.

When one or more shapes are selected, click "Delete" in the "Manage Shapes" section to delete
them.

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Move and resize shapes

Once a shape is added, it can be moved and resized by dragging its content or its handles in the
editor. Rectangle and Circle shapes can also be moved and resized using the editors in the
"Properties" section.

Assign title and link to shapes

When a shape is selected, change its title in the "Properties" group. Title are used as hints in web-
browser or as indication for accessibility settings.

To update the link of a shape, click the link next the "Link To" in the "Properties" group to use the
hyperlink editor.

See the How to create an image map step-by-step guide.

Using the library

The library is a central storage place for media and third-party elements such as:

· Folders - Containers for other library items

· Barcodes - Barcode and QR code images

· Counters - Auto-incrementing fields used to count items such as figures, tables, equations...

· Documents - DOCX, RTF, HTML, TXT...

· Dynamic content - Scripts producing dynamic HTML-based content
· Equations - Mathematical equations and expressions

· HTML Code - This is raw HTML code which will be exported as-is in the final HTML based
documentation

· Image maps - Pictures with interactive click-able zones

· Movies - MOV, AVI...

· Pictures - PNG, JPEG...

· Snippets - Place-holders for rich text content which can contain formatted texts, pictures...

· Variables - Place-holders for textual content

All those elements are stored within the library and can be re-used in any number of topics
within the current project. Once an item is placed in the topic editor, it is linked to the
corresponding library item and therefore any modification made to the library item will also be
propagated to the all linked items. As an example, changing a picture in the library which has been
placed in hundreds of topics, will automatically update all those topics to display the updated

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picture.

Display the Library toolbar

To simplify library management, instead of navigating to the global ribbon tab to manage library,
an optional toolbar can be shown at the top of the library panel. To toggle it, click the "Show /
Hide library toolbar" in the title bar of the library panel.

Adding a library item

There are multiple ways to add items in the library:

· From the "Home" ribbon tab, in the "Library" group, use the "Add item" button;

· From the "Home" ribbon tab, in the "Library" group, use the "Import files" button to import
multiple files at once;
· Drag and drop files from the Windows Explorer on the library to show the "Import files" dialog
and import them;

· Drag and drop files from the Windows Explorer on the topic editor to show the "Import files"
dialog, import them, and place them within that topic.

See the How to add an item to the library step-by-step guide.

Inserting a library item

To insert an item from the library to the topic editor, either:

· Drag and drop the item from the Library panel into the topic editor

· Select the element in the library panel then click the "Insert in topic" button from the "Home"
ribbon bar, in the "Library" group

· Right click the element in the library panel and choose "Insert in topic"

Inserting the library item's content into a topic

Some library items (documents, HTML, variables and snippets) can have their content directly
inserted within a topic. This is useful to transform library items as "templates" for topic content. If
the selected library items supports it, either:

· Click the arrow at the right of the "Insert in topic" button from the "Home" ribbon bar, in the

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"Library" group, then click "Insert content in topic"

· Right click the element in the library panel, hover over the "Insert in topic" item, then click
"Insert content in topic"

Removing a library item

When an item is not needed anymore, it can be removed from the library:

· Select the unwanted item in the "Library" panel

· From the "Home" tab, in the "Library" group, click "Delete"

Note: Deleting a library item from the library will not delete any instance of that item in the
project's topics. This providing a way to review each topic individually and decide if that instance
needs to be deleted or replaced. The project analyzer can be used to quickly spot and fix delete
library items.

See the How to delete an item to the library step-by-step guide.

Import files dialog

The import file dialog presents a quick and easy way to import multiple media elements in the
project's library. It can import images, image maps, documents and videos.

The import file dialog can be accessed:

· From the "Home" ribbon tab, in the "Library" group, use the "Import files" button;

· By drag and dropping files from the Windows Explorer on the library;

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· By drag and dropping files from the Windows Explorer on the topic editor;

Adding files
To import additional files, either:

· Drag and drop files from the Windows Explorer on the file list;

· Use the "Add files" button to select files to import

Managing files
The file list can be used to manage files before they are imported:

· Delete an item using the "Remove item" button;

· Rename the item by editing the "Name" column;

· Change the import type from Picture to Image map and vice versa;

· Change the source of the library items for images, documents and movies:

o Include file in project will save the file within the HND project file;
o Link to external file will create a link to that file and only store that link. Use the "Set
external files' paths as relative to the project path" check box to store a relative path
instead of the full path. Note: this check box is grayed if the project hasn't been saved
yet.

Update selection
"Import As" and "Source" columns can be rapidly changed for multiple items by selecting the
desired items in the list, then use the "Update selection" drop down menu to update them.

Folder selection
Select the parent folder to import all the items in the list in that folder. The "Create folder" link can
be used to create a new folder in the library if needed.

Folder library item

Folders are containers for other library items or sub-folders. They are useful for organization
purposes such as:

· Infrequent use of library item: place all system variables in a specific folder and collapse it to
hide them from the list

· Filtering library items: place each kind of library items in its specific folder (e.g. all pictures in
the "pictures" folder...)

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· Important library items: create a folder where important library items must never be updated /
deleted by co-workers

· And so on...

Note: A folder library item can't be placed in a topic, only its children library items (which are not
folders) can.

Warning: Deleting a folder will also delete all library items contained in that folder, including sub-
folders. Proceed with care.

Placing a library item in a folder

After adding a folder to the library, drag and drop an item over that folder to move it there.
Alternatively, it can be dropped on any non-folder item in that folder to perform the same move.

Export content
Use the "Export content" button to export every "included" items contained in that folder. Note:
only items included in the project will be exported.

Barcode library item

Barcodes and QR codes are extremely useful to produce a machine-readable visualizations: a bar
code reader or smartphone camera can be used to quickly and safely interpret them, making it
easier to share complex data with end-users. HelpNDoc supports the following barcode formats:
Code 11, Code 128, Code 39, Code 39 Extended, Code 93, Code 93 Extended, EAN-8, EAN-13,
Interleaved 2 of 5, MSI, QR Code, UPC-A and UPC-E.

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Overview of the user interface

1. Library item name

Choose a unique name for that library item.

2. Commands
Commands available for the image map library item:

· Update barcode: show the Barcode editor to edit the current content of the barcode

3. Preview
Current content of the barcode

Barcode editor

The Barcode editor can be used to create and modify barcodes in the documentation project.

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Overview of the user interface

1. Preview

Visual representation of the currently edited barcode.

2. Properties
Choose the type of barcode to create and set its properties:

· Symbology: Type of barcode (e.g. EAN-13, MSI, QR Code...)

· Text: Content to encode in the barcode

· Show text: Some barcodes can show the encoded text

· Color: Specify the color of the barcode

· Rotation angle: Rotate the visual representation of the barcode 90°, -90° or 180°

· Module size: Size of the module

Counter library item

Counters are auto-incrementing fields. They can be used to count items such as figures, tables,
equations... throughout the project. Counter instances can have an optional caption and identifier.
Counters have both global properties (such as caption format) and instance properties (such as
caption and unique ID).

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Create a counter: overview of the user interface

When creating a new counter to the library, the following dialog is shown.

1. Library item name

Choose a unique name for that library item.

2. Format
The final exported counter's value is based on the format specified:

· Caption format: Specify the format of the exported counter if the counter instance's caption is
not empty

· Empty caption format: Specify the format of the exported counter if the counter instance's
caption is empty

Some examples of exported counters:

Caption format Empty caption Instance's Exported value

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format caption

Figure {A}: Figure {n} [Empty] Figure 1

{caption}

Figure {A}: Figure {n} HelpNDoc Figure A: HelpNDoc

{caption}

{caption} - Table Table {r} [Empty] Table i

{R}

{caption} - Table Table {r} HelpNDoc HelpNDoc - Table I

{R}

3. Placeholders

Field Description

{caption} Replaced by the instance's caption

{n} Counter number as an integer value (e.g. 1, 2, 3, 4...)

{r} Counter number as lowercase roman value (e.g. i, ii, iii, iv...)

[R} Counter number as uppercase roman value (e.g. I, II, III, IV...)

{a} Counter number as lowercase alpha value (e.g. a, b, c, d...)

{A} Counter number as uppercase alpha value (e.g. A, B, C, D...)

Counter instance: overview of the user interface

By double-clicking a counter in HelpNDoc's topic editor, the counter instance's editor is shown.

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1. Library item name

Choose a unique name for that library item. Warning: This is shared between all instances as it is
applied to the associated library item.

2. Instance settings
Settings which are specific to this counter's instance.

Setting Description

Caption Caption of this instance which will be used to replace the

{caption} placeholder when exported. If specified, it will be
exported using the "Caption format" value. If empty, it will be
exported using the "Empty caption format".

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Id Unique identifier of the instance. See: Link to a counter

3. Global settings
Those settings are shared between all instances as they are applied to the associated library item.
See: Create a counter - overview of the user interface.

Document library item

A document library item will be included where it has been placed at generation time. It can be
useful in multiple situations:

· A piece of content needs to be repeated multiple times within the project

· The document is managed by someone else without access to the HND project file

Note: HelpNDoc can import the following documentation formats:

· TXT text files;

· RTF rich text documents;

· HTML web pages;

· Markdown files;
· DOC and DOCX Word documents. This might require as specific Microsoft Office
Compatibility Pack: see Doc or DocX files can't be imported

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Overview of the user interface

1. Library item name

Choose a unique name for that library item.

2. Customize item

A document can either be stored within the project or linked from an external location based on
the project's requirements. Choosing how it is stored can be decided individually for each item
based on pros and cons for that specific item and / or overall documentation project.

Storage Description Pros Cons

Include File Item file is stored within the project · Item is always · HND project file

archive available even when becomes larger

the project is with each
moved to a included item
different location · Replacing an
· Sharing project is item involves
easier as the HND locating it in the

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project file contains library and

the item's content updating it

· The item is always · Items can't be

available to the shared between
end-user as it is multiple projects
stored with or · Generation time
within the is slower as the
generated file needs to be
documentation file copied /
included in the
generated
documentation

External File Item file is stored anywhere on the · HND project file is · Item location

hard drive or a network location, and smaller as only the must be

included at generation time. Note: The path to the external updated in the

external file path can be absolute, or file is stored library when the

relative to the HND project file location · Updating the item HND project file

on the hard drive is moved, or the

or network location item must be

will update it the moved with the

next time the project

documentation is · Sharing a
built project requires

· Items can be all external items

shared between to be shared too

multiple projects: · Sharing a

each project will project might
include it when require an
needed update of all

· The item is always external items'

available to the paths

end-user as it is · Generation time

stored with or is slower as the
within the file needs to be
generated copied /
documentation file included in the
generated

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documentation

3. Commands and fields

Include File

· Insert / Replace file: Locate a file on the hard drive or a network location to

· Remove file from project: Remove the content of the file from the project

· Export file: Export the content of the file to the hard drive

External File

· File path: Absolute or relative path of the file to include at generation time

4. Preview
For included files, an icon of the library item is displayed. It is possible to drag and drop a file
from a third party application such as the Windows Explorer into the preview to include it or
replace the existing file.

Dynamic content library item

The dynamic content library item provides a way to produce HTML content using HelpNDoc's
built-in scripting methods and API. Dynamic content placed within topics are interpreted at
generation time to produce content which is then integrated in the final documentation file. It can
be useful in multiple situations:

· Produce personalized documentation based on some conditions, such as topic properties,

build settings...
· Topic-specific content display, such as listing children topics, or associated keywords

· Time-sensitive updates, which are only displayed based on the current generation date and
time

· Content formatting, such as converting external JSON or XML files to human-readable tables

· And more...

Note: Even though they are based on HTML and scripts, dynamic content are compatible with
every documentation formats supported by HelpNDoc, including Word and PDF formats.

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Overview of the user interface

1. Library item name

Choose a unique name for that library item.

2. Source
Choose if the content is stored within the project or loaded from an external file at generation time

3. Dynamic content editor

Specify the dynamic content's HTML-based script using the built-in editor. Use the "Build" button
to check that the syntax is valid.

4. Build output

Once built, any information, warning or error messages produced during the build process are
displayed in the build output log.

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Sample dynamic content scripts

List of children topics

When placed within a topic, the following script produces a lists of links to access all its generated
direct children topics:

<%
var aChildrenTopicList :=
HndTopicsEx.GetTopicDirectChildrenListGenerated(HndTopics.GetCurrentTopic());
if (aChildrenTopicList.Length > 0) then
begin
%>
<ul>
<% for var nTopic := 0 to aChildrenTopicList.Length - 1 do begin %>
<li><a href="hnd-topic://<%= aChildrenTopicList[nTopic].id %>"><%=
aChildrenTopicList[nTopic].Caption %></a></li>
<% end; %>
</ul>
<% end; %>

List of associated keywords

Place this dynamic content in a topic to produce a list of all keywords attached with this topic:

<%
var aKeywordsList :=
HndTopicsKeywords.GetKeywordsAssociatedWithTopic(HndTopics.GetCurrentTopic());
for var nKeyword := 0 to aKeywordsList.Length - 1 do
begin
%>
<span style="background-color: #eee"><%=
HndKeywords.GetKeywordCaption(aKeywordsList[nKeyword]) %></span>
<%
end;
%>

Equation library item

HelpNDoc's built-in equation editor can be used to define mathematical expressions. The editor
generates images of the defined expression, which is displayed in all supported documentation
formats.

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Overview of the user interface

1. Equation editor
Input equation content using either the physical or virtual keyboard.

2. Virtual keyboard
Displayed when the equation is focused, the virtual keyboard can be used to input various
notations and features of the equation editor. See also the physical keyboard shortcuts available
to manage the equation.

3. Appearance and properties

Define various settings about the currently edited equation:

Property Description

Background color Define the background color of the equation

Background padding Define a padding around the equation content which is filed by the

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background color

Font color Define the color of the equation content

Font size Define the size of the font

Letter shape style Control which letters are automatically italicized:

xyz ABC αβɣ ΓΔΘ

iso xyz ABC αβɣ ΓΔΘ

tex xyz ABC αβɣ ΓΔΘ

french xyz ABC αβɣ ΓΔΘ

upright xyz ABC αβɣ ΓΔΘ

HTML code library item

HTML code library items provides a way to add custom HTML, CSS, JavaScript code to the
generated documentation. It can be useful in multiple situations:

· Insert advanced HTML widgets such as accordions, tabs, YouTube / Vimeo movies...

· Add custom code to customize the behavior or look and feel of the generated documentation

Note: HTML code library items are only compatible with CHM and HTML documentation formats
as well as some ePub readers. Extra care must be given to cross-browser compatibility with the
included HTML code.

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Overview of the user interface

1. Library item name

Choose a unique name for that library item.

2. Code editor
Insert / Edit the custom HTML, CSS and JavaScript code.

Image map library item

An image map is a special image with click-able shapes linking to topics, files or on-line content. It
can be useful in multiple situations:

· Display a screenshot linking to additional information based on where the user clicks;
· Display a map linking to additional information based on coordinates;

Note: Image maps are only compatible with CHM and HTML documentation formats as well as
some ePub readers.

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Overview of the user interface

1. Library item name

Choose a unique name for that library item.

2. Commands and fields

Commands available for the image map library item:

· Insert / Replace file: Locate a file on the hard drive or a network location to

· Remove file from project: Remove the content of the file from the project
· Update image map: Show the image map editor to edit its click-able shapes

· Export file: Export the content of the file to the hard drive

· Convert to picture: Convert an image map to a picture. Note: This action can take time on
large projects as it needs to analyze the whole project and convert every instances of this

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image map. This action can't be undone.

3. Preview
A preview of the library item is displayed. It is possible to drag and drop a file from a third party
application such as the Windows Explorer into the preview to include it or replace the existing file.

4. Properties
Custom properties for this library item.

Property Description

Default align Specify the default alignment of the picture when added to a topic.

Default alt text Specify the default alt text of the picture when added to a topic.

Default margins Specify the default margins for the picture when added to a topic.

Default padding Specify the default padding for the picture when added to a topic.

Default width Specify the default width for the picture when added to a topic. Note:
Clear this value to use the picture's default width.

Default height Specify the default for the picture when added to a topic. Note: Clear
this value to use the picture's default height.

Image map editor

The image map editor is used to draw and update shapes on an image, and set their properties
such as where they are linking to. The image map editor can be accessed as follows:

· Create or edit an image map library item to show the library item edit window

· Click the "Update image map" button

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Overview of the user interface

1. Tools
The tools can be used to create, select and manipulate shapes on the image map:

· Select: click any shape on the editor to select it. Use its resizing handles to resize it
· Delete: delete the currently selected shape

· Rectangle: create a rectangle shape

· Circle: create a circle shape

· Polygon: create a polygon shape. Click once to add a point, twice to close the polygon

2. Editor
Shows a preview of the image map with the various shapes. Select a shape to display the resizing
handles and edit its properties.

3. Properties
Define the currently selected shape's properties such as link, title, and position.

Movie library item

Any movie required by the documentation project is first placed in the library. It can then be
included in any number of topics while being centrally managed from the library: updating the
movie in the library will automatically update all instances of that movie in any topic where it has

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been placed.

Notes:

· Movies can be huge files and including them in the project can lead to significant saving,
loading and generation time;

· Movies are only compatible with CHM and HTML documentation formats as well as some
ePub readers. Also, the movie format has to be considered carefully: it might not render on a
device where that specific format's codec hasn't been installed.

For those reasons, we highly recommend the use of online movie hosts such as Youtube or Vimeo:

· The project and generated documentation will be smaller and faster to generate;
· The movie host takes care about transcoding the movie to the correct format so that it is
visible by anyone.

Overview of the user interface

1. Library item name

Choose a unique name for that library item.

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2. Customize item
A movie can either be stored within the project or linked from an external location based on the
project's requirements. Choosing how it is stored can be decided individually for each item based
on pros and cons for that specific item and / or overall documentation project.

Storage Description Pros Cons

Include File Item file is stored within the project · Item is always · HND project file

archive available even when becomes larger

the project is with each
moved to a included item
different location · Replacing an
· Sharing project is item involves
easier as the HND locating it in the
project file contains library and
the item's content updating it

· The item is always · Items can't be

available to the shared between
end-user as it is multiple projects
stored with or · Generation time
within the is slower as the
generated file needs to be
documentation file copied /
included in the
generated
documentation

External File Item file is stored anywhere on the · HND project file is · Item location

hard drive or a network location, and smaller as only the must be

included at generation time. Note: The path to the external updated in the

external file path can be absolute, or file is stored library when the

relative to the HND project file location · Updating the item HND project file

on the hard drive is moved, or the

or network location item must be

will update it the moved with the

next time the project

documentation is · Sharing a
built project requires

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· Items can be all external items

shared between to be shared too
multiple projects: · Sharing a
each project will project might
include it when require an
needed update of all
· The item is always external items'
available to the paths
end-user as it is · Generation time
stored with or is slower as the
within the file needs to be
generated copied /
documentation file included in the
generated
documentation

URL Item file is stored on a web server, and · Item is always · A working

displayed at viewing time available even when Internet

the project is connection is
moved to a required at
different location viewing time to

· HND project file is request and

smaller as only the display the item

URL is stored · Only compatible

· Updating the item with CHM, HTML

on the web server and Markdown

automatically documentation

updates any client formats as well

application as some ePub

requesting that readers

item from now on

· Items can be
shared between
multiple projects:
each project will
display it when
needed
· Generation time is

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faster as the file is

not copied /
included in the
generated
documentation

3. Commands and fields

Include File
· Insert / Replace file: Locate a file on the hard drive or a network location to
· Remove file from project: Remove the content of the file from the project

· Export file: Export the content of the file to the hard drive

External File
· File path: Absolute or relative path of the file to include at generation time

URL
· URL: Internet link to the file to display at viewing time
Specifying a URL with a YouTube or Vimeo domain name will automatically generate the proper
embed code.

4. Preview
For included files, an icon of the library item is displayed. It is possible to drag and drop a file
from a third party application such as the Windows Explorer into the preview to include it or
replace the existing file.

5. Properties
Specific properties about the movies such as its width and height.

Picture library item

Any picture (photo, screenshot...) required by the documentation project is first placed in the
library. It can then be included in any number of topics while being centrally managed from the
library: updating the picture in the library will automatically update all instances of that picture in
any topic where it has been placed.

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Overview of the user interface

1. Library item name

Choose a unique name for that library item.

2. Customize item

A picture can either be stored within the project or linked from an external location based on the
project's requirements. Choosing how it is stored can be decided individually for each item based
on pros and cons for that specific item and / or overall documentation project.

Storage Description Pros Cons

Include File Item file is stored within the project · Item is always · HND project file
available even when becomes larger

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archive the project is with each

moved to a included item
different location · Replacing an
· Sharing project is item involves
easier as the HND locating it in the
project file contains library and
the item's content updating it

· The item is always · Items can't be

available to the shared between
end-user as it is multiple projects
stored with or · Generation time
within the is slower as the
generated file needs to be
documentation file copied /
included in the
generated
documentation

External File Item file is stored anywhere on the · HND project file is · Item location

hard drive or a network location, and smaller as only the must be

included at generation time. Note: The path to the external updated in the

external file path can be absolute, or file is stored library when the

relative to the HND project file location · Updating the item HND project file

on the hard drive is moved, or the

or network location item must be

will update it the moved with the

next time the project

documentation is · Sharing a
built project requires

· Items can be all external items

shared between to be shared too

multiple projects: · Sharing a

each project will project might
include it when require an
needed update of all
· The item is always external items'
available to the paths
end-user as it is · Generation time

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stored with or is slower as the

within the file needs to be
generated copied /
documentation file included in the
generated
documentation

URL Item file is stored on a web server, and · Item is always · A working
displayed at viewing time available even when Internet
the project is connection is
moved to a required at
different location viewing time to
· HND project file is request and
smaller as only the display the item
URL is stored · Only compatible

· Updating the item with CHM, HTML

on the web server and Markdown
automatically documentation
updates any client formats as well
application as some ePub
requesting that readers
item from now on

· Items can be
shared between
multiple projects:
each project will
display it when
needed

· Generation time is
faster as the file is
not copied /
included in the
generated
documentation

3. Commands and fields

Include File

· Insert / Replace file: Locate a file on the hard drive or a network location to

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· Remove file from project: Remove the content of the file from the project

· Edit image: Open the built-in image editor to edit the image.

· Convert to image map: Convert a picture to an image map. Note: This action can take time on
large projects as it needs to analyze the whole project and convert every instances of this
picture. This action can't be undone.
· Export file: Export the content of the file to the hard drive

External File

· File path: Absolute or relative path of the file to include at generation time

URL

· URL: Internet link to the file to display at viewing time

4. Preview

For included files, a preview of the library item is displayed. It is possible to drag and drop a file
from a third party application such as the Windows Explorer into the preview to include it or
replace the existing file.

5. Properties
Custom properties for this library item. Use the "Reset" button to reset to the default value. Default
properties can be applied to every instances within the project by clicking the "Apply to every
instances throughout the project" button.
Note: this will override any manual settings defined in any instances.

Property Description

Default align Specify the default alignment of the picture when added to a topic.

Default alt text Specify the default alt text of the picture when added to a topic.

Default margins Specify the default margins for the picture when added to a topic.

Default padding Specify the default padding for the picture when added to a topic.

Default width Specify the default width for the picture when added to a topic. Note:
Clear this value to use the picture's default width.

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Default height Specify the default for the picture when added to a topic. Note: Clear
this value to use the picture's default height.

Image editor

Pictures which are included within the library can be edited using the built-in image editor.

1. Ribbon bar
Use the ribbon toolbars to access the various actions to create and manage layers, view, as well as
contextual tools.

2. Layers editor
The image is made of multiple layers which can be edited from the layers editor. The top layer is
the one in the front while the bottom layer is the one at the back, or background. Layers can be
reorganized by dragging them to another position. The "Eye" button can be used to toggle the
layer's visibility while the "Lock" button can be used to lock the layer.

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3. Image editor
Use the image editor to preview the final image, and manage layers by moving, resizing, rotating...
them.

4. Properties
Displays the contextual properties of the selected layer(s). Use the editors to customize the current
selection.

Stamps editor
Insert any of the pre-made stamps in the image by dragging them and dropping them into the
image canvas.
Select any numbers of layers, then click "Add stamp" to convert them to a reusable stamp.
Select a custom stamp then click "Delete stamp" to delete it. Note: System stamps can't be
deleted.

Snippet library item

Snippets are very similar to variables: the snippet is placed within topics and will be replaced by its
current value at generation time. They can be useful in multiple situations:

· A piece of content needs to be repeated multiple times within the project;

· A work in progress can first be written as a snippet included in the topic, and later copy /
pasted as the topic content;

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Overview of the user interface

1. Library item name

Choose a unique name for that library item.

2. Commands
Commands available for the image map library item:

· Update snippet: show the Snippet editor to edit the current content of the snippet

· Clear snippet content: clear the content of the snippet

3. Preview
Current content of the snippet

Convert the topic's content to a snippet

It is possible to quickly convert the selected topic's content to a snippet, to be able to reuse it
elsewhere:

· Select the desired content in the topic editor

· Right click on it

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· Click "Convert to snippet..."

HelpNDoc will ask if the selected content should be replaced by the newly created snippet. Choose
either:

· Yes: the selected content is replaced by the newly created snippet

· No: the selected content remains as-is and a new snippet is created in the library

· Cancel: cancel the operation without creating a new snippet

Snippet editor

The snippet editor is used to edit the rich text content of the snippet. Snippets can contain:

· Formatted text (font, color, bold, italic, alignment...)

· Bullets and numbering

· Tables

· Symbols

· Links

· Images

Note: Images are contained within the snippet and not within the library. The same images added
to multiple snippets will increase the project and generated documentation size.

Overview of the user interface

1. Actions
Use the toolbar actions to format the content of the snippet and insert content such as tables,
images...

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2. Editor

Use the editor to customize the content of the snippet.

Variable library item

Variables are placeholders for textual content. The variable is placed within topics and will be
replaced by its current value at generation time. They can be useful in multiple situations:

· When an information is not yet known or is subject to change, such as a product which is in
the development phase and whose name is not yet known;
· When the generated documentation has multiple targets: it is possible to override variables for
each documentation build generated by HelpNDoc thus generating multiple variations of a
documentation;

Overview of the user interface

1. Library item name

Choose a unique name for that library item.

2. Variable value
Current value of the variable.

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Using the keywords editor

Keywords are words or short sentences used to tag or index one or multiple topics. HelpNDoc
offers the possibility to define a keyword hierarchy where each keyword can be associated with
one or multiple topics. Keywords are alphabetically and hierarchically ordered: a keyword can
contain one or more children keywords.

See the How to access the keywords panel step-by-step guide.

Display the keywords toolbar

To simplify keywords management, instead of navigating to the global ribbon tab to manage
keywords, an optional toolbar can be shown at the top of the keywords panel. To toggle it, click
the "Show / Hide keywords toolbar" in the title bar of the keywords panel.

Create keywords
To create a first-level keyword:

· Create the top part of the "Add keyword" button in the "Keywords" group of the "Home"
ribbon tab

· The keyword is added in the list ready to be named: enter a name and validate using the Enter
keyboard shortcut

To create a child keyword, first select the parent keyword then:

· Click the bottom part of the "Add keyword" button in the "Keywords" group of the "Home"
ribbon tab
· Click "Add child keyword"

· The keyword is added in the list ready to be named: enter a name and validate using the Enter
keyboard shortcut

See the How to create a keyword step-by-step guide.

Rename keywords
To rename a keyword:

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· Select the keyword in the keywords panel

· Click the "Rename" button in the "Keywords" group of the "Home" ribbon tab

· Enter a name and validate using the Enter keyboard shortcut

See the How to rename a keyword step-by-step guide.

Delete keywords
To delete obsolete keywords:

· Select the keyword in the keywords panel

· Click the "Delete" button in the "Keywords" group of the "Home" ribbon tab

See the How to delete a keyword step-by-step guide.

Associate with topics and remove association

Keywords with checked boxes are associated with the currently selected topic. Keywords with
unchecked boxes are not associated with it. They might be associated with other topics or not
used anymore: you can use the project analyzer to check for unused keywords.

To associate / remove association between a keyword with a topic:

· Select the topic in the table of contents

· Click the check-box in front of the desired keyword to check or un-check it

· Alternatively, you can use the "Associate with topic" check button in the "Keywords" group of
the "Home" ribbon tab

To manage the topics associated with a specific keyword, you can use the Manage keyword
association window.

See the How to associate keywords with topics step-by-step guide.

Manage keyword association

Keywords' association with the current topic can rapidly be done using the check-box in front of
the keyword.

To rapidly manage every topics associated with a specific keyword, select the keyword then click
the "Associated topics" button in the "Keywords" group of the "Home" ribbon tab to open the
"Manage keyword association" window.

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Manage keyword association window

This window lists all topics within the project and adds a checked box before the caption of the
topics associated with the currently selected keyword.

To associate the currently selected keywords with additional topics, check the boxes before the
caption of those topics. Un-check those boxes to remove the association.

To save the modified associated topic list, hit the OK button at the bottom of the window.

See the How to manage the association between a keyword and topics step-by-step guide.

Using the spell checker

The live spell checker is an integral part of HelpNDoc, covering any input made throughout the
user interface: once a potential spelling error has been identified, the live spell checker will
underline the problematic word with a red line. Right clicking on the word will give a list of

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possible alternative words, and options to ignore it or add it to the user dictionary.

1. Spelling options
This shows the spelling options dialog which is
where the spell checker's settings can be
configured.

2. Active dictionaries
This indicates the currently active dictionaries. A
click on that button shows a list of all installed
dictionaries on the current computer as well as
options to install new dictionaries and change
currently active ones.

3. Install dictionaries
New dictionaries can be downloaded from the
OpenOffice.org extensions web-site and installed
using this dialog: just browse for the *.oxt file you
saved on your computer and HelpNDoc will install
it and add it to the list

4. Managing dictionaries
Dictionaries with a check mark are the ones
currently activated and used by HelpNDoc to spell
check the current project. To activate a dictionary, click on it to check it. To deactivate a dictionary,
click on it to un-check it. HelpNDoc supports multiple dictionaries activated at the same time:
when activating a dictionary, it won't deactivate the currently activated ones.

See the following step-by-step guides:

How to check the spelling in HelpNDoc
How to activate and deactivate a dictionary in HelpNDoc
How to install a new dictionary in HelpNDoc
How to maintain your spell check settings in HelpNDoc

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Publishing documentation

From the "Home" ribbon tab, click the top part of the "Generate help" button to show the
"Generate documentation" window. From this window, you can specify:

· The kinds of documentation formats to generate by adding builds and enabling them
· The output path of the final documentation

· The template and settings to use for each individual build

· The order of the build execution

· Custom template settings, tags settings, project options and variables overrides as well as
build specific settings

HelpNDoc will then process the templates and generate the documentation for each build
accordingly.

See also: How to publish your documentation

HelpNDoc affords you tremendous flexibility to support dynamic requirements when you
publish your documentation. After you've completed your documentation, you can publish it in
a variety of formats using a range of options.

See also: How to create a new documentation output to be published

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Your HelpNDoc documentation can be published in multiple formats. It can also be published
multiple times with different content and settings in each of those formats. Let's see how easily
this can be done.

See also: How to rename a publishing output in HelpNDoc

You can define the outputs that are generated when you publish your documentation. After
you've created a publishing output, it is displayed in your build list. When you publish your
documentation, it is displayed with its assigned name. To support your specific requirements,
you may update this name for any output at any time.

See also: How to delete a build in HelpNDoc

You can define the builds that are generated when you publish your documentation. These
builds are displayed in your build list and can be enabled or disabled at will. When a build
becomes obsolete, it is possible to remove it from your build list.

See also: How to reorder your publishing outputs in HelpNDoc

You can define the order of your outputs in your build list. This order determines the order in
which your documentation is generated. This order can also dictate which settings are applied
when you publish documentation using 'Quick generate.'

See also: How to enable your publishing outputs in HelpNDoc

HelpNDoc gives you the flexibility and control to determine which of your builds are published
when you generate documentation. When you enable a build, it is generated when you use your
build list. You also have the option to temporarily disable a build to prevent it from being
generated. This flexibility permits you to maintain builds in your build list without requiring you
to publish them each time you generate documentation.

See also: How to define build settings in HelpNDoc

When you're ready to generate documentation, HelpNDoc allows you to define the location of
your output files and select the templates that are used to generate your documentation. In
addition, you can further customize settings such as color, font size, numbering style, and create
conditional tags to tailor your documentation to support specific requirements.

Template settings

A template can define multiple custom settings (variables) for quick and easy modification from
HelpNDoc's "generate documentation" dialog. They are used to customize parts of the template,
such as custom colors, string translations, custom logos, optional elements... and provide a fast
way to customize a template without altering its code. See also: Variables using the template
editor, and Template variables for low level details.

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To access the template settings for a specific build:

· Select the build in the build list of the Generate documentation dialog

· Select the template to use for that build

· If the "Template settings" tab is not visible, click "Customize"

See the Customize documentation formats topic to learn more about some of the available
template settings.

Customize documentation formats

In addition to being able to create custom templates, it is possible to easily and rapidly customize
HelpNDoc's default templates. To access the template settings:

· From HelpNDoc's "Home" ribbon tab, locate the "Project" group

· Click the top part (without the arrow) of the "Generate help" button to display the "Generate
documentation" window

· Select the build to customize in the "Build list" on the left

· Click "Customize" on the right if the customization tabs are not visible
· Go to the "Template setting" tab

See the How to define build settings in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Here are some of the documentation formats which can be customized:

· CHM documentation settings

· HTML documentation settings

· Word documentation settings

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· PDF documentation settings

· ePub documentation settings

· Kindle / Mobi documentation settings

· Qt help documentation settings

· Markdown documentation settings

CHM documentation settings

Some of the templates settings available for CHM builds are:

Field Description

Base color The base color of the theme

Clean output directory Optionally clean the output directory before generation starts.
Warning: this will delete any file and folder in the output
directory.

Custom CSS Add custom CSS in all generated HTML files

Custom JavaScript Add custom JavaScript code in all generated HTML files

Export normal style Define the normal style as the default style. Use web browser's
default otherwise

Font size as percent Use percent values for font sizes

Footer (HTML) Specify the HTML content of the footer displayed at the bottom
of each page

Force image size generation Generated HTML code will contain image's width and height to
avoid content shifting and enhanced Core Web Vitals

Force image sizes as Inches Use Inches instead of Pixels for image sizes. This can produce
better results for high resolution screens

Internet Explorer compatibility Choose which version of Internet Explorer is used to display
topics. Newer versions have better CSS / JS support but might

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not be available with each OS

Keep temporary files Keep the temporary files needed by the compiler to build the
final documentation

Library item directory Define the sub-directory where library items are generated

Numbering as text Use text instead of OL/LI elements when generating lists

Show BreadCrumbs Show or hide the breadcrumbs at the top of each topic

Show navigation arrows Show or hide the navigation arrows at the top of each topic

Use project charset for topics Use the project encoding to generate topic files instead of UTF-
8. This can be useful to fix problems for some East-European
and Asian languages

See the How to define build settings in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

HTML documentation settings

Some of the templates settings available for HTML builds are:

Field Description

Clean output directory Optionally clean the output directory before generation starts.
Warning: this will delete any file and folder in the output
directory.

Custom CSS Add custom CSS in all generated HTML files

Custom JavaScript Add custom JavaScript code in all generated HTML files

Export normal style Define the normal style as the default style. Use web browser's
default otherwise

Font size as percent Use percent values for font sizes

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Footer (HTML) Custom HTML code which will be added at the bottom of each
topic

Force image size generation Generated HTML code will contain image's width and height to
avoid content shifting and enhanced Core Web Vitals

Google Analytics Id Google Analytics property tracking Id to collect user stats.

Google Analytics code is not added if Id is not specified

Google Tag Manager Id Google Tag Manager (GTM) container ID which installs marketing
tags without modifying the documentation's code. See Setup
Google tag manager

Inline table of content's width Define the preferred width of the inline table of contents. Note:
can be any CSS units such as "auto", "250x", "50vw"...

Keywords expand level The default keywords tree expansion level: 1 will expand root
level keywords, 2 will also expand first level keywords...

Keywords tab title The title of the keywords tab. See: How to localize your
documentation output

Library item directory Define the sub-directory where library items are generated

Link format to anchors override Override the template defined link format to anchors. Available
variables include %topicid%, %helpid% and %anchorname%. See
Handle the generated topic links

Link format to topics override Override the template defined link format to topics. Available
variables include %topicid%, %helpid% and %anchorname%. See
Handle the generated topic links

Logo A custom image from the project's library to use as a logo. See
also "Logo URL". Note: if both "Logo" and "Logo URL" are
indicated, "Logo URL" will be used

Logo alt Alternative text for the logo

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Logo link Link to redirect to when clicking the logo

Logo URL The URL of a picture to use as a logo. See also "Logo". Note: if
both "Logo" and "Logo URL" are indicated, "Logo URL" will be
used

Numbering as text Use text instead of OL/LI elements when generating lists

Search tab title The title of the search tab. See: How to localize your
documentation output

Show BreadCrumbs Show or hide the breadcrumbs at the top of each topic

Show inline table of contents Show or hide the topic's inline table of contents. See: Inline table
of contents

Show navigation arrows Show or hide the navigation arrows at the top of each topic

Show splitter bar Show or hide the resizable bar between the table of contents
and topic content

Show the keywords tab Show or hide the keywords tab

Show the search tab Show or hide the search tab

Show the table of contents tab Show or hide the table of contents tab

Sitemap base URL The URL of the generated documentation. Will be used to
generate the sitemap links

Sitemap change frequency: How often will the home page change
home

Sitemap change frequency: How often will the topics change

others

Sitemap priority: home Priority of the home page in the sitemap

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Sitemap priority: others Priority of the topics in the sitemap

Sitemap: Generate ? Generate or not the sitemap file

Table of contents expand level The default table of contents expansion level: 1 will expand root
level topics, 2 will also expand second level topics...

Table of contents tab title The title of the table of contents tab. See: How to localize your
documentation output

Table of contents width The width of the table of contents in pixels

Theme The color theme to use

Topic file extension override Override the template's topic file extension. Templates usually
use this to generate individual topic filenames. Note: Use space
characters for empty extensions. See: HTML Based templates'
general settings

Translation for... The translation for the specified English term

See the How to define build settings in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Inline table of contents

HelpNDoc's default HTML template supports inline table of contents for topics. This table of
contents displays a list of headings named "In this topic". To activate this feature, enable the
"Show inline table of contents" custom setting. It is possible to customize its width in the "Inline
table of content's width" build settings.

To setup a topic's title of contents, the default template will look at HTML headings in the current
topic (e.g. H1, H2...). To define them, you can either:

· Use styles which have an outline level defined, such as "Heading 1", "Heading 2"... an apply
them to titles which should appear in the inline table of contents;

· Or set the "Outline level" paragraph property to those titles by right-clicking on them, then
click "Paragraph...", go to the "Advanced" tab, and set an "Outline level" other than "Body text".

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Setup Google tag manager

HelpNDoc's default HTML template supports Google Tag Manager, which is used to install, store
and manage marketing tags without modifying the documentation's code. It follows Google Tag
Manager's best practice by adding the correct code both in the head and in the body sections of
the generated HTML documentation.

Retrieve Google Tag Manager's ID

HelpNDoc will only add Google Tag Manager's code if the ID is specified for a build. Here is how
to get the ID:

· Navigate to Google Tag Manager's home page

· Locate the desired container's row, select and copy the value of the "Container ID" column

Assign the ID to a HTML build

Now that we have the ID, here is how you can set it in your HelpNDoc HTML build:

· From HelpNDoc's "Home" ribbon tab, in the "Project" group, click the top part of the
"Generate help" button
· Select the HTML build on the list

· Make sure that it uses the "Default HTML template"

· If the "Template settings" tab is not visible, click "Customize"

· In the "Template settings" tab, locate the "Google Tag Manager Id" row and paste the
previously retrieved ID

That build is now ready to use Google Tag Manager: next time it is generated, it will automatically
produce the correct code to use Google Tag Manager.

Handle the "History Change" event

As HelpNDoc's default HTML template uses various optimization techniques to speed-up the
display of HTML documentation pages, it won't reload the whole page when the user clicks
another topic in the table of contents, which will lead to lost Google Tag Manager PageView
events. To work around that, in your Google Tag Manager's administrator console:

· Create a new "History Change" trigger. See:

https://support.google.com/tagmanager/answer/7679322

· Access your tag's configuration, then in the "Triggering" panel add the newly created "History
Change" as a "Firing Triggers"
· Click "Save"

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Word documentation settings

Some of the templates settings available for Word builds are:

Field Description

By default, counters are generated as Word fields. When

Counters as text
checked, they will be generated as raw text instead

Word builds generate DocX files by default. This forces the build
Generate RTF format
to generate RTF documents instead

Hide the cover page Do not generate any cover page

Hide the table of contents Do not generate the table of contents

Number of levels in table of Number of heading levels visible in the generated table of
contents contents

The title for the "Table of contents" text. See: How to localize
Table of contents title
your documentation output

See the How to define build settings in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

PDF documentation settings

Some of the templates settings available for PDF builds are:

Field Description

Do not generate bookmarks Bookmarks won't be included in the generate PDF document

Hide the cover page Do not generate any cover page

Hide the table of contents Do not generate the table of contents

Number of levels in table of Number of heading levels visible in the generated table of
contents contents

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Table of contents title The title for the "Table of contents" text. See: How to localize
your documentation output

Use Windows Uniscribe API The Windows Uniscribe API can produce better looking PDF for
some Middle-East and Asian languages. Using it can be slower
to produce PDF documents. Note: Only available when the "Use
legacy PDF generator" option is off

See the How to define build settings in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

ePub documentation settings

Some of the templates settings available for ePub builds are:

Field Description

Book ID Unique ePub book ID or ISBN

Clean output directory Optionally clean the output directory before generation starts.
Warning: this will delete any file and folder in the output
directory.

Cover picture The picture library item to use as a cover page

Export normal style Define the normal style as the default style. Use web browser's
default otherwise

Font size as percent Use percent values for font sizes

Inline cover page Include a cover page within the eBook content

Inline table of contents Include a table of contents within the eBook content

Keep temporary files Keep the temporary files needed by the compiler to build the
final documentation

Numbering as text Use text instead of OL/LI elements when generating lists

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Table of contents title The title for the "Table of contents" text. See: How to localize
your documentation output

See the How to define build settings in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Kindle / Mobi documentation settings

Some of the templates settings available for Kindle / Mobi builds are:

Field Description

Book ID Unique ePub book ID or ISBN

Clean output directory Optionally clean the output directory before generation starts.
Warning: this will delete any file and folder in the output
directory.

Compression level The eBook compression level

Cover picture The picture library item to use as a cover page

Export normal style Define the normal style as the default style. Use web browser's
default otherwise

Font size as percent Use percent values for font sizes

Inline cover page Include a cover page within the eBook content

Inline table of contents Include a table of contents within the eBook content

Keep temporary files Keep the temporary files needed by the compiler to build the
final documentation

Numbering as text Use text instead of OL/LI elements when generating lists

Table of contents title The title for the "Table of contents" text. See: How to localize
your documentation output

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See the How to define build settings in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Qt help documentation settings

Some of the templates settings available for Qt help builds are:

Field Description

About icon The picture library item to use as the icon in the "About" dialog

About menu text The text to use as the "About" menu item

About text The text to display in the "About" dialog

Address bar enabled Control if address bar visibility can be changed in Qt Assistant

Address bar visible Is the address bar shown by default

Application icon The picture library item to use as the application icon

Base color The base color of the theme

Clean output directory Optionally clean the output directory before generation starts.
Warning: this will delete any file and folder in the output
directory.

Documentation manager If disabled, the documentation manager is not shown in Qt

enabled Assistant preference dialog

Export normal style Define the normal style as the default style. Use web browser's
default otherwise

Filter enabled Control if the filter can be changed in Qt Assistant

Filter visible Is the filter bar shown by default

Font size as percent Use percent values for font sizes

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Full text search fallback Use full text search if a keyword can't be found in the index

Keep temporary files Keep the temporary files needed by the compiler to build the
final documentation

Namespace The unique documentation namespace

Numbering as text Use text instead of OL/LI elements when generating lists

Show BreadCrumbs Show or hide the breadcrumbs at the top of each topic

Show navigation arrow Show or hide the navigation arrows at the top of each topic

Virtual folder Virtual directory name in the specified namespace

See the How to define build settings in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

Markdown documentation settings

Some of the templates settings available for Markdown builds are:

Field Description

Clean output directory Optionally clean the output directory before generation starts.
Warning: this will delete any file and folder in the output
directory.

Generate compact Markdown Generated Markdown is more compact, but less readable.

Line width Preferred number of characters per line before wrapping. Purely
cosmetic effect.

Use Setext-style headings If enabled, headings are underlined. If not, atx-style headings
with leading hash marks (#) is used.

See also: GitHub wiki Markdown documentation settings

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See the How to define build settings in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

GitHub wiki Markdown documentation settings

The GitHub wiki markdown template adds the following templates settings to the default
Markdown settings:

Field Description

Generate common footer GitHub supports a _footer.md file as a common footer for all
topics in the wiki. If enabled, HelpNDoc will generate that file and
include the project's copyright information. Note: When
activated, topics' footers are disabled.
See also: GitHub documentation on wiki footers

Generate sidebar GitHub supports a _sidebar.md file as a common sidebar

content for all topics in the wiki. If enabled, HelpNDoc will
generate the file and include the project's table of contents.
See also: GitHub documentation on wiki sidebar

See also: GitHub wiki Markdown template

Override library items

Any library item created within the project can be overridden by each documentation build: every
documentation output can have its own set of customized library items. Once a library item has
been overridden for a specific build, the overridden values set for this library items will be used
next time the build is generated.

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Access the "Library overrides" panel

Each build have its own set of overridden library items. To access the "Library overrides" panel:

· From HelpNDoc's "File" menu, click the top part of the "Generate help" button to show the
"Generate documentation" window
· Select a build in the build list

· Click "Customize" if the build customization tabs are not visible yet

· Navigate to the "Library overrides" tab

Overriding library items

To override a specific library item for the selected build, its "Overridden" column must be checked:

· Locate the library item to override in the "Library overrides" panel

· Check its "Overridden" checkbox

An overridden library item also needs overridden properties or it will be empty.

Overriding library items properties

Each library items kinds have their own set of properties to override:

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Item kind Overridden properties

Barcode · Barcode: Bar-code content for this item. See: Barcode editor

Counter · Caption format: Define the caption format for this counter.
See: Counter library item
· Empty caption format: Define the empty caption format for
this counter. See: Counter library item

Document · Source: Source of the document's content (e.g. Included,

External)

· Content: Load an store the document's content from an

external file, when source is set to "Included"

· File path: Path of the document file to load at generation

time, when source is set to "External"

Equation · Equation: Define the new equation using the equation

editor. See: Equation library item

HTML code · Source: Source of the HTML content (e.g. Included, External)
· HTML code: Actual HTML content stored within the project,
when source is set to "Included"

· File path: Path of the HTML file to load at generation time,

when source is set to "External"

Image map · Content: Image content for this image map

· Image map: Image map data (e.g. shapes and links). See:
Working with the image map editor

Movie · Source: Source of the movie's content (e.g. Included,

External, URL)

· Content: Load and store the movie's content from an

external file, when source is set to "Included"

· File path: Path of the movie file to load at generation time,

when source is set to "External"

· URL: URL of the movie, when source is set to "URL"

· Width: Width of the movie, in pixels

· Height: Height of the movie, in pixels

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Picture · Source: Source of the picture's content (e.g. Included,

External, URL)

· Content: Load and store the picture's content from an

external file, when source is set to "Included"

· File path: Path of the picture file to load at generation time,

when source is set to "External"
· URL: URL of the picture, when source is set to "URL"

Snippet · Snippet content: Specify content for that snippet. See:

Snippet editor

Variable · Variable value: Specify new value for that variable

Override styles

Any style created within the project can be overridden by each documentation build: every
documentation output can have its own set of customized styles. Once a style has been
overridden for a specific build, the overridden values set for this style will be used next time the
build is generated.

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Access the "Styles overrides" panel

Each build have its own set of overridden styles. To access the "Styles overrides" panel:

· From HelpNDoc's "File" menu, click the top part of the "Generate help" button to show the
"Generate documentation" window
· Select a build in the build list

· Click "Customize" if the build customization tabs are not visible yet

· Navigate to the "Styles overrides" tab

Overriding styles
To override a specific style for the selected build, its "Overridden" column must be checked:

· Locate the style to override in the "Styles overrides" panel

· Check its "Overridden" checkbox

Changing an overridden styles' properties

Each style available in the project is listed in the "Styles overrides" panel. To change the properties
of a specific style:

· Select the desired styles in the list

· In the "Styles properties" panel, click the "Edit" link next to its properties to update it

Quickly change the overridden status of styles

From the "Styles overrides" panel, use the "Overridden status" popup menu to:

· Override all: Check all styles as overridden

· Override none: Un-check all styles override status

· Invert overridden status: Invert the overridden status for all styles

· Override selection: Override only the selected styles

· Insert selection's overridden status: Invert the overridden status for the selected styles

Resetting overridden styles

From the "Styles overrides" panel, use the "Reset" to reset the properties of overridden styles:

· Reset all: Reset the modified styles properties for all styles

· Reset selected: Reset the modified styles properties for the selected styles only

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Sign documents

Note: This feature might not be available on all editions of HelpNDoc. Check HelpNDoc's feature
comparison page to learn more.

Word and PDF documents can be signed using an invisible signing certificate. Viewer applications
such as Microsoft Word, Adobe Reader... check that a signed document is coming from the
advertised author and that it hasn't been altered in any ways since it has been signed. HelpNDoc
supports CER, PEM and PFX encoded certificates.

For more specific details, see:

· Sign Word documents

· Sign PDF documents

Sign Word documents

Note: This feature might not be available on all editions of HelpNDoc. Check HelpNDoc's feature
comparison page to learn more.

Word documents generated by HelpNDoc can be signed using an invisible signing certificate.
Microsoft Word displays a message to confirm that a document has been signed by its author,
and that it hasn't been altered since then. HelpNDoc supports CER, PEM and PFX encoded
certificates.

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Access the "Sign document" panel

Each Word build can be signed independently. To access the "Sign document" panel:

· From HelpNDoc's "File" menu, click the top part of the "Generate help" button to show the
"Generate documentation" window

· Select a Word build in the build list

· Click "Customize" if the build customization tabs are not visible yet

· Navigate to the "Sign document" tab

Sign a Word document

Check the "Sign Document" checkbox to enable document signing for this build. Available
options:

Option name Description

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Specify the file to use as the signing certificate. Supported

Signing certificate
formats: CER, PEM and PFX encoded certificates

Certificate password Password for the signing certificate selected

Sign signature origin Specifies whether to sign the XPS document's signature origin

Sign core properties which are a set of elements that describe

Sign core properties common and well-known properties of the document such as
creator, version, revision...

Type of commitment made by the signer. E.g. "Created and

Commitment type
approved this document"

Purpose for signing Signer's purpose for signing this document

Signature info Additional information about the signer

Sign PDF documents

Note: This feature might not be available on all editions of HelpNDoc. Check HelpNDoc's feature
comparison page to learn more.

PDF documents generated by HelpNDoc can be signed using an invisible signing certificate.
Adobe Reader displays a message to confirm that a document has been signed by its author, and
that it hasn't been altered since then. HelpNDoc supports CER, PEM and PFX encoded certificates.

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Access the "Sign document" panel

Each PDF build can be signed independently. To access the "Sign document" panel:

· From HelpNDoc's "File" menu, click the top part of the "Generate help" button to show the
"Generate documentation" window
· Select a PDF build in the build list

· Click "Customize" if the build customization tabs are not visible yet

· Navigate to the "Sign document" tab

Sign a PDF document

Check the "Sign Document" checkbox to enable document signing for this build. Available
options:

Option name Description

Specify the file to use as the signing certificate. Supported

Signing certificate
formats: CER, PEM and PFX encoded certificates

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Certificate password Password for the signing certificate selected

Request a timestamp from TSA If checked, a request will be made to the address specified in
server "Timestamp server URL" to certify the signing date and time

Timestamp server URL URL of the timestamp server to request for time-stamping

Signature Info Additional information about the signer

Encrypt documents

Note: This feature might not be available on all editions of HelpNDoc. Check HelpNDoc's feature
comparison page to learn more.

Word and PDF documents can be encrypted and password protected using strong encryption
algorithms. It won't be possible for anyone to view the document or access any of its content
without the specified password.

For more specific details, see:

· Encrypt Word documents

· Encrypt PDF documents

Encrypt Word documents

Note: This feature might not be available on all editions of HelpNDoc. Check HelpNDoc's feature
comparison page to learn more.

Word documents generated by HelpNDoc can be encrypted using strong encryption algorithms.
HelpNDoc supports the following Word encryption algorithms: RC2, RC4, DES, 3DES, AES128,
AES192, AES256.

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Access the "Encrypt document" panel

Each Word build can be encrypted independently. To access the "Encrypt document" panel:

· From HelpNDoc's "File" menu, click the top part of the "Generate help" button to show the
"Generate documentation" window

· Select a Word build in the build list

· Click "Customize" if the build customization tabs are not visible yet

· Navigate to the "Encrypt document" tab

Encrypt a Word document

Check the "Encrypt Document" checkbox to enable document encryption for this build. Available
options:

Option name Description

Specify the encryption algorithm to use for document

Encryption algorithm
encryption

Password Specify the password to use for document encryption

Encrypt PDF documents

Note: This feature might not be available on all editions of HelpNDoc. Check HelpNDoc's feature
comparison page to learn more.

PDF documents generated by HelpNDoc can be encrypted using strong encryption algorithms.
HelpNDoc supports the following PDF encryption algorithms: RC4 40 bits, RC4 128 bits, AES 128

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bits, AES 256 bits with hardened key generation.

Access the "Encrypt document" panel

Each PDF build can be encrypted independently. To access the "Encrypt document" panel:

· From HelpNDoc's "File" menu, click the top part of the "Generate help" button to show the
"Generate documentation" window

· Select a PDF build in the build list

· Click "Customize" if the build customization tabs are not visible yet

· Navigate to the "Encrypt document" tab

Encrypt a PDF document

Check the "Encrypt Document" checkbox to enable document encryption for this build. Available
options:

Option name Description

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Specify the encryption algorithm to use for document

Encryption algorithm
encryption

Encrypt Metadata Encrypts document metadata if checked

Owner password Password for the document's owner. Owner has all permissions

Password for the document's user. Might have limited

User password
permissions

Specify if the end user can print the document: disabled, low
User permissions / Printing
resolution only, or high resolution

Specify if the end user can copy parts of the document: disabled,
User permissions / Copying
text access for accessibility settings, allowed

Specify if the end user can modify, annotate or assemble the

User permissions / Modifying
document

Build actions

Note: This feature might not be available on all editions of HelpNDoc. Check HelpNDoc's feature
comparison page to learn more.

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Each build can include an unlimited number of pre-build and post-build actions:

· Pre-build actions are executed before the generation process for that build

· Post-build actions are executed after the generation process for that build

Build actions contain the following properties:

· A name to uniquely identify the build action

· A description to optionally describe the build action

· Custom properties which are specific to each action types

Access the "Build actions" panel

Each build can have an independent list of build actions. To access the "Build actions" panel:

· From HelpNDoc's "File" menu, click the top part of the "Generate help" button to show the
"Generate documentation" window
· Select a build in the build list
· Click "Customize" if the build customization tabs are not visible yet

· Navigate to the "Build actions" tab

Build action types

The following build actions can be created:

Build action type Description

FTP(S) upload Upload generated content to a FTP(S) or SFTP server. List of

available properties:

· Protocol: Protocol to use to connect to the remote server,

either FTP(S) or SFTP

· Server address: Domain name or IP address of the server

· Server port: Port of the FTP server

· Username: Username used to login to the server

· Password: Password used to login to the server

· Remote directory: Remote directory to upload to

· Transfer more: Specify the transfer mode used for the

connection (e.g. Text, Binary)

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· FTP(S) encryption: Determines how the FTP client starts the

SSL negotiation (FTPS only)

· FTP(S) passive mode: Whether or not to direct the server

into a passive mode

HTTP Request Perform a HTTP request to a remote URL. List of available

properties:

· URL to request: The remote URL to request

· Request method: HTTP method used to perform the

request (e.g. GET, POST...)

· Content of the request: Request body

· Content type header: Value added to the request's content-

type header, specifying the type of the request's body

Samples:

· Call an API to display the current date time using build

actions

Run program Run an external program available on the computer. List of

available properties:

· File path: The path of the program to run

· Arguments: Arguments to add to the program

· Working directory: Full path of the current directory for the

process. If not specified, it will be set to the current build's
output directory

· Expected return code: If provided, HelpNDoc checks the

program's return value and displays an error if it is different
from this value
· Show window: Shows a window for GUI applications.
Disable it for console applications to only capture the output
without displaying a console window

Samples:

· Copy files using the run program action

· Compress output using the run program action

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Run script Run a script using the HelpNDoc API. List of available properties:

· Script path: Specify the path of the external script file to

execute.

· Script content: Specify the content of the script file.

Note: If both "Path" and "Content" fields are specified, the

"Content" is used and the "Path" is ignored.

Samples:

· Store last generation date and time using build actions

Show message Show a message during the generation process. List of available
properties:

· Modal window: Specify if the message is shown as a

blocking dialog box (when checked), or as a discreet
message in the build generation log

· Message content: Textual content of the message to display

Samples:

· Show a warning message using build actions

Add a build action

To add a build action, click the "Add action" button, then choose the build action type in the list.
The newly created build action is added a the bottom of the existing build action list.

Edit a build action

Once a build action is selected in the list:

· Click its checkbox to enable or disable it

· Click its name, then click "Edit Name" to edit its name

· Click its description, then click "Edit Description" to edit its description

· Change its properties in the "Action Properties" panel

Delete a build action

To delete a build action, select it then click the "Delete action" button.

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Move a build action

Build actions are executed in order from top to bottom:

· To execute a build action earlier, select it then click the "Move Up" button;
· To execute a build action later, select it then click the "Move Down" button.

See also: Build actions samples

Build actions samples

Here are some samples and ideas showing how to use HelpNDoc's build actions to improve the
documentation generation process.

HTTP request action samples

· Call an API to display the current date time using build actions

Run program action samples

· Copy files using the run program action

· Compress output using the run program action

Run program action samples

· Store last generation date and time using build actions

Show message action samples

· Show a warning message using build actions

Call an API to display the current date time using build actions

Using the "HTTP Request" Build action, it is possible to call a remote API and get the current date
time. The result will be displayed in the generation log and could be useful for future reference:

Action property Value Description

URL to request http://worldtimeapi.org/api Use the WorldTimeAPI public web

/timezone/Europe/Paris.txt
service to request the current local
time for a given timezone as text

Request method GET Perform a GET HTTP request

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Copy files using the run program action

It could be useful to copy files either before or after the generation process. To achieve this, the
copy command line can be used to copy files using the "Run program" build action. As it needs
to be run from a command prompt, the cmd.exe program needs to be run with the "/C"
arguments:

Action property Value Description

File path cmd.exe Run a command prompt

Arguments /C copy "SOURCE_PATH" The /C argument carries out the copy

"DESTINATION_PATH"
command and terminates.

SOURCE_PATH is the source file's

path. It can be absolute, or relative to
the WorkingDirectory property.

DESTINATION_PATH is the source

file's path. It can be absolute, or
relative to the WorkingDirectory
property.

Working directory WORKING_DIRECTORY_PATH Full path of the current directory for

the process. If not specified, it will be
set to the current build's output
directory.

Compress output using the run program action

Once the documentation has been generated, it could be useful to compress it for backup or
faster transfer purposes. To achieve this, the zip program can be run using the "Run program"
build action:

Action property Value Description

File path zip Run the zip compression command

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Arguments -r backup.zip * Recursive compression of all files in

the current directory to the
backup.zip archive

Show a warning message using build actions

Once the documentation has been generated, it could be useful to display a warning message to
remind some important information about the generated documentation. To achieve this, the
"Show Message" Build action can be used to display a modal window:

Action property Value Description

Modal window Checked This displays a modal window

showing the message: it has to be
closed by clicking on a button

Message content Content of the message Specify the content of the message to
display

Store last generation date and time using build actions

Once the documentation generation is complete, it could be useful to store the latest generation
date and time somewhere in the project. It could be done using a "Run script" Build action which
executes a script using HelpNDoc's API methods to store the last generation date and time in the
project topic's custom properties:

Action property Value Description

begin
Script content Custom script to set the project
var aProjectTopicId :=
HndTopics.GetProjectTopic(); topic's custom property to the current
HndTopicsProperties.SetTopicCus
date and time.
tomPropertyValue(
aProjectTopicId,
'Last HTML Generation',
FormatDateTime('yyyy-mm-dd
hh:nn:ss', Now)
);
end.

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Advanced usages

Some more advanced usages are covered in the following sections:

· Keyboard shortcuts - Various keyboard shortcuts available in HelpNDoc

· Conditional content generation - How to generate multiple versions of your documentation

· Analyzing a project - Use the project analyzer to help spot problems

· Working with templates - Understand the powerful templates and learn how to customize the
output of your documentation

· Usage from the command line - Learn how you can leverage the HelpNDoc command line
parameters to automate documentation generation
· CHM files and programming languages - How to integrate your CHM help files with some
programming languages

· Customize default project styles - How to define a default set of styles for your projects

· Using the Script Editor - Leverage HelpNDoc's API to automate help file creation

· License key management - How to register your purchased software

Keyboard shortcuts

HelpNDoc implements various keyboard shortcuts which can be used throughout the application
to rapidly execute common actions.

User interface
Keyboard shortcuts available in HelpNDoc's main window.

Keyboard
Action Remarks
Shortcut

F1 Display the program help

Press and release the shortcuts indicated to go to

Show the keyboard shortcut
ALT next step. As an example ALT, then H, then O will
for the ribbon elements
show the project options

Minimize / restore the

CTRL + F1
ribbon

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Focus the table of contents

CTRL + F2
panel

CTRL + F3 Focus the topic editor panel

CTRL + F4 Focus the library panel

CTRL + F5 Focus the keywords panel

CTRL + F6 Focus the search result panel

Focus the topic properties

CTRL + F7
panel

Tree controls
Keyboard shortcuts available for all tree controls, including the table of contents tree, the library
tree, the keywords tree.

Keyboard
Action Remarks
Shortcut

+ Expand the current node

Expand the current node and

*
its children hierarchy

- Collapse the current node

Collapse the current node

/
and its children hierarchy

CTRL + F Show / Hide the find panel Used to filter items

CTRL + UP Move the element up Not available in the library and keywords trees

CTRL + Move the element down Not available in the library and keywords trees

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DOWN

CTRL + LEFT Move the element left Not available in the library tree

CTRL + RIGHT Move the element right Not available in the library tree

CTRL +
Create a new item Not available in the library tree
INSERT

CTRL + SHIFT
Create a new child item Not available in the library tree
+ INSERT

CTRL + DEL Delete the item

Associate the keyword with

SPACE Only for the keywords tree
the topic

Search: start typing the

Use CTRL+UP and CTRL+DOWN to move to the next
... beginning of a node to
found item
select it

Topic Editor
Keyboard shortcuts available when editing a topic.

Keyboard
Action Remarks
Shortcut

Move cursor to the

CTRL + UP beginning of current /
previous paragraph

CTRL + Move cursor to the

DOWN beginning of next paragraph

CTRL + A Select all the content

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CTRL + C Copy the selected content

CTRL + V Paste the content

Find and replace text in

CTRL + SHIFT
current topic or entire
+F
project

Select some text to rapidly create an hyperlink or

CTRL + L Create / Edit hyperlink
nothing to create a new blank one

Display the auto-completion Used to quickly create hyperlinks, insert library

CTRL + SPACE
dialog items...

CTRL + SHIFT
Insert non-breaking space
+ SPACE

CTRL + SHIFT Apply the Normal style to

+N selection

ALT + SHIFT + Apply the previous heading

LEFT level style to selection

ALT + SHIFT + Apply the next heading level

RIGHT style to selection

CTRL + ALT + Apply the heading level 1 to

1...3 3 style to selection

CTRL + + Zoom in

CTRL + - Zoom out

CTRL + 0 Reset zoom to 100%

Increase paragraph or bullet

TAB
indent level

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SHIFT + TAB Decrease bullet indent level

Equation editor
Keyboard shortcuts available when editing equations.

Keyboard
Action Remarks
Shortcut

LEFT Move cursor backward

RIGHT Move cursor forward

UP Move cursor up

DOWN Move cursor down

SHIFT + LEFT Extend selection backward

SHIFT +
Extend selection forward
RIGHT

SHIFT + UP Extend selection upward

SHIFT +
Extend selection downward
DOWN

DEL Delete backward

ALT + DEL Delete forward

CTRL + A Select all

CTRL + Z Undo

CTRL + Y Redo

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SPACE Move after parent

SHIFT +
Move before pare
SPACE

superscript/subscript
CTRL + 5 Move to opposite
upper/lower

/ Fraction

CTRL + 2
ALT + V Square root
sqrt

ALT + P
Pi
pi

Keyboard auto-completion

When writing documentation, the user interface might become a distraction and could slow down
the writing process, in particular when adding special and non-textual elements in the topic editor.
That's why HelpNDoc provides the CTRL+SPACE auto-completion keyboard shortcut to speed up
the writing process.

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To show the auto-completion dialog, hit the CTRL+SPACE keyboard shortcut in the topic editor.
The following actions are then available:

· Enter any text in the filter field to filter the list and show only relevant items
· Use the Up and Down keyboard keys to select the desired item

· Use the Enter keyboard key (or click the item) to insert that item

· Use the CTRL-SPACE keyboard keys to switch to the next auto-completion mode
· Use the CTRL-SHIFT-SPACE keyboard keys to switch to the previous auto-completion
mode
· Use the Escape keyboard key (or click the close button) to discard the dialog

The auto-completion dialog is context sensitive. It's initial action depends on the content at
position of the cursor in the topic editor.

When open, use the buttons or the CTRL-(SHIFT-)SPACE keyboard shortcut to switch to
another mode:

Link to a URL (Internet address)

· When used after the "http://", "https://" or "ftp://" characters, it will provide a way to continue
to input a URL

· After entering the complete URL, it will be inserted as a clickable link in the topic editor

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Link to a topic
· When used after a space character or at the start of a new line, it will provide a list of all
available topics to link to
· When used within or right after a word, it will use that word as the filter. E.g. typing "help" then
CTRL+SPACE will filter all topics containing the text "help"

· After selecting the topic in the list, a link with its caption will be inserted in the topic editor

Link to an anchor in the current topic

· When used right after the "#" character, it will display a list of all available anchors in the
current topic
· When used within or right after a word starting with the "#" character, it will use that word as a
filter for the anchor name

· After selecting an anchor in the list, a link to this anchor will be inserted in the topic editor

Insert a library item

· When used right after the "!" character, it will display a list of all available library items

· When used within or right after a word starting with the "!" character, it will use that word as a
filter for the library item
· After selecting a library item in the list, it will be inserted in the topic editor

Customizing keyboard shortcuts

Starting with HelpNDoc 6.7, it is possible to customize some keyboard shortcuts. See the options
window topic to learn how this can be done.

Topic status

Each topic can have a status, representing its state at the current time. By default, available statuses
are:

· Complete - the topic is considered done and no further editing is necessary

· Needs Review - the topic is done but might need corrections

· In Progress - the topic is actively being worked on

· Out of Date - the topic's content is not up to date and should be reworked in the future

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Manage statuses

It is possible to manage status (add, edit or delete them):

1. Right click on a topic

2. Hover over "Status"

3. Click "Manage Statuses..."

Conditional generation based on status

Each build can include topic with a set of statuses. By default, every topics are included in a build,
but each build can be customized to only include a subset of available statuses. For example: only
generate "Complete" topics.

Conditional content generation

By default, all topics and content created in an HelpNDoc project will be generated in every builds
and documentation formats. It is possible to conditionally generate topics and content using build
tags and conditions:

· Build tags represent unique identifiers which can be associated with a topic or a part of a topic

· Conditions are instructions indicating whether a section is included or not based on specific
tags

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Conditional topic generation

A topic can be included or not in specific builds based on build kind and build tags. By default a
topic is included in all builds. To choose which build will include a topic, select the topic in the table
of contents then:

· From the "Home" ribbon tab, click "Topic properties", then "Include in builds" and select each
build kind and custom tag that applies
· Or right click on the topic and choose options in the "Include in builds" popup menu

See the How to setup conditional topic generation step-by-step guide.

Conditional content generation

HelpNDoc provides an easy way to define sections (parts of topics) which will only be included in
specific builds using conditional sections. Those logical statements (If, Else, End) can be inserted
within a topic using the "Insert" ribbon tab.

Using the "Insert conditional operation" dialog box, choose between one of the operations:

· IF: Start of a conditional section. The content written after this operation will be included only if
the tags are included (IF) or not included (IF NOT) in the current build;

· ELSE: Will negate any previous IF operation. As an example, if the previous IF operation
included "CHM and HTML", the ELSE operation will included everything but those;

· END: Will close the open conditional sections. Any content written after an END statement will
be included in every builds without any condition.

Note: Conditional tags can't be nested.

See the How to setup conditional content generation step-by-step guide.

Define custom tags

To define custom tags, you can either:

· Right click on a topic, hover "Included in builds" then click "Manage build tags"
· From the "Generate help" window, select a build and click "customize" if the "Included tags" is
not visible" then click "Manage tags"

See the How to manage build tags step-by-step guide.

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Associate tags with builds

Each build can include one or more custom tag. To add custom tags to a specific build:

· Click the top part of the "Generate help" button in the "Home" ribbon tab
· Select a build

· Click "Customize" if the "Included tags" tab is not already visible

· Select the "Included tags" tab

· Check any custom tag that will be included in that build

See the How to maintain tags associated with output builds step-by-step guide.

Analyzing a project

Analyzing an HelpNDoc project provides a centralized way to obtain advanced details on the
project structure and content. The project analyzer can be launched from the "Home" ribbon tab,
by clicking the "Analyze project" button in the "Project" group.

The project analyzer can be used to get various information about the project, including:

· Paragraph, character, hyper-links and library item statistics. See:General information

· A chart representing a visual overview of the project layout. See: Visualize the project's
structure

· Hyper-links details and usage. See: Analyzing hyperlinks

· Anchors details and usage. See: Analyzing anchors

· Library items usage and details. See: Analyzing library items

· Keywords usage and association details. See: Analyzing keywords

· Conditional items added throughout the project. See: Analyzing conditions

· Spelling mistakes. See: Analyzing spelling

The project analyzer can be started by clicking the "Analyze" button: it may take some time as it
will analyze each topic to report useful information. When the project analyzer window is visible, it

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is still possible to modify the project in the background. However, any modification made to the
project will not update the analyzer reports: hitting the "Refresh" button is required in that case.

Learn more about the project analyzer:

· General information

· Visualize project structure using charts

· Analyzing hyperlinks
· Analyzing anchors

· Analyzing library items

· Analyzing keywords

· Analyzing conditions

· Analyzing spelling

General information

The project analyzer's "General Information" section provides details and statistics about elements
in the currently opened project:

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· Number of topics and keywords

· Number of paragraphs, words and characters

· Number of hyperlinks and anchors

· Number of library items by type

Visualize the project's structure

The project analyzer's "Charts" section provides an interactive visual representation of the project's
structure (or table of contents). Clicking an item in the chart selects it in the table of contents and
vice-versa.

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Analyzing hyperlinks

The "Hyperlinks" section of HelpNDoc's project analyzer lists all hyperlinks found throughout the
project. The hyperlink analyzer can be used to:

· List all links used in the project and their properties

· Locate a link within the project

· Spot links pointing to deleted topic (broken links)

· Spot duplicate links

· Filter links by kind, caption, target or topic

Filtering broken links

Broken links point to a specific topic which has been deleted since the link creation. HelpNDoc's
project analyzer makes it easy to spot broken links by clicking "Filter" then "Show broken items
only". This will filter the view to display only broken links. By double-clicking a link in the view, or
selecting it then clicking "Locate and select", the topic containing the link will be shown in
HelpNDoc's main window so that the link can easily be corrected.

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Analyzing anchors

The "Anchors" section of HelpNDoc's project analyzer lists all anchors found throughout the
project.

Actions
HelpNDoc can show a specific anchor's position within the project. To locate an anchor, either:

· Select it in the list then click "Locate in topic"

· Double click on it

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Analyzing library items

The "Library items" section of HelpNDoc's project analyzer lists all library items present in the
library, and how they are used throughout the project: a library item can be displayed multiple
times in the list if it is used multiple times in the project. The library items view is very powerful to
manage library items and can help save time by:

· Showing how many times and where each library item is being used

· Filtering library items by kind

· Filtering library items which are not used at all

· Filtering library items which are included in topics but not available in the library anymore
(broken items)

· Locating library items with the exact same content

· Merging multiple library items into one final item

Filtering unused library items

By clicking the "Filter" button then "Show un-used items only", HelpNDoc will display library items
which are available in the library but not used in any topic. This is useful to purge the project and

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clean the library.

Filtering broken library items

Broken library items are items which have been added to topics at some point, but which are not
available in the library anymore: broken library items can result in a broken documentation with
missing parts. To view broken library items, click the "Filter" button then "Show broken items only".
Double-clicking an item, or selecting it then clicking "Locate and select" will show the topic
containing it so that it can be deleted or replaced.

Finding similar items

If you suspect some items are duplicates within the library, this feature will check all of them and
select the duplicates. Here is how to proceed:

· Select an item in the view

· Click the "Select similar items" button

· HelpNDoc will automatically select all items of the same kind and with the same content

Merging library items

Select multiple library items and click "Merge selected items" to merge them into a final one. This
will:

· Delete all selected items from the library except the final one

· Replace all items in the topics by the final one

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Analyzing keywords

The "Keywords" section of the project analyzer lists all keywords available in the current project
with a list of associated topics. The keywords analyzer can be used to:

· Get a representation of keyword usage within the project: spot rarely used or overused
keywords easily

· Spot broken keywords which are not associated with any topic

· Manage topics associated with a specific keyword using the Manage keyword association
window.

Filtering unused keywords

To filter the list and see only keywords with no associated topics, click "Filter" then "Show un-used
items only".
It is possible to delete those keywords by selecting them and hitting the delete keyboard shortcut,
or clicking the "Delete selected items" button. Warning: it will delete their children keywords too.

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Manage associated topics

When a keyword is selected, click the "Manage associated topics" button to show the window and
check each topic which needs to be associated with that keyword.

Analyzing conditions

The "Conditions" section of HelpNDoc's project analyzer lists all conditional items throughout the
project: IF, IF NOT, ELSE and END. The conditions analyzer can be used to:

· List all conditions used within a project

· Locate and select conditions within topics

· Filter items by operations, condition or topic

Filters
By clicking the "Filter" button, it is possible to filter by a specific operation or clear the filter.
Alternatively, it is possible to place the mouse over the grid header to show the column's filter
icon: clicking that icon provides additional filter capabilities for that column.

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Actions
When a row is selected, clicking the "Locate and select" button will select the topic, and conditional
operation within that topic in HelpNDoc's topic editor.

Analyzing spelling

The "Spelling" section of HelpNDoc's project analyzer lists all spelling mistakes throughout the
project. It will analyze topics contents as well as snippets placed in the library.

Filters
Click "Filter" to display a list of available filters:

· Show snippets only: will only show misspelled words in snippets

· Show topics only: will only show misspelled words in topics

· Clear filter: will remove any filter

Actions
To locate and select the problematic word within the project, click the "Locate and select button.

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Click "Add to Dictionary" to add the currently selected word to the user dictionary and "Spelling
options" to manage project-wide spelling options.

Vacuuming a project

The HND project file format is based on the SQLite database format which includes various
optimizations to speed-up disk reading and writing operations:

· When a large amount of data is deleted from the project (such as library items), it leaves
behind empty space. This means the project file might be larger than needed;

· Frequent modifications (such as inserts, updates, and deletes) can cause the project file to
become fragmented. This means that project operations can be slower than usual and the
project file might be larger than needed;

Using the "Vacuum Project" command from HelpNDoc's "Tools" ribbon tab will optimize the
currently opened HND project file by rebuilding it and repack its content into a minimal amount of
disk space. This leads to smaller and faster HND project files.

Vacuuming HelpNDoc projects should be done from time to time.

Working with templates

HelpNDoc includes two very powerful template systems which are used to fine-tune the look of
the generated documentations: HelpNDoc will read the selected template's instructions prior to
generating the documentation, and will adapt the generated output based on those instructions.

The two parts of the template system are:

· The CHM, HTML, ePub, Kindle, Markdown and Code template system which can control
almost all aspects of the documentation generation for those formats. It is based on the Pascal
programming language which is interpreted to define how the documentation is generated;

· The Word and PDF template system which can control the page size, covers, headers and
footers, layout and headings appearances.

Using the template editor is the recommended way to manage and customize templates. It is also
possible to manually alter the template files: read the low-level details about templates for such
cases.

Using the template editor

The easiest way to manage templates is by using the template editor. The template editor can be
used to create, rename, modify and delete all kinds of templates.

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It can be accessed using the "Template Editor" button from the "Templates" group in HelpNDoc's
"Tools" ribbon tab.

Managing templates
The template editor is used to manage all kinds of templates:

1. The template selection lists all templates available on the current computer. To manage a
specific template, select it in that list.
Standard templates (included with HelpNDoc's installation) are marked as such: they can't be
edited;

2. The create template button can be used to create a new template of any kind: select the
template kind and enter a unique name to create that template;
3. The duplicate template button can be used to duplicate the currently selected template. This
can be useful to create a small variation of a template or test some modifications without
altering the original template;

4. The rename template button can be used to rename the currently selected template. HelpNDoc
will make sure the newly entered name is valid and unique;
5. The delete template button can be used to delete the currently selected template. Warning:
this action will permanently delete the selected template from the current system and this
action can't be undone;

6. The open template location button can be used to open the template using Windows Explorer
and edit it from there. Note: the template editor will be closed to avoid problems due to
edition in multiple places.

Customizing a template
Once a template is selected in the template editor, various customizable sections are available.
Those sections differ based on the kind of templates currently being selected.
Note: Standard templates, which are included with HelpNDoc's installation are read-only and can't
be modified.

· HTML based templates: the general settings, variables, script files and assets can be
customized. HTML based templates include the following documentation formats: CHM,

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HTML, ePub, Kindle, Qt Help and Markdown;

· Word and PDF templates: the page settings, cover page, headers, footers, table of contents
and topic titles can be customized.

HTML based templates

HTML based templates include CHM, HTML, ePub, Kindle, Qt Help and Markdown templates. In
the template editor, select a HTML based template to access its customizable settings:

· General settings: customize the file extension, inheritance and other general settings for that
template;

· Variables: manage variables which can be used by the template;

· Script files: manage script files used to generate the final documentation;

· Assets: manage assets bundled with the final documentation;

· HTML Tags: manage HTML code generated for some library items such as videos;
· Hooks script: manage hooks which are executed during template generation to customize the
output;

Note: Changes made in the template editor (including editing scripts and assets) are only saved to
disk when clicking the "Save" button.

General settings

Once you have selected an HTML based template in the template editor, access the "General
settings" group in the "Edit template..." panel to manage the following settings for that template:

· Inherits from: templates can inherit from other templates and override only specific settings,
scripts and assets. Select the parent template here if needed. See: Template inheritance

· Default file extension: indicates the extension which will be suggested by HelpNDoc when you
create a new build using that template;

· Topic file extension: indicates the extension which should be used by templates to produce
topic files;
· Link settings: define how internal links will be generated by HelpNDoc. See:Handle the
generated topic links

Other HTML based template settings:

· Variables

· Script files

· Assets

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Variables

Once you have selected an HTML based template in the template editor, access the "Variables"
group in the "Edit template..." panel to manage variables which can be used by this template.
When a variable is defined for a template, it can easily be customized from the build window for
each build using that template, and scripts from this template can easily access its customized
value to act upon it.

Create a new variable

By using the "New Variable" button, the "manage a template variable" window is shown with the
following fields:

· Id: specify a unique identifier for that variable. This identifier will be used in the script files to
access the customized content for that variable

· Name: the name of the variable as shown in the build window

· Description: the description of the variable as shown in the build window

· Kind: the kind of the variable which will provide a simpler way to specify its value in the build
window.
o Bool: the variable contains a boolean value which can be either true or false
o Color: the variable contains a color value

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o Enum: the variable contains a specific value chosen from one of the "Options" field (see
"Options" bellow)

o Int: the variable contains an integer value

o Libpicture: the variable contains a reference to a picture available in the library of the
currently open project. This is used to select an eBook cover for example
o String: the variable contains a piece of text
o Memo: the variable contains multi-line text
· Default value: when needed, the variable can have a default value which will be used if no
other value is entered in the build window

· Options: for "Enum" variables, provides a list of available items to choose from, separated
using the | character. E.g. "value1|value2|value3" will provide a choice between 3 values

· Translations: it is possible to translate the name and description of the variable to other
languages supported by HelpNDoc. If needed, enter the translated values here so they can be
stored in the template files, and displayed if HelpNDoc is set up in one of those languages

Edit a variable
Once a variable is selected in the list, the Edit Variable button will display the same window as
when creating a new variable is shown (see "Create a new variable" above). Only the "Id" field is
grayed out as it can't be modified for an existing variable.

Delete a variable
Once a variable is selected in the list, the Delete Variable button will delete that variable. Deleted
variables won't be displayed in build settings anymore and can't be used by script files.

Other HTML based template settings:

· General settings
· Script files

· Assets

Script files

Once you have selected an HTML based template in the template editor, access the "Script files"
group in the "Edit template..." panel to manage script files for this templates.

Script files are the heart of HTML based templates as they include a mix of HTML and Pascal code
used to instruct HelpNDoc on how to generate the final documentation. Using those very
powerful script files, it is possible to customize almost any part of the generated documentation

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files.

Script files' names must adhere to the following pattern: FILENAME.pas.EXTENTION where:

· FILENAME is the name of the script file and can be any valid file name;

· EXTENTION is usually the final extension this file will generate.

As an example HelpNDoc's default HTML template includes the "topics.pas.html" file which is used
to generate HTML files for topics.

Create a new script

By using the "New Script" button, the Script Editor window is displayed where it is possible to:

· Enter the new script's name

· Build the script to make sure it doesn't contain any error

· Access the help file with methods available in templates

· Enter the content of the script using an editor with syntax highlighting

· Save or cancel the edition of the script

Edit a script
Once a script is selected in the list, use the "Edit Script" button to access the script editor and
change its name or content.

Rename a script
Once a script is selected in the list, use the "Rename Script" button to rename it.Note: a script
must contain the ".pas." text in its name before its extension (e.g. index.pas.html).

Delete a script
Once a script is selected in the list, use the "Delete Script" button to delete that script from the
currently selected template. This script won't be run anymore when the final documentation is
generated.

Other HTML based template settings:

· General settings

· Variables

· Assets

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Assets

Once you have selected an HTML based template in the template editor, access the "Assets" group
in the "Edit template..." panel to manage assets bundled with the currently selected template.

Assets are static files which will be deployed in the same directory as the generated
documentation. Assets are usually used to add CSS, JavaScript or Images to the final
documentation but they are not limited to those kind of files: any file type can be added as an
asset to a template.

The assets hierarchy displays a list of all assets bundled with the currently selected template. It is
possible to:

· Create folders using the "New folder" button

· Create files using the "New file" button

· Import new files as assets using the "Import" button

· Edit the currently selected file using an external editor. See Editing assets

· Rename the currently selected folder or asset using the "Rename asset" button

· Delete the currently selected folder or asset using the "Delete asset" button

· Move an asset to a different folder by dragging it and dropping it to the desired location

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Other HTML based template settings:

· General settings

· Variables

· Script files

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Editing assets

There are two ways of editing an asset:

· Edit asset opens the system's default editor for this file kind;

· Edit asset with... opens the standard Windows "Open With" dialog to choose the editing
application.

While an asset is being edited by a third-party application, the "Edit file" dialog is shown by
HelpNDoc.

To edit an asset:

· Update the file using the external editor (e.g. Notepad);

· Save the file from that external editor and close it if needed;
· Click "Finish Editing" in the "Edit file" dialog

Note: the asset is not yet saved to disk, the template needs to be saved from the template editor
dialog.

To cancel an asset edition, click "Cancel Editing" in the "Edit file" dialog. Even if the asset file has
been edited and saved using a third party editor, it won't be updated in the template.

HTML tags

Once you have selected an HTML based template in the template editor, access the "HTML tags"
group in the "Edit template..." panel to manage HTML tags which are generated by this template.
HTML tags are HTML code snippets which are used by HelpNDoc to generate support code for
some library items such as videos.

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Create a new HTML tag

By using the "New HTML Tags" drop-down menu, a list of available HTML tag kind is displayed:

· New movie tag - Create a new HTML tag to customize the export of movies

The following properties must be defined for each HTML tag:

· Extensions - This HTML tag will only be used for these extensions. E.g. "mov,avi,mpeg". Note:
The following extensions have a specific meaning:
o Empty extension or <all> - Use an empty extension to specify the default HTML
embed code to use for all extensions not defined in that template

o "youtube" or "vimeo" - Use those extensions to customize the HTML embed code for
those online video hosting providers;

· Tag content - Specify the HTML code snippet which will be used to generate the final HTML
code for these extensions. Use the following placeholder to let HelpNDoc generate the proper
HTML code:

o %LOCATION% - Final URL of the HTML element as defined within the project
o %WIDTH% - Width of the HTML element as defined within the project
o %HEIGHT% - Height of the HTML element as defined within the project

Example
Let's say that our template should produce a custom HTML code for the following video
extensions: MPG, MPEG and MP4. Here is how we can proceed:

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· Create a "New HTML Tag" / "New movie tag"

· Add the follwoing extensions to the list: "mpg", "mpeg" and "mp4"

· Specify the custom HTML code to use. For example:

<object data="%LOCATION%" type="video/mpeg" width="%WIDTH%"
height="%HEIGHT%">
<param name="src" value="%LOCATION%">
<param name="autoplay" value="false">
<param name="autostart" value="0">
MPEG movie player required: <a href="%LOCATION%">%LOCATION%</a>
</object>
· Click "Save"

HelpNDoc will now use this HTML snippet to generate the proper HTML code each time one of
those video extensions is used within the project.

Hooks script

Once you have selected an HTML based template in the template editor, access the "Hooks script"
group in the "Edit template..." panel to manage the custom script used to hook some template
generation methods. Using hooks, it is possible to alter HelpNDoc's generation process to fine-
tune it for specific requirements.

Hook "Help Id" generation

The Hook_HelpIds function can be used to customize how the Help ID topic property is
produced. It is particularly useful for the HTML documentation format as the Help ID is used to
produce each topic's file name and therefore, the URL used to access specific topics. Customizing
the Help ID can therefore be used for search engine optimization (SEO) purposes .

Simple hook function

The following Hook_HelpIds function simply makes the Help ID upper-case:

function Hook_HelpIds(aTopicID: string; aHelpId: string): string;

begin
Result := aHelpId.toUpper();
end;

URL-encoded caption hook function

The following Hook_HelpIds function will not use HelpNDoc's Help ID at all, but instead it will:

· Get the topic's caption

· Encode it to make it a valid URL

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function Hook_HelpIds(aTopicID: string; aHelpId: string): string;

begin
Result := HndUtils.UrlEncode(HndTopics.GetTopicCaption(aTopicId));
end;

More advance hook function

The following Hook_HelpIds function will not use HelpNDoc's Help ID at all, but instead it will:

· Get the topic's caption

· Make it lower-case

· Replace any spaces with a dash

· Filter any non alpha-numeric content

function Hook_HelpIds(aTopicID: string; aHelpId: string): string;

begin
Result :=
HndUtils.FilterAlphaNumericString(HndTopics.GetTopicCaption(aTopicID).toLower().replac
e(' ', '-'), False, True, True);
end;

Word and PDF templates

Word and PDF templates can be customized using the template editor. Select a Word or PDF
template to access its customizable settings:

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· Page settings: manage page size, orientation, margins, headers and footers sizes
· Cover page: customize the content of the cover page

· Header / Footers: customize the content of the headers and footers

· Table of contents: customize the look and feel of the table of contents including Text layout

· Topic titles: customize the look and feel of the topic titles includingText layout

Text layout

Use the text layout dialog to define how the specified text (title, table of contents entry...) is
displayed in the generated documentation.

· Font settings: define the font and its formats

· Paragraph settings: define paragraph settings including numbering format

· Borders: define visible borders and settings

Numbering format
Define how a topic numbering is formatted. E.g. topic "2.3.4" with numbering format "n-R-a" will
be displayed as "2-III-d"

Possible values:

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Placeholder value Definition Sample

n Integer value 2 becomes 2

r Lowercase Roman value 2 becomes ii

R Uppercase Roman value 2 becomes II

a Lowercase alpha value 2 becomes b

A Uppercase alpha value 2 becomes B

\t Tabular character

Anything else Displayed as-is

Low-level template details

The template editor is a visual interface which simplifies the creation and management of
templates. Behind the scenes, when a modification is made through the template editor, it is
stored to the template files on the hard drive, following a specific convention. This section explains
the template's low-level details, starting with the best practices.

Best practices

HelpNDoc comes with a set of default (Standard) templates for all the documentation formats.
Those templates are located in the "Templates" sub-directory of the HelpNDoc's installation
directory, usually under "Program Files\IBE Software\HelpNDoc\Templates".

In addition to that, a user template directory is created when HelpNDoc is installed. It is located
under "My Documents\HelpNDoc\Templates" and can be customized in HelpNDoc's options
window.

Recent versions of Windows won't allow non-administrator users to change anything in the
"Program Files" directory, that's why it is recommended to edit all the templates in the "My
Documents" template directory instead.

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Template kind sub-directories

Templates are located in the following sub-directories based on their action:

· chm - Templates used to generate compiled HTML Help documentation

· code - Templates used to generate code for various programming languages

· epub - Templates used to generate ePub eBooks

· html - Templates used to generate on-line HTML documentation

· markdown - Template used to generate Markdown files

· mobi - Templates used to generate MobiPocket / Kindle eBooks

· pdf - Templates used to generate PDF documentation

· qthelp - Templates used to generate Qt Help files

· word - Templates used to generate Word documentation

Assets
A template can contain an optional "assets" folder. All the files and sub-folders contained in that
folder will be copied in the documentation's output directory. This is useful to add external files to
the templates, such as CSS or JavaScript to HTML templates. Note: The content of the "assets"
folder will be copied directly in the generated documentation's output directory, not in an "assets"
sub-directory.

Modify a default template

· Copy the default template's directory from "Program Files\IBE

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Software\HelpNDoc\Templates\TEMPLATE-KIND\TEMPLATE-NAME" to the user's template

directory under "My Documents\HelpNDoc\Templates\TEMPLATE-KIND\NEW-TEMPLATE-
NAME

· Edit the template.info file to change the template's name

· Add, delete or modify any other file to update the template's content

Template configuration file

The template.info file is a standard INI file located in all the templates folders and is used to
specify basic information on that template such as the name, category and extension.

The template.info file requires a "config" section with the following values:

· name - defines the name of the template as shown in the project options and help generation
dialog

· category - defines the category of the template and used to combine code templates in the
quick generation popup menu

· extension - defines the extension of the main file which will be generated by this template (e.g.
"chm" for CHM help files). This only serves as a suggestion for the default file name, as the file
extension can be changed for each build
· topicextension - defines the extension of the topics file (e.g. "htm" for CHM help files).
Templates can use this value to generate topic files.

Sample template.info file

The following template.info file describes a sample CHM template:

[config]
name=Sample CHM template
category=CHM Documentation
extension=chm

Template information can be accessed from script files using the

HndGeneratorInfo.TemplateInfo object which has the following properties:

· category: string
· name: string
· folder: string
· kind: string
· extension: string
· topicextension: string
· inherits: string

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· standard: boolean
· variables: THndTemplateVariableInfoArray

Template inheritance

As mentioned in the best practices, it is not advised to modify the default templates provided with
HelpNDoc usually located in the "program files" directory. Furthermore, some templates might
need only subtle changes to a subset of the files to suit the requirements. That's why HelpNDoc
introduces the template inheritance concept where a template can "inherit" from a parent template,
thus using all its template files, and only override the required files.

Inheriting from a parent template

From the final children template, just add the "inherits" key in thetemplate.info file's "config"
section and mention the parent template's name as the value. As an example:

[config]
name=Child template
category=HTML Documentation
extension=html
inherits=Default HTML Template

This configuration file instructs HelpNDoc to use the template named "Default HTML Template" as
the parent template. Only template files from the same documentation format can be used as a
parent template.

Overriding a template file

To change the content of a file, just place a file with the same name in the same directory within
the child template. HelpNDoc will use this file instead of the one from the parent template. As an
example, if the parent template contains the file "index.pas.html" it is possible to override this file
by creating a file named "index.pas.html" in the child template's folder with alternative content.

How is it working
At generation time, HelpNDoc reads the template selected for the project. If that template inherits
from a parent template, HelpNDoc will first generate a new temporary template as follows:

1. The parent template's entire content is copied into a temporary folder;

2. The child template (the one selected for the documentation generation) is copied over this
parent template, replacing any duplicate file if required;

3. The template.info files are merged to preserve the sections and keys from both templates, and
override the duplicate ones using the child template's data.

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Limitations
Some limitations apply to the template inheritance feature:

· It is not possible to inherit from a template from a different documentation format: an HTML
template can't inherit from a CHM template and a Word template can't inherit from a PDF
template for example;
· It is not possible to remove files from the original template, just add or override existing files

Code templates

Code templates are very similar to CHM and HTML templates except for the fact that they usually
won't need access to the topic's contents and can't access to their HTML content. Here are the
steps involved to create a code template:

· Create a new folder under "My Documents\HelpNDoc\Templates\Code" with the name of the
new template

· Create a new template.info file in that template folder and add the required name, category
and extension
· Create a new file containing the ".pas" text before the extension. As an example, we will create a
"sample.pas.txt" file. Only files containing the ".pas" text will be interpreted by HelpNDoc

· Add sample code to that template

In HelpNDoc, the new code template will appear in the "Code Generation" category of the
"Generate help" popup menu in the "Project" section of the "Home" ribbon tab.

CHM and HTML templates

The CHM and HTML template system can be used to tailor the output for HTML-based
documentation generation. The template system is very similar to the code template but can also
access the topic's HTML content. To learn how to create a new HTML template, see the "Building a
single page HTML template" topic. Also learn how to:

· Handle the generated topic links

· Methods available in templates

· Generate multiple files from a single template file

· Template variables

· Assets

· HTML tags

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Handle the generated topic links

HelpNDoc will automatically generate links to topics and anchors for you. By default, it assumes
that topics will be generated in a file called "%helpid%.html" where "%helpid%" is the value of the
help id of that topic. However, this is not always the case so HelpNDoc provides a way of
customizing the format of the generated topic and anchor links. They can be modified in the
"config" section of the template.info file. Here is a sample:

linkformattopic=#%helpid%
linkformatanchor=#%anchorname%

The possible variables to be used in the topic and anchors link formats are:

· %topicid% - The internal HelpNDoc's managed unique topic id

· %helpid% - The topic's help id value

· %anchorname% - The name of the anchor as specified in HelpNDoc, if any

Methods available in templates

HTML and CHM templates can leverage various methods to get information or manipulate the
currently opened project. See methods available in the HelpNDoc API.

Generate multiple files from a single template file

When interpreting a template file, HelpNDoc will automatically save the printed content to the
documentation's output directory and use the template file name, without the ".pas" part. For
example, the "topics.pas.html" file will be interpreted and the result will be written in the
"topics.html" file.

As it isn't possible nor sane to create a template file for every single file HelpNDoc has to generate,
the template system has a special property to switch the file currently being written. The code
required to do that is:

HndGeneratorInfo.CurrentFile := 'my-new-file.html';

When the template system interprets that line, it will automatically output any further content to
the file specified, in the documentation's output directory. This trick is used by the CHM and HTML
templates to output each individual topics into their own HTML file:

// Loop through each topics

for nCurTopic := 0 to length(aTopicList) - 1 do
begin
// Change the current output
HndGeneratorInfo.CurrentFile := aTopicList[nCurTopic].HelpId + '.html';
// Write the content of the topic to that file

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// ...
end;

Template variables

CHM and HTML templates can define template variables in the template.info file. Those variables
will be presented in a user-friendly way in the documentation generation dialog and will be saved
within the project file. The template can request for user-defined values and act upon them to
customize itself based on user input. Possible template variables usages include:

· Making a section optional. This is done in the default CHM and HTML templates with the
breadcrumbs line which can be hidden from generated documentation
· Customizing the documentation appearance. In the HTML template, it is possible to specify a
base color, an icon set, default tree expansion status...

· Provide localized texts. The default HTML template defines the captions for the "Index",
"Search" and "Content" tabs as variables so that it is possible to translate them from within
HelpNDoc

Defining template variables

Template variables are defined as sections in the template.info file. Those sections' name must
begin with the var_ keyword followed by a unique variable identifier. Let's consider the following
sample variable section:

[var_BaseColor]
name=Base color
kind=color
default=#EFEFEF
description=Customize the documentation's base color.

This defines a new variable with the following information:

· Identifier is BaseColor

· Name is Base color

· Kind is color
· Default value is #EFEFEF

· Description is Customize the documentation's base color.

This will be displayed in the HelpNDoc template settings dialog as follows:

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Variables section attributes

The following attributes should be defined in a variable sections:

Attribute Description Remarks

Will be displayed to identify the variable in the

name Name of the variable
settings dialog

Can be bool, color, enum, int, libitem, memo, string.

kind Kind of variable
See kinds of variables

Choose between multiple

default Default value for this variable if not set in HelpNDoc
values

Possible values for this Only for enum variables, using the pipe character as
values
variable a separator. Example: "blue|red"

Will be displayed to explain the purpose of this

description Explanation for this variable
variable

Kinds of variables
A variable can be set as one of the following kinds depending on its purpose:

Kind Description Remarks

Often used for a conditional section which will be

bool Conditional Yes/No value
displayed or not based on its value

color Standard color value Can be used to define the color of a specific element

Choose between multiple Use the "values" attribute to specify the possible
enum
values values. Example: "values=chm|folder|vista"

int Integer value

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libitem Select a library item Gives the ability to select an item from the library

memo Memo value

string Character, word or sentences

Setting-up template variables

Variables are set-up from within HelpNDoc's document generation dialog. CHM and HTML
templates provide a "Customize" link which show the template customization dialog. This dialog
lists all the variables for this template, and provides a way to customize them. Customized variable
values will be saved with the current project.

Requesting template variables

To request the value of a template variable from within the template itself, use the
HndGeneratorInfo.GetCustomSettingValue method specifying the variable identifier. As an
example, the BaseColor value will be requested as follows:

HndGeneratorInfo.GetCustomSettingValue('BaseColor');

Assets

Any file or folder placed in the "assets" sub-folder of an HTML based template won't be processed
by HelpNDoc: they will be copied to the root directory of the generated documentation.

Assets can be used to generate additional images, CSS style-sheets, JavaScript code or any other
baggage file or folder that might be needed alongside the generated HTML based
documentation.

Managing assets
To manage assets for a specific template, simply create the "assets" sub-folder in that template's
directory, and add files to that directory. Any file added there will be copied as-is in the final
output folder.

Note: Even though they are placed in the template's "assets" sub-directory, they will be copied to
the root of the generated folder.

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HTML tags

The HTML specification frequently evolves and some library items (such as Movies) might need a
custom HTML code to be generated based on the targeted platform and its mime type. For this
purpose, HelpNDoc's HTML based templates can be customized to generate custom code based
on item extension.

Naming convention
HTML tags source files are placed in the templates' "tags" sub-directory using the following file
name pattern:

KIND_EXTENSIONS.html

Where:

· KIND - is the library item kind (e.g. movie). Required. Available kinds are: movie

· EXTENSIONS - the list of file extensions which will use this source code. Multiple extensions
are separated by a comma. Not required.

Sample file names:

File name Description

Will be used to generate the source code for movies with the
movie_avi,mov.html
.AVI or .MOV extension

Will be used to generate the source code for movies with the
movie_mp4.html
.MP4 extension

Will be used to generate the source code for all movies not
movie.html
handled by another HTML tag file

Placeholders
Within the source code for a specific tag, the following place-holders are available and will be
replaced by HelpNDoc at generation time:

Name Description

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%LOCATION% Final URL of the HTML element

%WIDTH% Width of the HTML element

%HEIGHT% Height of the HTML element

Sample content
Let's that we'd like to handle movies with the MP4 file extension. In the template's directory, we
can create the tag file named "tags\movie_mp4.html". Its content could be:

<video width="%WIDTH%" height="%HEIGHT%" controls>

<source src="%LOCATION%" type="video/mp4">
Your browser does not support the video tag.
</video>

Samples

· Building a single page HTML template

Step by step tutorial on how to build a template which will output all the topics in a single
page

Building a single page HTML template

In this section, we will create a new HTML template from scratch. This template will create a single-
page HTML documentation where all the topics are grouped on that single page. The final version
of this template is installed with HelpNDoc and can be found in the "My
Documents\HelpNDoc\Templates\html\SinglePage" directory.

Template directory
First we need to create a directory for the new template. Custom templates are located in the "My
Documents\HelpNDoc\Templates" directory. As we are creating an HTML template which we'll call
"SinglePage", we will create the following directory for our new template: "My
Documents\HelpNDoc\Templates\html\SinglePage".

The template.info file

Each template must include a "template.info" file with basic template information. Let's create one
in the template directory with the following content:

[config]
name=Single page HTML template

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extension=html

Template code file

It's time to go to the heart of our template by creating a new file which will contain the code to
instruct HelpNDoc on how to generate our HTML file. To be interpreted by HelpNDoc, the file must
contain the ".pas" text before its extension, which means it will contain Pascal code. So let's create a
file named "index.pas.html" in the template directory and edit using any text editor.

Any text which is added to that file will be written as is in the final output, except if it is included in
the <% %> tags, which are used to insert special instruction code. The steps involved to create the
initial code are:

· Instruct the template system to output the HTML file BOM (Byte Order Mark). This is only
necessary for HTML files in Internet Explorer on Window with some languages (1)

· Instruct the template to output to the user defined file as we are only generating a single file
(2)

So the "index.pas.html" file now contains:

<%
begin
// 1. Output BOM for HTML UTF8 files
HndGeneratorInfo.BOMOutput := True;
// 2. Instruct the generator to generate the desired output file
HndGeneratorInfo.CurrentFile := ExtractFileName(HndGeneratorInfo.OutputFile);
%>

<html>
<head>

</head>

<body>
Sample HTML Code
</body>
</html>

<%
end.
%>

Get the topics list

Templates have access to a number of functions, objects and variables to help them generate an
output. We first need to get a list of topics available in the current project. To do so, we create a
new variable before the "begin" keyword and request the topic list (3). The "index.pas.html" file
now contains:

<%

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// Variable declarations
var
// List of topics available in the current project
aTopicList: THndTopicsInfoArray;

begin
// 1. Output BOM for HTML UTF8 files
HndGeneratorInfo.BOMOutput := True;
// 2. Instruct the generator to generate the desired output file
HndGeneratorInfo.CurrentFile := ExtractFileName(HndGeneratorInfo.OutputFile);
// 3. Get the list of topics available
aTopicList := HndTopics.GetTopicList(False);
%>

<html>
<head>

</head>

<body>
Sample HTML Code
</body>
</html>

<%
end.
%>

Output the topics' content

Now that we have a list of topics, we can output their content by looping through that list. The
steps involved are:

· Create an iteration variable (4) - This variable will be used by the loop

· Loop through the topics (5) - The topics are treated one by one in that loop

· Notify the template system about the current topic being generated (6) - The template system
can't know which topic is currently treated, that's why we notify it using the HndGeneratorInfo
object
· Output the topic content (7) - We ask for the HTML content of the topic and we output it

The "index.pas.html" file now contains:

<%
// Variable declarations
var
// List of topics available in the current project
aTopicList: THndTopicsInfoArray;
var
// 4. Current topic index
nCurTopic: Integer;

// Main program
begin
// 1. Output BOM for HTML UTF8 files
HndGeneratorInfo.BOMOutput := True;

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// 2. Instruct the generator to generate the desired output file

HndGeneratorInfo.CurrentFile := ExtractFileName(HndGeneratorInfo.OutputFile);
// 3. Get the list of topics available
aTopicList := HndTopics.GetTopicList(False);
%>

<html>
<head>

</head>

<body>
<%

// 5. Loop through all the topics

for nCurTopic := 0 to length(aTopicList) - 1 do
begin
// 6. Notify about the topic being generated
HndGeneratorInfo.CurrentTopic := aTopicList[nCurTopic].id;
// 7. Output the topic content
print(HndTopics.GetTopicContentAsHtml(HndGeneratorInfo.CurrentTopic));
end;

%>
</body>
</html>

<%
end.
%>

Add the titles

The template now display the whole content of all the topics in a single page. However, no title is
displayed. Let's add the topic titles before the topics as well as an HTML anchor to be able to link
to that topic later on. The steps involved are:

· Declare a new variable nTopicLevel (8) - This variable will be used to get the level of the topic
and output the correct HTML heading to the topic title

· Output an HTML anchor (9) - This anchor will be used to link to that specific topics afterwards

· Get the topic level (10) - We request the level of the current topic so we can output the correct
HTML heading

· Output the topic title (11) - We can now correctly output the title of the topic

Between steps (6) and (7) we now add the following lines in the "index.pas.html" file:

// 9. Add an anchor to be able to link to that topic

printf('<a name="%s"></a>', [aTopicList[nCurTopic].helpid]);
// 10. Get the topic level
nTopicLevel := HndTopics.GetTopicLevel(HndGeneratorInfo.CurrentTopic);
// 11. Add the topic title
printf('<h%d>%s</h%d>', [nTopicLevel,
HndTopics.GetTopicHeaderTextCalculated(HndGeneratorInfo.CurrentTopic), nTopicLevel]);

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Adding some style

The output now contains all the content from our documentation but it doesn't look like what
we've designed in HelpNDoc. That's due to the fact that we didn't add any style coming from
HelpNDoc. This can be done in a single step, by requesting for the style content and adding it into
the HTML's head section (12). To do so, we add the following lines in the "<head>" section of the
"index.pas.html" file:

<style type="text/css">
<%
// 12. Output global CSS content
print(HndProjects.GetProjectCssContent());
%>
</style>

Fixing the links

The output looks as we designed it now but links to topics are not working correctly. This is due to
the fact that by default, HelpNDoc assumes that each topic will be generated in its own file which
will be named "%helpid%.html" where "%helpid%" is the help id of that topic, as explained in the
"Handle the generated topic links" topic. This can be customized: to change this default behavior,
we need to edit the template.info file and add the following key/values in the config section. They
define the format for topic links and anchor links:

linkformattopic=#%helpid%
linkformatanchor=#%anchorname%

Final touches
As we have seen, the possibilities are endless: we could add some custom-made CSS file in the
assets folder to customize the HTML headings, add the title of the project, the copyright,
completely modify the look and feel of our web-page, split it in sections... Some of those ideas are
added in the final sample file which is installed with HelpNDoc and can be found in the "My
Documents\HelpNDoc\Templates\html\SinglePage" directory.

Template specifics

Each template provided with HelpNDoc is custom-made to achieve a specific task. Sometimes,
templates can have additional features, limitations, or gotchas which are only available on this
specific template. Explore detailed insights on template-specific features in the subsequent
sections:

· Default HTML template: JavaScript on page change

· GitHub wiki Markdown template

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Default HTML template: JavaScript on page change

The standard HTML template in HelpNDoc has undergone significant optimizations for enhanced
speed in downloading and navigating. This optimization means that when a user selects a topic
from the table of contents, HelpNDoc only refreshes the topic's content instead of reloading the
entire page. As a result, certain elements like page-specific JavaScript code may not execute when
a page is accessed via the table of contents. To address this, HelpNDoc provides a specific event,
app.EVENTS.onTopicChanged, to track changes in topics.
The usage of this event is as follows:

app.EVENTS.onTopicChanged = (sUrl) => { /* Custom code run when a new topic is loaded
*/ }

There are multiple ways to listen to this event:

· Add "Custom JavaScript" code to the default HTML template's settings. See: HTML
documentation settings
This will automatically add the code in all generated documentation page
· Create a new custom template and enter the code within the template's generated content.
See: Working with templates
This provides greater flexibility at the price of additional initial complexity

GitHub wiki Markdown template

The GitHub wiki Markdown template can be used to generate GitHub compatible wiki pages. This
section contains various details on how to best support GitHub wiki pages.

Activate wikis in a GitHub repository

To activate wikis in a GitHub repository, you need to go to your repository's main page, click on
the "General" tab, scroll down to the "Features" section, and then check the box next to "Wikis".
This will enable the wiki feature for your repository.
For more detailed information, you can refer to the official GitHub documentation page on
enabling wikis in a repository: Enabling wiki support.

Updating your GitHub repository's wiki pages

You first need to clone your GitHub repository's Wiki pages locally by following these steps:

1. Go to the GitHub repository that contains the Wiki you want to clone.

2. Use the git clone command followed by the URL of the Wiki to clone the Wiki
repository locally. To access the repository's Wiki URL, simply add the ".wiki.git" at the end
of the repository's name. For example:

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git clone https://github.com/<YOUR-USERNAME>/<YOUR-

REPOSITORY>.wiki.git

To update the Wiki pages and push the modified content back to the repository, you can do the
following:

1. Generate your content from HelpNDoc in the local cloned repository

2. Once you have made the updates, navigate to the directory where you cloned the Wiki
repository using the terminal

3. Use the following commands to add the changes, commit them, and push them to the
repository:
git add .
git commit -m "Updated Wiki pages with new content"
git push

Usage from the command line

HelpNDoc handles various command line parameters to be able to update and generate
documentation without user interface. This is useful to integrate the documentation generation
process with an automated build process for example.

Note: The command line syntax has changed in HelpNDoc 5.4 ans is not backward compatible.
Check Legacy command line syntax for 5.3 and older to learn more about command line syntax in
HelpNDoc 5.3 and earlier.

Command line syntax

The overall command line syntax is as follows:

hnd9.exe [project] [global-options] [command] [command-options]

Where:

Command line option Explanation

hnd9.exe HelpNDoc program

[project] Path of the HND project file to open or build. Optional. See Project

[global-options] Options available for every command. Optional. See Global Options

[command] The command to perform. Optional. See Commands

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[command-options] Command specific options. Optional. See Commands

Project
Indicates the full or relative path of a *.HND project file.
When specified without any command, HelpNDoc's user interface is shown and opens with the
specified project.
Note: Mandatory for the build command.

Global options
The following options are global: they can be useful for any commands:

Command line option Explanation

-help or -h Help on HelpNDoc: show a list of available commands and options

-log or -l Indicates the log file path: any information displayed on the command
prompt will also be saved to that file.
> hnd9.exe myproject.hnd -log=c:\tmp\log.txt build

-openhelpid or -oi Focus the topic with the specified Help ID once the project is opened

-openhelpctx or -oc Focus the topic with the specified Help context once the project is
opened

-reset or -r Reset HelpNDoc settings. When indicated, settings such as window

positions, compiler location... won't be loaded from the registry. The
new settings are saved to the registry when the application closes. This
can be useful to troubleshoot potential settings problems.

> hnd9.exe -r

-silent or -s Command line is in silent mode: it will automatically close without user
interaction

-verbose or -v Command line is verbose: it will display additional information if

available

-verysilent or -ss Command line is in very silent mode: it won't even open a command
window

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Commands
The following commands are available from the command line.

Note: Use the -help or -h after the command to get more information about that command.

Command line option Explanation

build Build the specified *.hnd project file using either the project's settings or
overrides from the command line. See "build" command

license Information and management of the license. See "license" command

script Run a script using the HelpNDoc API to automate project creation or
modification. See "script" command

"build" command
The build command is used to build a *.hnd project file from the command line, without showing
HelpNDoc's user interface.

When run without any options, it will use the project settings to generate all enabled builds. It is
possible to override some project settings with command options:

Command line option Explanation

-except or -e Generates all project builds except the specified ones. It is possible to
use this command multiple times.

> hnd9.exe myproject.hnd build -e="Build HTML documentation" -

e="Build CHM documentation"

-help or -h Help on this command.

> hnd9.exe build -h

-only or -x Generates only the specified build names. It is possible to use this
command multiple times.

> hnd9.exe myproject.hnd build -x="Build PDF documentation" -

x="Build Word documentation"

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-output or -o Override the output path for a specific build.

> hnd9.exe myproject.hnd build -o="Build HTML documentation:c:

\www\index.html"

-statuses or -u Override the statuses included for a specific build.

> hnd9.exe myproject.hnd build -u="Build HTML

documentation:Complete,Needs Review"

-tags or -a Override tags generated for a specific build.

> hnd9.exe myproject.hnd build -a="Build HTML

documentation:clientA,clientB"

-template or -t Override template used for a specific build.

> hnd9.exe myproject.hnd build -t="Build HTML documentation:Legacy

HTML framed template"

"license" command
The license command can be used to manage the license of the full version of HelpNDoc.
Available options are:

Command line option Explanation

-activate or -a Activate a specific license key on this computer. Make sure the previous
license key is deactivated first.

> hnd9.exe license -a="ABCDE-FGHIJ-KLMNO-PQRST-UVWXY"

· Warning: This requires Internet access to the license servers. If you

are behind a proxy, see how to set the proxy bellow.

· Offline activation: To proceed with an offline deactivation, use

both the -d and -o command line arguments.
> hnd9.exe license -a="ABCDE-FGHIJ-KLMNO-PQRST-UVWXY" -
o="c:\tmp\activation-request.xml"

-deactivate or -d Deactivate a previously activated license on this computer. This makes it

possible to move HelpNDoc's license key to another computer.

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> hnd9.exe license -d

· Warning: The number of allowed deactivations is limited to 5 to

limit abuses. If you need more deactivations, please contact us with
your license details.

· Offline deactivation: To proceed with an offline deactivation, use

both the -d and -o command line arguments.
> hnd9.exe license -d -o="c:\tmp\deactivation-request.xml"

-forcecheck or -f If you've recently updated your license of HelpNDoc, it is possible that

the license key is still not updated: using that command will connect to
the license servers to retrieve the latest license details.

> hnd9.exe license -f

· Warning: Make sure you are connected to the Internet to access the
license servers.

-help or -h Help on this command.

> hnd9.exe license -h

-info or -i Provides information about the activation of HelpNDoc on this

computer.

> hnd9.exe license -i

-offline or -o Generate activation / deactivation XML file for offline process.

> hnd9.exe license -a="ABCDE-FGHIJ-KLMNO-PQRST-UVWXY" -o="c:

\tmp\activation-request.xml"

> hnd9.exe license -o="c:\tmp\deactivation-request.xml"

-proxy or -p
By default, the license checker will use the proxy set up in Internet
Explorer. If you need to customize the proxy, you can indicate the proxy
address so that the activation process is able to correctly connect to the
license servers. Once done, the proxy address is saved and restored
each time the application is launched.

Proxy must be in the form "http://username:password@host:port/".

Note: if the port is not specified, it will default to 1080.

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> hnd9.exe license -p="http://username:[email protected]:8080"

"script" command
The script command can be used to execute a custom script using the available HelpNDoc API
methods to automate project creation or modification. Small scripts can be written in the
command line, while large scripts can be loaded from a file.

Note: If a project is specified in the command line syntax, it will be opened first before executing
the script, thus simplifying existing projects modification.

Command line option Explanation

-file or -f Load the script content from the file path specified.

> hnd9.exe script -f="c:\helpndoc\script.pas"

Note: If both the -f and -x command line options are defined, only the
-x one will be used.

-help or -h Help on this command.

> hnd9.exe script -h

-execute or -x Run the script code provided directly on the command line.

> hnd9.exe script -x="ShowMessage('OK');"

Note: If both the -f and -x command line options are defined, only the
-x one will be used.

Legacy command line syntax for 5.3 and older

Warning: The following command line syntax is valid for HelpNDoc 5.3 and older only. Starting
with HelpNDoc 5.4, a new command line syntax has been introduced which is not backward
compatible.

HelpNDoc's command line options use the syntax "hnd5.exe [FileName] [Parameters]" where
[FileName] is the optional HND file to be processed and the parameters are described bellow.
When run using the command line parameters bellow, HelpNDoc won't show any user interface

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except for a DOS prompt window.

Command line help

At any time, use the "hnd5.exe /?" command line to get help on the various command line syntax
and parameters.

Command line parameters

· /g - Generate the HelpNDoc "FileName" using project's settings

· /b=[value] - Override the list of build to generate from the project (Semi-colon separated list
of built)

· /v[name]=[value] - Set the [value] of variable [name] or create a new variable named [name]

· /silent - Silent mode: no user input required. Useful for automated build processes to avoid
user interaction
· /l=[value] - Output the generation log to the specified file
· /lic=[value] - License management. See bellow.

Command line examples

The following is a simple example of a possible use of the HelpNDoc's command line options:

> hnd5.exe myHelp.hnd /g

This translates to: generate the file "myHelp.hnd" according to the settings saved in that file.

> hnd5.exe myHelp.hnd /g /l=c:\log\hnd-log.txt

This translates to: generate the file "myHelp.hnd" according to the settings saved in that file and
save the log to the file "c:\log\hnd-log.txt"

> hnd5.exe myHelp.hnd /g /b="Build chm documentation";"Build pdf

documentation" /vMyVariable=MyValue

This translates to: generate the file "myHelp.hnd" by using the builds named "Build chm
documentation" and "Build pdf documentation" and modify or declare the variable "MyVariable"
with the value "MyValue".

License key management

The following commands are available from the command line to manage your license.

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Command line option Explanation

/lic=info Provides information about the activation of HelpNDoc on this

computer. Example:

> c:\program files\ IBE Software\HelpNDoc 5\hnd5.exe /lic=info

/lic=activate:KEY Activates a new license key. Make sure the previous license key is
deactivated first. Example:

> c:\program files\ IBE Software\HelpNDoc

5\hnd5.exe /lic=activate:ABCD-EFGH-IJKL-MNOP-QRST-UVWX-YZAB
Warning: This requires Internet access to the license servers. If you are
behind a proxy, see how to set the proxy bellow.

/lic=deactivate De-activates the current license key. This makes it possible to move
HelpNDoc's license key to another computer. Example:

> c:\program files\ IBE Software\HelpNDoc 5\hnd5.exe /lic=deactivate

Warning: The number of allowed de-activations is limited to 5 to limit
abuses. If you need more deactivations, please contact us with your
license details.

/lic=forcecheck If you've recently updated your license of HelpNDoc, it is possible that

the license key is still not updated: using that command will connect to
the license servers to retrieve the latest license details. Example:

> c:\program files\ IBE Software\HelpNDoc 5\hnd5.exe /lic=forcecheck

Warning: Make sure you are connected to the Internet to access the
license servers.

/lic=setproxy:PROXY_AD By default, the license checker will use the proxy set up in Internet
DRESS Explorer. If you need to customize the proxy, you can indicate the proxy
address so that the activation process is able to correctly connect to the
license servers. Once done, the proxy address is saved and restored
each time the application is launched.

Proxy must be in the form "http://username:password@host:port/".

Note: if the port is not specified, it will default to 1080.

Example:

> c:\program files\ IBE Software\HelpNDoc

5\hnd5.exe /lic=setproxy:http://username:[email protected]:8080

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To reset the proxy, simply pass an empty value:

> c:\program files\ IBE Software\HelpNDoc 5\hnd5.exe /lic=setproxy:

NTLM Proxies: The license checker also support NTLM proxies on

Windows. To use NTLM proxies you must also specify the domain. For
example:

> c:\program files\ IBE Software\HelpNDoc

5\hnd5.exe /lic=setproxy:http://DOMAIN\username:[email protected]
:8080

Warning: If setting the proxy doesn't work, try running HelpNDoc as an

administrator. If that still doesn't work, try using the following
command line from HelpNDoc's installation directory instead:

> TurboActivate.exe --proxy="http://username:password@host:port/"

Customize default project styles

It is possible to create and save a set of customized default styles which will be used by default
each time a new project is started. Here is a step by step guide on how to achieve that:

1. Create a customized set of styles using the styles editor

2. At the bottom of the styles editor, click "export..."

3. Styles must be exported to your home HelpNDoc folder, which is "My

Documents\HelpNDoc\Styles\default.hns" by default and can be customized in the Options
window.

For now on, each time a new project is created, the set of styles defined in this file will be loaded
and available for that project.

See the How to customize the default styles for new projects step-by-step guide.

Using the Script Editor

The script editor provides a way to use a programming language, based on the Pascal syntax, to
automate HelpNDoc. Almost everything in HelpNDoc can be automated, from project creation to
library management. See methods available in the HelpNDoc API.

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Bookmarks
When bookmarks are enabled, use the CTRL + SHIFT + 1 to 9 keyboard shortcuts to place
bookmarks within the code. Bookmarks can then be reached using the CTRL + 1 to 9 keyboard
shortcuts.

Migration
The following topic explains the script modifications needed to migrate to newer versions of
HelpNDoc: Migrating scripts and templates

See the How to use the script editor step-by-step guide.

Object pascal subset

HelpNDoc's scripting system is a subset of the Object Pascal language. In addition to usual object
Pascal code, HelpNDoc provides an extensive set of API methods which can be used to automate
multiple tasks from project creation to control how documentation is generated.

A typical script includes:

1. Variable and constant definitions

const
constant1 = 'Hello';
var
variable1, variable2: string;
var
variable3: integer;

2. Procedure and function definitions

procedure test1();
begin
variable1 := constant1 + ' World';
end;

function test2(): string;

begin
Result := constant1 + ' Universe';
end;

3. Main program code

begin
test1();
Print(variable1);
Print(test2());
end.

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Template specific code structure

Template script files usually include a mix of text (e.g. HTML) and Pascal code. To simplify this
process and avoid having to use multiple print statements, template script files uses a
convention similar to ASP.net or PHP code: everything not surrounded by <% and %> is treated as
raw content and exported as-is. As an example:

<html>
<head>
<title><% print('Hello World');%></title>
</head>
<body>
<% for var i := 0 to 10 do begin %>
Hello <%= i %>
<% end; %>
</body>
</html>

Will output:

<html>
<head>
<title>Hello World</title>
</head>
<body>
Hello 0
Hello 1
Hello 2
Hello 3
Hello 4
Hello 5
Hello 6
Hello 7
Hello 8
Hello 9
Hello 10
</body>
</html>

Note: <%= 'Hello World' %> is the same as <% print('Hello World'); %>

Base types

The following types can be used in scripts and templates:

Type Description

Boolean True or False

When casting a Boolean as Integer, by convention
True maps to 1, False maps to 0. When casting an

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Integer as Boolean, 0 maps to False, all other values

map to True.

Methods:

· ToString
Conversion to string

Float Double-precision floating point. 15 significant digits,

exponent -308 to +308.
Presence of a dot "." differentiates literals from an
Integer.
Notations:

· Normal. E.g. 948.4685

· Exponential. E.g. 9484685e23

Methods:
· ToString
Conversion to string

Integer 64-bit signed integer. From -9223372036854775808

to 9223372036854775807.
Notations:

· Decimal. E.g. 948 ; -65190

· Hexadecimal. E.g. $1AF or 0x1AF

· Binary. E.g. 0b10011101
For formatting purposes, the underscore character "_"
is accepted and ignored in Hexadecimal and Binary
literals.

Methods:

· ToString
Conversion to string

String Mutable, copy-on-write, 1-based, UTF-16 string.

Strings can be delimited by a single or a double-
quote.
In a single-quoted string, a single quote can be
expressed by doubling it. In a double-quoted string, a
double-quote can be expressed by doubling it.

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Double-quoted strings can span multiple lines.

Explicit Unicode characters can be specified by using #

followed by an integer value (decimal or hexadecimal).
Characters specified this way are always understood
as Unicode value:

Print('Hello'#13#$0D'World');

Will print 'Hello' followed by CR+LF (ASCII code 13

and 10), followed by 'World', it can also be defined
with:

Print("Hello
World");

Methods:

· After(Delimiter: string): string

Returns characters after a delimiter
· Before(Delimiter: string): string
Returns characters before a delimiter
· Contains(SubString: string): Boolean
Returns true if the string contains the sub-string
· DeleteLeft(N: integer): string
Deletes N characters to the left
· DeleteRight(N: integer): string
Deletes N characters to the right

· Dupe(N: integer): string

Duplicate the string N times

· EndsWith(SubString: string): Boolean

Returns true if the string ends with the sub-string

· High
Index of last letter

· Left(N: integer): string

Return N characters to the left

· Low
Index of first letter

· LowerCase
Converts to ASCII lower case

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· Length
Length of the string

· Reverse
Returns a version of the string with the characters
reversed

· Right(N: integer): string

Return N characters to the right

· Split(Separator: string): array of

string
Split a string on a separator and returns an array
of strings

· StartsWith(SubString: string):
Boolean
Returns true if the string starts with the sub-string
· ToBoolean
Converts to Boolean

· ToFloat
Converts to float

· ToFloatDef(DefaultValue: float)
Tries to convert to float, use DefaultValue if not
possible

· ToInteger
Converts to integer

· ToIntegerDef(DefaultValue: integer)
Tries to convert to integer, use DefaultValue if not
possible
· ToLower
Converts to lower case
· ToUpper
Converts to upper case
· Trim
Trim control characters left and right
· TrimLeft
Trim left control characters
· TrimRight
Trim right control characters

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· UpperCase
Converts to ASCII upper case

Built-in functions

The following functions are built-in HelpNDoc's script engine and can be used in scripts and
templates.

String related functions

Function Description

Chr(i: Integer): Char; Returns the character for a specified ASCII value.

DupeString(str: string; count: Returns the concatenation of a string with itself a

Integer): string;
specified number of repeats.

IntToStr(i: Integer): string; Converts an integer to a string.

StrToInt(str: string): Converts a string that represents an integer into a

Integer;
number.

StrToIntDef(str: string; def: Converts a string that represents an integer into a

Integer): Integer;
number with error default.

IntToHex(v: Integer; digits: Returns the hexadecimal representation of an ordinal

Integer): string;
number.

HexToInt(hexa: string): Returns the integer value of an hexadecimal

Integer;
representation.

BoolToStr(b: Boolean): string; Converts a Boolean value into a string.

StrToBool(str: string): Converts a string to a Boolean value.

Boolean;

FloatToStr(f: Float): string; Converts a floating-point value to a string.

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StrToFloat(str: string): Converts a given string to a floating-point value.

Float;

StrToFloatDef(str: string; Converts a given string into a floating-point value,

def: Float): Float;
with a default error.

Format(fmt: string; args array Returns a formatted string assembled from a format
of const): string;
string and an array of arguments.

The following table summarizes the possible values

for type:

· d - Decimal. The argument must be an integer

value. The value is converted to a string of decimal
digits;

· u - Unsigned decimal. Similar to d, but no sign is

output;
· e - Scientific. The argument must be a floating-
point value. The value is converted to a string of
the form "-d.ddd...E+ddd";

· f - Fixed. The argument must be a floating-point

value. The value is converted to a string of the
form "-ddd.ddd...";
· g - General. The argument must be a floating-
point value. The value is converted to the shortest
possible decimal string using fixed or scientific
format;

· n - Number. The argument must be a floating-

point value. The value is converted to a string of
the form "-d,ddd,ddd.ddd...". The n format
corresponds to the f format, except that the
resulting string contains thousand separators;

· m - Money. The argument must be a floating-

point value;

· s - String. The argument must be a character, or a

string;
· x - Hexadecimal. The argument must be an

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integer value.

To display the character % (that is, to display a literal

%, not to begin a format specifier), use the sequence
%%. Example:
Format('%d%%', [50]); // Displays 50%

LowerCase(str: string): Converts a string to lowercase.

string;

UpperCase(str: string): Converts a string to uppercase.

string;

PadLeft(str: string; count: Left-aligns a string into a fixed length text using the
Integer; char: Char = ' '):
character specified.
string;

PadRight(str: string; count: Right-aligns a string into a fixed length text using the
Integer; char: Char = ' '):
character specified.
string;

Pos(needle: string; haystack: Locates a substring in a given string. Start at offset if

string): Integer;
specified.
Pos(needle: string; haystack:
string; offset: Integer):
Integer;

ReverseString(str: string): Returns the reverse of a specified string.

string;

SameText(str1: string; str2: Compares two strings by ordinal value without case
string): Boolean;
sensitivity.

StringOfChar(ch: Char; count: Returns a string with a specified number of repeating

Integer): string;
characters.

SubStr(str: string; start: Returns a specified substring the specified string.

Integer; Length: Integer =
MaxInt): string;

TrimLeft(str: string): string; Removes blank and control characters from the left
side of a string.

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TrimRight(str: string): Removes blank and control characters from the right
string;
side of a string.

Trim(str: string): string; Removes blank and control characters from both
sides of a string.

HelpNDoc API methods

The HelpNDoc API is based on the Pascal programming language. The following list describes the
methods available via the HelpNDoc API. As an example for the ClearDictionaries method,
it can be used as follows: HndDictionaries.ClearDictionaries();

List of objects Global types

• HndUtils - Various utility methods • THndBuildInfo - Information about a

• HndBuilds - Properties and methods for specific build
Builds. • THndBuildInfoArray - Array of
• HndBuildsEx - Additional properties and THndBuildInfo
methods for Builds. • THndBuildActionInstanceInfo -
• HndBuildsActions - Handle pre- and post- Information about a specific build action
build actions • THndBuildActionInstanceInfoArray - List
• HndBuildsLibraryOverrides - API of build action info
functions to manage library overrides for • PHndBuildLibraryOverrideInfo - Pointer to
individual builds THndBuildLibraryOverrideInfo
• HndBuildsMeta - Access to builds meta • THndBuildLibraryOverrideInfo -
data Information about a specific build library
• HndBuildsMetaEx - Additional methods override
related to builds meta data • THndBuildLibraryOverrideInfoArray -
• HndBuildsStatus - Handle relationship Array of THndBuildLibraryOverrideInfo
between builds and statuses • THndBuildStyleInfo
• HndBuildsStatusEx - Additional methods • THndBuildStyleInfoArray
to handle relationship between builds and • THndDictionaryInfo - Information about a
statuses specific dictionary
• HndBuildsStyles - Handle overridden • THndDictionaryInfoArray - Array of
styles for each builds THndDictionaryInfo
• HndBuildsTags - Handle relationship • THndCaretMovement - Caret movement
between builds and tags • THndVAlign - Vertical alignment of a
• HndBuildsTagsEx - Additional methods picture

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to handle relationship between builds and • THndHVAlignment - Table cell alignment

tags • THndHyperlinkKind - Kind of hyperlink
• HndDictionaries - Manage dictionaries • THndHyperlinkInfo - Information about a
and live spell check hyperlink
• HndEditor - Create and manage a topic • THndGeneratorInfo - Information and
editor actions over the current generation
• HndEditorHelper - Additional methods to • THndKeywordsAttachMode - Specify how
manage a topic editor the moved keyword will be attached: -
• HndJsSearchEngine - Methods to hkamAdd: Adds a node at the same level
manage the JavaScript search engine as the existing node. - hkamAddChild:
• HndKeywords - Properties and methods Adds a child node to the existing node.
for keywords • THndKeywordsInfo - Minimal keyword
• HndKeywordsMeta - Access to topics information. Used by the
meta data THndKeywordsInfoArray
• HndLibraryItems - Properties and • THndKeywordsInfoArray - Array of
methods for library items minimal keyword information
• HndLibraryItemsEx - Additional properties • THndLibraryItemAttachMode - Specify
and methods for library items how the moved library item will be
• HndLibraryItemsMeta - Access to library attached: - hlamAdd: Adds a node at the
items meta data same level as the existing node and
• HndProjects - Properties and methods for makes the new node last. - hlamAddFirst:
projects Adds a node at the same level as the

• HndProjectsEx - Additional properties existing node and makes the new node

and methods for projects. first. - hlamAddChild: Adds a child node

• HndProjectsMeta - Access to project meta to the existing node and makes the new

data node last. - hlamAddChildFirst: Adds a

child node to the existing node and
• HndProjectsMetaEx - Additional methods
makes the new node first. - hlamInsert:
to access project meta data
Inserts a node at the same level just
• HndSecrets - Properties and methods for
before the existing node.
Secrets
• THndLibraryItemsInfo - Minimal library
• HndStatus - Properties and methods for
item information. Used by the
Statuses
THndLibraryItemsInfoArray
• HndTags - Properties and methods for
• THndLibraryItemsInfoArray - Array of
Tags
minimal library item information
• HndTemplates - Properties and methods
• THndProjectSettings - Various project
for Templates
settings
• HndTemplatesEx - Additional properties
• THndProjectDateTimeFormat - Date and
and methods for Templates
Time format for a project

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• HndTopics - Create, edit and manage • THndStatusInfo - Information about a

topics within the current project. specific status
• HndTopicsEx - Additional properties and • THndStatusInfoArray - Array of
methods for Topics THndStatusInfo
• HndTopicsKeywords - Handle relationship • THndTopicsAttachMode - Specify how the
between topics and keywords moved topic will be attached: - htamAdd:
• HndTopicsKeywordsEx - Additional Adds a node at the same level as the
properties and methods to handle existing node and makes the new node
relationship between topics and keywords last. - htamAddFirst: Adds a node at the
• HndTopicsMeta - Access to topics meta same level as the existing node and
data makes the new node first. -

• HndTopicsProperties - Handle htamAddChild: Adds a child node to the

relationship between topics and existing node and makes the new node

properties last. - htamAddChildFirst: Adds a child

• HndTopicsTags - Handle relationship node to the existing node and makes the

between topics and tags new node first. - htamInsert: Inserts a

node at the same level just before the
• HndUI - Methods and properties of
existing node.
HelpNDoc's user interface.
• THndTopicsPropertyInfo - Information
about a specific property
• THndTopicsPropertyInfoArray - Array of
THndTopicsPropertyInfo
• TUIControlType - Reference to a specific
UI control: uiMainForm, uiTreeToc,
uiTreeKeywords, uiTreeLibrary,
uiTopicEditor
• THndSelectedExecMethod - Method run
for each selected node. Return True to
break the loop: function(aSelectedId:
string): Boolean;

Var HndUtils

Various utility methods

• function FilterAlphaNumericString(aStr: string; const

doKeepSpaces: Boolean; const doKeepUnderscore: Boolean; const
doKeepDash: Boolean): string;
Filter a string to make it alpha-numeric only. Converts accented characters too.
• function HexToTColor(sColor: string): TColor;
Converts an hexadecimal value to a TColor

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• function HTMLDecode(S: string): string;

Converts a string that has been HTML-encoded into a decoded string
• function HTMLEncode(S: string): string;
Converts a string into an HTML-encoded string
• function HTMLEscape(S: string): string;
Escape HTML entities so that they can be included in HTML text or attribute
• function HTMLToText(HtmlInput: string): string;
Converts a HTML content to simple text without any tags
• function IdnEncode(S: string): string;
Performs a International Domain Name (IDNA) Punycode encoding
• function IdnDecode(S: string): string;
Performs a International Domain Name (IDNA) Punycode decoding
• function JSEncode(S: string): string;
Encodes a string for use in a JavaScript string literal
• function JSEscapeQuote(S: string): string;
Escape single and double quotes in a JavaScript string literal
• function TColorToHex(Color: string): string; overload;
Converts a TColor string value to a heaxadecimal string
• function TColorToHex(Color: TColor): string; overload;
Converts a TColor value to a heaxadecimal string
• function UrlEncode(S: string): string;
Performs a URL percent encoding
• function UrlDecode(S: string): string;
Performs a URL percent decoding

Type THndBuildInfo

Information about a specific build

• Id: string;
Unique identifier of the build.
• Kind: string;
Kind of the build: code, chm, epub, html, kindle, pdf, qthelp, word
• Name: string;
Name of the build.
• Enabled: Boolean;
Is the build enabled ?
• Order: Integer;
Order of the build in the list. Greater will be built later.
• Output: string;
Output path of the build.

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• Template: string;
Template name used for this build.

Type THndBuildInfoArray

Array of THndBuildInfo

Var HndBuilds

Properties and methods for Builds.

• function CreateBuild: string;

Create a new build.
• procedure DeleteAllBuilds;
Delete all builds for the current project.
• procedure DeleteBuild(const aBuildId: string);
Delete a specific build.
• function GetBuildEnabled(const aBuildId: string): Boolean;
Returns true if a build is enabled.
• function GetBuildFirst: string;
Returns the first build in the build list.
• function GetBuildFirstOfKind(const aBuildKind: string): string;
Returns the first build of the specified kind.
• function GetBuildKind(const aBuildId: string): string;
Returns the kind of the build (CHM, HTML...).
• function GetBuildLast: string;
Returns the last build in the build list.
• function GetBuildList: THndBuildInfoArray;
Get a list of all builds in the project.
• function GetBuildName(const aBuildId: string): string;
Returns the name of a specific build.
• function GetBuildNext(const aBuildId: string): string;
Get the next build.
• function GetBuildOrder(const aBuildId: string): Integer;
Returns the order of a specific build.
• function GetBuildOutput(const aBuildId: string): string;
Returns the output path/file of a build.
• function GetBuildPrevious(const aBuildId: string): string;
Returns the previous build.
• function GetBuildTemplate(const aBuildId: string): string;
Returns the template used by this build.
• function GetBuildWithName(const aBuildName: string): string;
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Returns the first build with the specified name. This method is case-insensitive.
• procedure MoveBuildAfter(const aBuildId: string; const
aAfterBuildId: string);
Move a build after another one.
• procedure MoveBuildBefore(const aBuildId: string; const
aBeforeBuildId: string);
Move a build before another one.
• procedure MoveBuildFirst(const aBuildId: string);
Move a build first in the list.
• procedure MoveBuildLast(const aBuildId: string);
Move a build last in the list.
• procedure SetBuildEnabled(const aBuildId: string; const
aIsEnabled: Boolean);
Set the enabled state for a build.
• procedure SetBuildKind(const aBuildId: string; const aBuildKind:
string);
Sets the kind of the build (CHM, HTML...).
• procedure SetBuildName(const aBuildId: string; const aName:
string);
Set the name of a specific build.
• procedure SetBuildOutput(const aBuildId: string; const aOutput:
string);
Set the output path/file of a build.
• procedure SetBuildTemplate(const aBuildId: string; const
aTemplateName: string);
Set the template used by this build.

Var HndBuildsEx

Additional properties and methods for Builds.

• function DuplicateBuild(const aBuildId: string): string;

Duplicate a specific build (including build, meta, status and tags). Returns the new build's ID
• function GetBuildListFilteredByName(const aOnlyBuildsNamed:
TStringList = nil; aExceptBuildsNamed: TStringList = nil):
THndBuildInfoArray;
Returns a list of builds filtered by name (case insensitive)
• function GetBuildTemplateOrDefault(const aBuildId: string):
string;
Returns the template for a specific build or the default template for this build kind.
• function GetValidBuildOutput(const aBuildId: string; const
aBuildOutput: string): string;
Returns a build output which is not empty.

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Type THndBuildActionInstanceInfo

Information about a specific build action

• id: string;
• name: string;
• description: string;
• actiontype: string;
• content: string;
• kind: Integer;
• enabled: Boolean;
• order: Integer;

Type THndBuildActionInstanceInfoArray

List of build action info

Var HndBuildsActions

Handle pre- and post- build actions

• function CreateBuildAction(aBuildId: string): string;

Create a new action for a specific build. Returns its unique ID
• procedure DeleteAllBuildActions(aBuildId: string);
Delete all actions associated with a specific build
• function DeleteBuildAction(aBuildActionId: string): Boolean;
Delete a specific build action
• procedure CopyBuildActionsToBuild(const aSourceBuildId: string;
const aDestBuildId: string);
Copy all build styles for a specific build to another build
• function GetBuildActionInfo(aBuildActionId: string):
THndBuildActionInstanceInfo;
Get a detailed information for a specific build action
• function GetBuildActionsList(aBuildId: string;
doIncludePreBuildActions: Boolean; doIncludePostBuildActions:
Boolean): THndBuildActionInstanceInfoArray;
Get a detailed list of all actions for a specific build
• procedure MoveBuildActionUp(aBuildActionId: string);
Move a build action up: execute it earlier
• procedure MoveBuildActionDown(aBuildActionId: string);
Move a build action down: execute it later
• procedure MoveBuildActionFirst(aBuildActionId: string);
Move a build action last: first one executed

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• procedure MoveBuildActionLast(aBuildActionId: string);

Move a build action last: last one executed
• procedure MoveBuildActionAfter(const aBuildActionId: string; const
aAfterBuildActionId: string);
Move a build action after another one.
• procedure MoveBuildActionBefore(const aBuildActionId: string;
const aBeforeBuildActionId: string);
Move a build action before another one.
• function GetBuildActionFirst(aBuildId: string;
doIncludePreBuildActions: Boolean; doIncludePostBuildActions:
Boolean): string;
Get the first build action for a specific build
• function GetBuildActionNext(aBuildActionId: string;
doIncludePreBuildActions: Boolean; doIncludePostBuildActions:
Boolean): string;
Get the build action next to the one specified
• function GetBuildActionPrevious(aBuildActionId: string;
doIncludePreBuildActions: Boolean; doIncludePostBuildActions:
Boolean): string;
Get the build action previous to the one specified
• function GetBuildActionName(aBuildActionId: string): string;
Get the name of a specific build action
• function GetBuildActionDescription(aBuildActionId: string):
string;
Get the description of a specific build action
• function GetBuildActionContent(aBuildActionId: string): string;
Get the content of a specific build action
• function GetBuildActionActionType(aBuildActionId: string): string;
Get the type of action of a specific build action
• function GetBuildActionKind(aBuildActionId: string): Integer;
Get the kind of a specific build action (0: pre-build; 1: post-build)
• function GetBuildActionEnabled(aBuildActionId: string): Boolean;
Get the enabled status of a specific build action
• function GetBuildActionOrder(aBuildActionId: string): Integer;
Get the order of a specific build action
• procedure SetBuildActionName(aBuildActionId: string;
aBuildActionName: string);
Set the name of a specific build action
• procedure SetBuildActionDescription(aBuildActionId: string;
aBuildActionDescription: string);
Set the description of a specific build action

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• procedure SetBuildActionContent(aBuildActionId: string;

aBuildActionContent: string);
Set the content of a specific build action
• procedure SetBuildActionActionType(aBuildActionId: string;
aBuildActionActionType: string);
Set the action type of a specific build action
• procedure SetBuildActionKind(aBuildActionId: string;
aBuildActionKind: Integer);
Set the kind of a specific build action (0: pre-build; 1: post-build)
• procedure SetBuildActionEnabled(aBuildActionId: string;
aBuildActionEnabled: Boolean);
Set the enabled status of a specific build action

Type PHndBuildLibraryOverrideInfo

Pointer to THndBuildLibraryOverrideInfo

Type THndBuildLibraryOverrideInfo

Information about a specific build library override

• idBuild: string;
• idLibraryItem: string;
• isEnabled: Boolean;
• Properties: string;

Type THndBuildLibraryOverrideInfoArray

Array of THndBuildLibraryOverrideInfo

Var HndBuildsLibraryOverrides

API functions to manage library overrides for individual builds

• function GetBuildLibraryOverrideInfo(const idBuild: string; const

idLibraryItem: string): THndBuildLibraryOverrideInfo;
Return build library override info for specific item
• procedure SetBuildLibraryOverrideInfo(const idBuild: string; const
idLibraryItem: string; const isEnabled: Boolean; const Properties:
string);
Set build library override info for specific item
• procedure SetBuildLibraryOverrideEnabled(const idBuild: string;
const idLibraryItem: string; const isEnabled: Boolean);
Set build library override is enabled for specific item
• procedure SetBuildLibraryOverrideProperties(const idBuild: string;
const idLibraryItem: string; const Properties: string);

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Set build library override properties for specific item

• procedure DeleteLibraryOverride(const idBuild: string; const
idLibraryItem: string);
Delete library override info, content and source for specific item
• procedure DeleteAllLibraryOverridesForBuild(const idBuild:
string);
Delete all library overrides info, content and source for a build
• procedure DeleteAllLibraryOverridesForLibraryItem(const
idLibraryItem: string);
Delete all library overrides info, content and source for a library item
• function GetBuildLibraryOverrideInfoListForBuild(const idBuild:
string): THndBuildLibraryOverrideInfoArray;
Return list of build library override info for specific build
• function GetBuildLibraryOverrideInfoListForLibraryItem(const
idLibraryItem: string): THndBuildLibraryOverrideInfoArray;
Return list of build library override info for specific library item
• function GetBuildLibraryOverrideContent(const idBuild: string;
const idLibraryItem: string): TMemoryStream;
Return content of library override for specific item
• function GetBuildLibraryOverrideContentChecksum(const idBuild:
string; const idLibraryItem: string): string;
Return content's checksum of library override for specific item
• procedure SetBuildLibraryOverrideContent(const idBuild: string;
const idLibraryItem: string; aContentStream: TMemoryStream);
Set content of library override for specific item
• function GetBuildLibraryOverrideSource(const idBuild: string;
const idLibraryItem: string): TMemoryStream;
Return source of library override for specific item
• function GetBuildLibraryOverrideSourceChecksum(const idBuild:
string; const idLibraryItem: string): string;
Return source's checksum of library override for specific item
• procedure SetBuildLibraryOverrideSource(const idBuild: string;
const idLibraryItem: string; aSourceStream: TMemoryStream);
Set source of library override for specific item

Var HndBuildsMeta

Access to builds meta data

Var HndBuildsMetaEx

Additional methods related to builds meta data

• function GetChmButtonVisibilityHex(const aBuildId: string):

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string;
Return the CHM button visibility as an hexadecimal string.
• function GetChmNavigationPaneStyleHex(const aBuildId: string):
string;
Returns the CHM navigation pane style as an Hexadecimal string.
• function GetProjectDateTimeFormatOverrides(const aBuildId: string;
const doIncludeDefaultProjectFormat: Boolean):
THndProjectDateTimeFormat;
Returns overriden project date / time formats
• function GetProjectSettingsOverrides(const aBuildId: string; const
doIncludeDefaultProjectSettings: Boolean): THndProjectSettings;
Get project settings overrides for the specified build
• procedure ResetProjectDateTimeFormatOverrides(const aBuildId:
string);
Reset project date/time overrides for the specified build
• procedure ResetProjectSettingsOverrides(const aBuildId: string);
Reset project settings overrides for the specified build
• procedure SetProjectDateTimeOverrides(const aBuildId: string;
const aDateTimeFormat: THndProjectDateTimeFormat);
Set the project date time overrides for the specified build
• procedure SetProjectSettingsOverrides(const aBuildId: string;
const aProjectSettings: THndProjectSettings);
Set project settings overrides for the specified build

Var HndBuildsStatus

Handle relationship between builds and statuses

• function AreBuildAndStatusAssociated(const aBuildId: string; const

aStatusId: string): Boolean;
Indicates whether the specified build and status are associated.
• function AssociateBuildWithStatus(const aBuildId: string; const
aStatusId: string): Boolean;
Link a specific build to a specific Status.
• procedure DissociateAllForStatus(const aStatusId: string);
Remove any association with the specified status.
• procedure DissociateAllForBuild(const aBuildId: string);
Remove any association with the specified builds.
• function DissociateBuildFromStatus(const aBuildId: string; const
aStatusId: string): Boolean;
Remove the association between the specified build and status.
• function GetStatusAssociatedWithBuild(const aBuildId: string):
TStringDynArray;

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Get a list of status Ids associated with a specific build.

• function GetBuildsAssociatedWithStatus(const aStatusId: string):
TStringDynArray;
Get a list of build Ids associated with a specific status.

Var HndBuildsStatusEx

Additional methods to handle relationship between builds and statuses

• function IsTopicIncludedInBuild(const aTopicId: string; const

aBuildId: string): Boolean;
Returns true if a topic can be included in the specified build (including correct build status).

Type THndBuildStyleInfo

• Name: string;
• Enabled: Boolean;
• Content: string;

Type THndBuildStyleInfoArray

Var HndBuildsStyles

Handle overridden styles for each builds

• procedure CopyBuildStylesToBuild(const aSourceBuildId: string;

const aDestBuildId: string);
Copy all build styles for a specific build to another build
• procedure DeleteAllBuildStyles(const aBuildId: string);
Delete all build styles for a specific build ID
• procedure DeleteBuildStyle(const aBuildId: string; const
aStyleName: string);
Delete a specific build's overridden style
• function GetBuildStyleContent(const aBuildId: string; const
aStyleName: string): string;
Get the content of a specific build's overridden style
• function GetBuildStyleEnabled(const aBuildId: string; const
aStyleName: string): Boolean;
Get the enabled status of a specific build's overridden style. If not found, returns false.
• function GetBuildStyleList(const aBuildId: string):
THndBuildStyleInfoArray;
Get a list of overridden styles for a secific build
• procedure SetBuildStyleContent(const aBuildId: string; const
aStyleName: string; const aContent: string);
Set the content of a specific build's overridden style. Creates it if needed.

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• procedure SetBuildStyleEnabled(const aBuildId: string; const

aStyleName: string; const isEnabled: Boolean);
Set the enabled status of a specific build's overridden style. Creates it if needed.

Var HndBuildsTags

Handle relationship between builds and tags

• function AreBuildAndTagAssociated(const aBuildId: string; const

aTagName: string): Boolean;
Indicates wether the specified build and tag are associated.
• function AssociateBuildWithTag(const aBuildId: string; const
aTagName: string): Boolean;
Link a specific build to a specific Tag.
• procedure DissociateAllForTag(const aTagName: string);
Remove any association with the specified tag.
• procedure DissociateAllForBuild(const aBuildId: string);
Remove any association with the specified builds.
• function DissociateBuildFromTag(const aBuildId: string; const
aTagName: string): Boolean;
Remove the association between the specified build and tag.
• function GetTagsAssociatedWithBuild(const aBuildId: string):
TStringDynArray;
Get a list of tag Ids associated with a specific build.
• function GetBuildsAssociatedWithTag(const aTagName: string):
TStringDynArray;
Get a list of build Ids associated with a specific tag.

Var HndBuildsTagsEx

Additional methods to handle relationship between builds and tags

• procedure ConditionAdd(aCondition: string; var aConditionList:

TStringList);
Add condition to the list.
• procedure ConditionInvert(var aConditionList: TStringList);
Invert condition in the list.
• function ConditionRemove(aCondition: string; var aConditionList:
TStringList): Boolean;
Remove condition from the list.
• procedure ConditionReset(var aConditionList: TStringList);
Reset condition list.
• function IsTopicIncludedInBuild(const aTopicId: string; const
aBuildId: string): Boolean;

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Returns true if a topic can be included in the specified build (including correct build tags).

Type THndDictionaryInfo

Information about a specific dictionary

• name: string;
• description: string;
• author: string;
• updated: TDate;
• localeid: Cardinal;
• dictionaryfile: string;
• grammarfile: string;
• active: Boolean;

Type THndDictionaryInfoArray

Array of THndDictionaryInfo

Var HndDictionaries

Manage dictionaries and live spell check

• procedure ClearDictionaries;
Clears the loaded dictionaries list and disable the spell checker component.
• procedure DisableAllDictionaries;
Disable all the dictionaries.
• function EnableDictionaries(const aLocalIdList: TStringList; const
DisabledOthers: Boolean): Boolean;
Enable a list of dictionaries. Disable the other ones if needed.
• function EnableDictionary(const aLocaleId: Cardinal; const
DisabledOthers: Boolean): Boolean;
Enable the specific dictionary and disables others if asked.
• function GetActiveDictionariesCount: Integer;
Returns the number of currently active dictionaries.
• function GetActiveDictionariesList: THndDictionaryInfoArray;
Returns the list of currently active dictionaries.
• function GetDictionariesCount: Integer;
Get the number of dictionaries.
• function GetDictionariesList: THndDictionaryInfoArray;
Get a list of dictionaries.
• function GetDictionaryInfo(const aLocalId: Cardinal):
THndDictionaryInfo;
Returns information about the specific locale.

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• function InstallOOoDictionay(const aFileName: string): Boolean;

Installs a new OpenOffice.org dictionary.
• procedure PauseLiveSpell;
Pause live spell in all possible controls.
• function ReloadDictionaries: Boolean;
Reload the dictionary list from the disk.
• procedure SwitchDictionaryStatus(const aLocalId: Cardinal);
If dictionary is enable, then disable it and vice-versa.
• procedure UpdateLiveSpell;
Resume the live spell after it has been paused.

Type THndCaretMovement

Caret movement

• hcmUp
• hcmDown
• hcmLeft
• hcmRight
• hcmTop
• hcmBottom
• hcmHome
• hcmEnd
• hcmParaBeginning
• hcmNextParaBeginning

Type THndVAlign

Vertical alignment of a picture

• hndVaBaseline
• hndVaMiddle
• hndVaAbsTop
• hndVaAbsBottom
• hndVaAbsMiddle
• hndVaLeft
• hndVaRight

Type THndHVAlignment

Table cell alignment

• hndHVaTopLeft

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• hndHVaTopCenter
• hndHVaTopRight
• hndHVaCenterLeft
• hndHVaCenter
• hndHVaCenterRight
• hndHVaBottomLeft
• hndHVaBottomCenter
• hndHVaBottomRight

Type THndHyperlinkKind

Kind of hyperlink

• hlkTopic
• hlkNavigation
• hlkInternetMail
• hlkFile
• hlkCounter

Type THndHyperlinkInfo

Information about a hyperlink

• Kind: THndHyperlinkKind;
• Param1: string;
• Param2: string;
• Param3: string;
• Initialize(out Dest: THndHyperlinkInfo);

Var HndEditor

Create and manage a topic editor

• procedure ApplyStyleToSelection(const anEditor: TObject; const

aStyleId: Integer);
Apply the specified style to the selection.
• procedure Clear(const anEditor: TObject);
Clears the content of the specified editor.
• procedure ConvertParagraphBreaksToLineBreaks(const anEditor:
TObject; doProcessSelectionOnly: Boolean);
Convert paragraph breaks to soft line breaks
• function ConvertSelectionToSnippet(const anEditor: TObject; const
doReplaceSelection: Boolean; var nbItemsConverted: Integer; var
nbItemsDeleted: Integer): string;

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Convert the currently selected content to a snippet and return it ID. Replace the selection by
the snippet if doReplaceSelection is True
• function CreateTemporaryEditor: TObject;
Creates a new temporary editor.
• function CreateTemporaryReportHelper: TObject;
Create a new temporary report helper.
• function CreateTemporaryViewer: TObject;
Creates a new temporary viewer.
• procedure DestroyTemporaryEditor(const anEditor: TObject);
Destroys a previously created temporary editor.
• procedure DestroyTemporaryReportHelper(const aReportHelper:
TObject);
Destroys a previously created temporary report helper.
• procedure DestroyTemporaryViewer(const aViewer: TObject);
Destroys a previously created temporary viewer.
• function GetAnchorList(const anEditor: TObject): TStringList;
Retrieves the list of anchors in the specified editor.
• function GetContentAsHtml(const anEditor: TObject; out
aCssContent: string): string;
Returns the editor content as HTML.
• procedure GetContentAsStream(const anEditor: TObject; aStream:
TMemoryStream);
Returns the editor content as Stream.
• function GetContentAsText(const anEditor: TObject): string;
Returns the editor content as text.
• function GetCurrentAnchorName(const anEditor: TObject): string;
Returns the name of the current checkpoint or an empty string if there isn't any.
• function GetCurrentItem(const anEditor: TObject): TObject;
Returns the currently selected item.
• function GetCurrentPictureAltText(const anEditor: TObject):
string;
Return the currently selected picture's alternative text.
• function GetCurrentPictureBackColor(const anEditor: TObject):
TColor;
Returns the background color of the currently selected picture.
• function GetCurrentPictureHeight(const anEditor: TObject; const
DoConvertTo96Dpi: Boolean): Integer;
Returns the currently selected picture's height.
• function GetCurrentPictureMarginLeftRight(const anEditor:
TObject): Integer;

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Get the current picture left/right margins.

• function GetCurrentPictureMarginTopBottom(const anEditor:
TObject): Integer;
Get the current picture top/bottom margins.
• function GetCurrentPicturePadding(const anEditor: TObject):
Integer;
Get the current picture padding.
• function GetCurrentPictureVAlign(const anEditor: TObject):
THndVAlign;
Return the currently selected picture's vertical alignment.
• function GetCurrentPictureWidth(const anEditor: TObject; const
DoConvertTo96Dpi: Boolean): Integer;
Returns the currently selected picture's width.
• function GetUsedLibraryItems(const anEditor: TObject):
TStringList;
Returns a list of library items used in that document
• procedure InsertAnchorBeforeCurrentItem(const anEditor: TObject;
const aName: string);
Inserts a checkpoint at the current cursor position.
• procedure InsertCondition(const anEditor: TObject; const
anOperation: string; const aCondition: string);
Insert a condition item at the current cursor position.
• procedure InsertContentFromHTML(anEditor: TObject; aHtmlContent:
string);
Insert HTML content in the editor
• function InsertFile(anEditor: TObject; aFile: string): Boolean;
Inserts a file in the editor.
• function InsertFileFromLibraryItem(const anEditor: TObject; const
aLibraryItem: string; const doImportNewImagesToLibrary: Boolean):
Boolean;
Insert the content of the library item.
• procedure InsertHyperLinkToTopicId(const anEditor: TObject; const
aText: string; const aLinkedTopicId: string; const aLinkedAnchor:
string = '');
Inserts an hyperlink to a specific topic ID (and optionally anchor in that topic) using the
provided caption.
• procedure InsertHyperLinkToUrl(const anEditor: TObject; const
aText: string; const anUrl: string);
Inserts an hyperlink to a specific URL.
• function InsertLibraryItem(const anEditor: TObject; const
aLibraryItem: string; const OnlyReplaceContent: Boolean): TObject;
Insert a library item object in the specified editor at the current cursor position.

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• function InsertLibraryItemContent(const anEditor: TObject; const

aLibraryItem: string): Boolean;
Insert the content of a library item in the specified editor at the current cursor position.
• procedure InsertPageBreakBeforeCurrentItem(const anEditor:
TObject);
Inserts a page break at the current cursor position.
• function InsertStream(const anEditor: TObject; const aStream:
TStream): Boolean;
Insert the content of the specified stream in the specified editor.
• procedure InsertTopicContent(const anEditor: TObject; const
aTopicId: string);
Insert the content of the specified topic in the specified editor.
• function IsEmpty(const anEditor: TObject): Boolean;
Returns true if the editor is empty
• procedure MoveCaret(anEditor: TObject; aDirection:
THndCaretMovement);
Move the editor's caret to the specified direction
• procedure MoveCaretTo(anEditor: TObject; X: Integer; Y: Integer);
Move the specified editor's caret to another location.
• procedure MoveCarretToEnd(const anEditor: TObject);
Move the specified editor's caret to the end.
• procedure ProcessConditionalsForCurrentBuild(const anEditor:
TObject);
Removes any conditional items based on current build setting.
• procedure RemoveCurrentAnchor(const anEditor: TObject);
Remove the current checkpoint in the specified Editor.
• function ReplaceLibraryItems(const anEditor: TObject): Boolean;
Replace the library items by their actual content.
• procedure SetAsTopicContent(const anEditor: TObject; const
aTopicId: string);
Set the specific topic's content as the current editor's content.
• function SetContent(const anEditor: TObject; const aContentStream:
TStream): Boolean;
Set the content from a stream.
• procedure SetCurrentCellsAlignment(const anEditor: TObject; const
anHVAlignment: THndHVAlignment);
Sets the currently selected cells horizontal and vertical alignment.
• procedure SetCurrentPictureAltText(const anEditor: TObject; const
anAltText: string);
Set the currently selected picture's alternative text.
• procedure SetCurrentPictureBackColor(const anEditor: TObject;

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const aColor: TColor);

Set the currently selected picture's background color.
• procedure SetCurrentPictureHeight(const anEditor: TObject; const
aNewHeight: Integer; const doConstrainProportions: Boolean);
Defines the currently selected picture's height.
• procedure SetCurrentPictureMarginLeftRight(const anEditor:
TObject; const aNewMargin: Integer);
Set the currently selected picture's left/right margins.
• procedure SetCurrentPictureMarginTopBottom(const anEditor:
TObject; const aNewMargin: Integer);
Set the currently selected picture's top/bottom margins.
• procedure SetCurrentPicturePadding(const anEditor: TObject; const
aNewSpacing: Integer);
Set the currently selected picture's padding.
• procedure SetCurrentPictureVAlign(const anEditor: TObject; const
aNewVAlign: THndVAlign);
Defines the currently selected picture's vertical alignment.
• procedure SetCurrentPictureWidth(const anEditor: TObject; const
aNewWidth: Integer; const doConstrainProportions: Boolean);
Defines the currently selected picture's width.
• procedure SyntaxHighlightSelection(const anEditor: TObject; const
aLanguageCode: string);
Syntax highlight the selected content based on the language
• procedure TogglePageBreak(const anEditor: TObject);
Create or remove the current page break.
• procedure UpdateLibraryItem(const anEditor: TObject; anItemId:
string);
Update a library item's visual appearance in the editor.

Var HndEditorHelper

Additional methods to manage a topic editor

• procedure CleanContent(const anEditor: TObject);

Cleans the content of the editor by removing any un-needed items. This will not alter the
content of the editor but could make its size on disk/memory smaller
• procedure GetCurrentStyleTemplateInfo(const anEditor: TObject; var
aStyleTemplateId: Integer; var aStyleTemplateName: string);
Returns information about the current style template.
• function GetHyperlinkDetailedTextFromString(const aString:
string): string;
Returns a detailed text from an hyperlink string.
• function GetHyperlinkInfoFromString(const aString: string):

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THndHyperlinkInfo;
Extract the hyperlink information from a string.
• procedure GetHyperlinkTargetExtraFromString(const aString: string;
var Target: string; var Extras: string);
Returns the Target and Extra values from hyperlink data.
• procedure ImportImagesToLibrary(const anEditor: TObject);
Import the images to library.
• procedure ReplaceAnchorsToLowercase(const anEditor: TObject);
Modify all anchors to lowercase.
• procedure ScrollToSelection(const anEditor: TObject);
Scrolls to make selection visible
• function SetHyperlinkInfoToString(const anHyperLinkInfo:
THndHyperlinkInfo): string;
Constructs a string based in hyperlink info.
• procedure SetupEditorProperties(const anEditor: TObject);
Defines default editor properties and events.

Type THndGeneratorInfo

Information and actions over the current generation

• BOMOutput: Boolean;
Add BOM to currently generated file
• ForceOutputEncoding: Boolean;
Force output encoding for the currently generated file
• HelpNDocVersion: string;
Current HelpNDoc version
• OutputDir: string;
Output directory of the current generator
• OutputFile: string;
Output file name for the current generator
• function GetAssetsList: TStringDynArray;
Returns a list of template assets
• function GetCustomSettingValue(const aCustomSetting: string):
Variant;
Returns the user-defined value of a custom setting.
• function GetGeneratedFiles: TStringDynArray;
List of files that have been generated so far.
• property CurrentBuildId: string;
Current build Id being executed.
• property CurrentFile: string;

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Currently generated file

• property CurrentTopic: string;
Current topic ID which is being worked on.
• property LogInfoCount: Integer;
How many INFO log occurred while generating.
• property LogWarningCount: Integer;
How many WARNING log occurred while generating.
• property LogErrorCount: Integer;
How many ERROR log occurred while generating.
• property OutputDirLib: string;
Output sub-directory where library items are generated. Always a valid HTML path
• property TemplateInfo: THndTemplateInfo;
Information about the currently used template.

Var HndJsSearchEngine

Methods to manage the JavaScript search engine

• procedure AddSearchData(const aSearchData: string; const

aAssociatedTopicId: string; const nMinWordLength: Integer = 3);
Add search data and associate it to a specific topic.
• procedure ClearSearchData;
Clear the current search data.
• function GetJsData: string;
Get the JavaScript search data.

Type THndKeywordsAttachMode

Specify how the moved keyword will be attached: - hkamAdd: Adds a node at the same level as
the existing node. - hkamAddChild: Adds a child node to the existing node.

• hkamAdd
• hkamAddFirst
• hkamAddChild
• hkamAddChildFirst
• hkamInsert

Type THndKeywordsInfo

Minimal keyword information. Used by the THndKeywordsInfoArray

• Id: string;
• Caption: string;

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• ParentId: string;
Type THndKeywordsInfoArray

Array of minimal keyword information

Var HndKeywords

Properties and methods for keywords

• function CreateKeyword: string;

Create a new keyword. The new keyword will be placed at the bottom of the list.
• procedure DeleteAllKeywords;
Delete all the keywords in the project, except the root project keyword.
• function DeleteKeyword(const aKeywordId: string): Boolean;
Delete a specific keyword and its children.
• function GenerateUniqueCaption(anInitialCaption: string;
aParentId: string; const aFilteredItems: array of string): string;
Generates a unique caption within the specified parent.
• function GetKeywordByCaption(aCaption: string; aParentId: string):
string;
Returns the ID of the keyword with the specified case-insensitive caption with the specified
parent.
• function GetKeywordCaption(const aKeywordId: string): string;
Get the caption of a specific keyword.
• function GetKeywordDirectChildrenCount(const aKeywordId: string):
Integer;
Returns the number of children for the specified keyword.
• function GetKeywordDirectChildrenList(const aParentId: string):
THndKeywordsInfoArray;
Returns a list of all the children keywords.
• function GetKeywordLevel(const aKeywordId: string): Integer;
Returns the level of the specified keyword.
• function GetKeywordList(const aIncludingProjectKeyword: Boolean):
THndKeywordsInfoArray;
Returns a list of all the keywords.
• function GetKeywordNext(const aKeywordId: string): string;
Get the next keyword in line. Could be a child or the next keyword.
• function GetKeywordNextSibbling(const aKeywordId: string): string;
Returns the next sibling of a specific keyword.
• function GetKeywordParent(const aKeywordId: string): string;
Returns the parent keyword of a specific keyword.
• function GetKeywordPreviousSibbling(const aKeywordId: string):
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string;
Get the previous sibling keyword.
• function GetProjectKeyword: string;
Returns the root project keyword.
• function MoveKeyword(const aKeywordId: string; const
aReferencedKeywordId: string; const oAttachMode:
THndKeywordsAttachMode): Boolean;
Move the keyword to a new position in reference to nReferencedKeywordsId.
• function MoveKeywordLeft(const aKeywordId: string): Boolean;
Move the specific keyword left in the hierarchy.
• function MoveKeywordRight(const aKeywordId: string): Boolean;
Move the specific keyword right in the hierarchy.
• function SetKeywordCaption(const aKeywordId: string; const
sNewCaption: string): string;
Defines the specific keyword' caption.

Var HndKeywordsMeta

Access to topics meta data

Type THndLibraryItemAttachMode

Specify how the moved library item will be attached: - hlamAdd: Adds a node at the same level as
the existing node and makes the new node last. - hlamAddFirst: Adds a node at the same level as
the existing node and makes the new node first. - hlamAddChild: Adds a child node to the existing
node and makes the new node last. - hlamAddChildFirst: Adds a child node to the existing node
and makes the new node first. - hlamInsert: Inserts a node at the same level just before the
existing node.

• hlamAdd
• hlamAddFirst
• hlamAddChild
• hlamAddChildFirst
• hlamInsert

Type THndLibraryItemsInfo

Minimal library item information. Used by the THndLibraryItemsInfoArray

• Id: string;
• Caption: string;
• Extension: string;
• Kind: Integer;

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• Source: Integer;
Type THndLibraryItemsInfoArray

Array of minimal library item information

Var HndLibraryItems

Properties and methods for library items

• function CreateItem: string;

Creates a new unspecified item to the library.
• function DeleteItem(const anItemId: string): Boolean;
Delete a specific library item.
• function GetItemByCaption(const aCaption: string): string;
Returns the item with the given caption.
• function GetItemCaption(const anItemId: string): string;
Gets the caption of a specific item.
• function GetItemContent(const anItemId: string): TMemoryStream;
Get the content of the item as a stream. Caller must free the stream after using it.
• function GetItemContentAsText(const anItemId: string): string;
Get the content of an item as a text.
• function GetItemContentChecksum(const anItemId: string): string;
Returns the checksum (MD5) of a library item content. Useful for comparison purposes.
• function GetItemExtension(const anItemId: string): string;
Get the item's file extension.
• function GetItemIsLocked(const anItemId: string; out aLockUser:
string; out aLockDateTime: TDateTime): Boolean;
Returns True if a library item is locked, as well as lock data
• function GetItemKind(const anItemId: string): Integer;
Gets the kind of the specific item (1 => picture, 2 => movie, 3 => document, 4 => system
variable, 5 => variable, 6 => HTML, 7 => snippet, 8 => folder, 9 => image map, 10 => bar
code, 11 => counter).
• function GetItemList(const aIncludingKinds: array of Integer):
THndLibraryItemsInfoArray;
Returns a list of items filtered by aIncludingKinds. For example GetItemList([1,2]) lists only
images and movies. Leave blank to list everything.
• function GetItemParent(const anItemId: string): string;
Returns the parent item of a specific item.
• function GetItemSource(const anItemId: string): Integer;
Gets the source of a specific library item (1 => included, 2 => external file, 3 => URL).
• function GetItemSourceContent(const anItemId: string):

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TMemoryStream;
Get the source content of the item as a stream. Caller must free the stream after using it.
• function GetItemSourceContentChecksum(const anItemId: string):
string;
Returns the checksum (MD5) of a library item's source content. Useful for comparison
purposes.
• function GetItemsWithSameContent(const anItemId: string; const
aFilteredItems: array of string): THndLibraryItemsInfoArray;
Returns the items with the same content as the specified one.
• function GetItemUrlFile(const anItemId: string): string;
Gets the URL File of a specified library item.
• function GetItemUrlFileAbsolute(const anItemId: string): string;
Gets the URL of a specified library item: use project path if relative.
• function GetItemUrlLink(const anItemId: string): string;
Gets the URL Link of a specified library item.
• function GetProjectItem: string;
Returns the root project library item.
• function MoveItem(const anItemId: string; const aReferencedItemId:
string; const oAttachMode: THndLibraryItemAttachMode): Boolean;
Move the library item to a new position in reference to aReferencedItemId.
• function SetItemCaption(const anItemId: string; const aCaption:
string): string;
Sets the caption of a specific item.
• function SetItemContent(const anItemId: string; const aContent:
TStream): Boolean;
Sets the content stream of a specified item.
• function SetItemContentFromBytes(const anItemId: string; const
aContent: TBytes): Boolean;
Sets the content of the item from an array of Bytes.
• function SetItemContentFromFile(const anItemId: string; const
aContentFile: string): Boolean;
Set the content of the item from an existing file.
• function SetItemContentFromText(const anItemId: string; const
aContentText: string): Boolean;
Sets the content as text of a specific item.
• function SetItemExtension(const anItemId: string; const
anExtension: string): Boolean;
Set the item's file extension.
• function SetItemKind(const anItemId: string; const aKind:
Integer): Boolean;
Sets the kind of a specific item. See GetItemKind for kind value

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• function SetItemSource(const anItemId: string; const aSource:

Integer): Boolean;
Sets the source of a specific library item (1 => included, 2 => external file, 3 => URL).
• function SetItemSourceContent(const anItemId: string; const
aContent: TStream): Boolean;
Sets the source content stream of a specified item.
• function SetItemUrlFile(const anItemId: string; const anUrlFile:
string): Boolean;
Sets the URL File of a specified library item.
• function SetItemUrlLink(const anItemId: string; const anUrlLink:
string): Boolean;
Sets the URL Link of a specified library item.

Var HndLibraryItemsEx

Additional properties and methods for library items

• function FilterCaptionString(const aCaption: string): string;

• function GetItemContentGraphic(const anItemId: string;
anEditorDisplayWidth: Integer = 0; anEditorDisplayHeight: Integer
= 0): TGraphic;
• function SetItemContentGraphic(const anItemId: string; const
aGraphic: TGraphic): Boolean;
• procedure SetVariableValueByName(const aVariableName: string;
const aVariableValue: string);

Var HndLibraryItemsMeta

Access to library items meta data

Type THndProjectSettings

Various project settings

• Title: string;
• Author: string;
• DefaultTopic: string;
• Version: string;
• Copyright: string;
• Summary: string;
• Comment: string;
• Language: Integer;
• Charset: Integer;

Var HndProjects

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Properties and methods for projects

• function BackupProject(const aBackupLocation: string): Boolean;

Backup the project to the specified location
• procedure CloseProject;
Closes the currently opened project.
• function CopyProject(const aNewProjectName: string; const
OpenNewOne: Boolean): Boolean;
Copy the project to a new location and open the new one if needed.
• function DeleteProject: Boolean;
Physically delete the currently opened project.
• function GetProjectAuthor: string;
Returns the author of the project.
• function GetProjectBusy: Boolean;
Project is currently busy: creating, loading or closing.
• function GetProjectCharset: Integer;
Returns the project current charset.
• function GetProjectCharsetAsHtml: string;
Returns the project current charset as HTML charset value.
• function GetProjectClosing: Boolean;
Project is currently closing.
• function GetProjectComment: string;
Return the current project's comment.
• function GetProjectCopyright: string;
Returns the project copyright.
• function GetProjectCreating: Boolean;
Project is currently being created.
• function GetProjectCssContent: string;
Returns the CSS content of the current project. Can only be returned when generating an
HTML related format.
• function GetProjectDefaultTopic: string;
Returns the Id of the default topic.
• function GetProjectId: string;
Returns the currently open project id.
• function GetProjectIsOpen: Boolean;
Returns True if a project is open.
• function GetProjectLanguage: Integer;
Returns the project current language as a Local ID (LCID).
• function GetProjectLanguageCode: string;
Returns the project language code (eg: en-us)

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• function GetProjectLanguageCodeAsHtml(const ShortFormat: Boolean):

string;
Returns the project language code as HTML (eg: en)
• function GetProjectModified: Boolean;
Indicates whether or no the current project has been modified since last save.
• function GetProjectName: string;
Returns the current project name (or file name).
• function GetProjectNeverSaved: Boolean;
Indicates whether the project as already been saved or not.
• function GetProjectOpenning: Boolean;
Returns True if the project is currently opening.
• function GetProjectSummary: string;
Returns the project summary.
• function GetProjectTitle: string;
Gets the title of the specified project.
• function GetProjectVersion: string;
Return the current project's version number.
• function ImportTableOfContentsForProject(const aOtherProjectName:
string): string;
Import the table of contents of another proejct
• function LockResource(const aResourceType: HndResourceType; const
aResourceId: string; const doForceLock: Boolean): Boolean;
Lock a specific resource
• function MoveProject(const aNewProjectName: string): Boolean;
Move the project to a new location.
• function NewProject(const aProjectName: string = ''): string;
Creates a new project and returns its unique id.
• function OpenProject(const aProjectName: string; const
doApplyMigrations: Boolean): string;
Open an existing project and returns its unique id.
• procedure SaveProject;
Saves the project to a file.
• procedure SetProjectAuthor(const anAuthor: string);
Defines the project author.
• procedure SetProjectCharset(const aCharSet: Integer);
Defines the project charset.
• procedure SetProjectComment(const aComment: string);
Set the current project comment.
• procedure SetProjectCopyright(const aCopyrightValue: string);
Defines the project copyright.

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• function SetProjectDefaultTopic(const aDefaultTopic: string):

string;
Defines the project's default topic.
• procedure SetProjectLanguage(const aLanguage: Integer);
Defines the project language.
• procedure SetProjectModified(const IsModified: Boolean);
Mark the current project as being modified since last save.
• procedure SetProjectNeverSaved(const IsProjectNeverSaved:
Boolean);
Mark the project as being never saved.
• procedure SetProjectSummary(const aSummary: string);
Set the project summary.
• procedure SetProjectTitle(const aProjectTitle: string);
Sets the title of the specified project.
• procedure SetProjectVersion(const aProjectVersion: string);
Sets the version of the current project.
• procedure UnlockResource(const aResourceType: HndResourceType;
const aResourceId: string);
Unlock a specific resource
• function VacuumProject: Boolean;
Clean the project and lower its file size by removing unneeded information.

Var HndProjectsEx

Additional properties and methods for projects.

• function GetProjectSettings: THndProjectSettings;

• procedure SetProjectSettings(const aProjectSettings:
THndProjectSettings);

Type THndProjectDateTimeFormat

Date and Time format for a project

• CurrentDateTime: string;
• Date: string;
• DateLong: string;
• Day: string;
• DayLong: string;
• Month: string;
• MonthLong: string;
• Time: string;
• TimeLong: string;

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• Year: string;
• YearLong: string;

Var HndProjectsMeta

Access to project meta data

Var HndProjectsMetaEx

Additional methods to access project meta data

• function GetProjectDateTimeFormat: THndProjectDateTimeFormat;

Returns project date / time formats
• procedure SetProjectDateTimeFormat(const aDateTimeFormat:
THndProjectDateTimeFormat);
Set project date / time formats

Var HndSecrets

Properties and methods for Secrets

• procedure DeleteSecret(const aKey: string);

Delete a secret and its value
• function GetSecret(const aKey: string; const aPassword: string =
''): string;
Get a secret's value. Value will be decrypted using the password specified, or HelpNDoc's
internal password. Returns an empty string is the password is incorrect
• procedure SetSecret(const aKey: string; const aValue: string;
const aPassword: string = '');
Set a secret value. Value will be encrypted using the password specified, or HelpNDoc's
internal password (less secured)

Type THndStatusInfo

Information about a specific status

• Id: string;
• Caption: string;
• Color: TColor;
• Order: Integer;

Type THndStatusInfoArray

Array of THndStatusInfo

Var HndStatus

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Properties and methods for Statuses

• function CreateStatus: string;

Create a new status
• procedure DeleteAllStatus;
Delete all statuses
• function DeleteStatus(const aStatusId: string): Boolean;
Delete a specific status
• function GetStatusByCaption(const aCaption: string): string;
Returns a status ID based on its caption
• function GetStatusCaption(const aStatusId: string): string;
Get the caption of a status
• function GetStatusColor(const aStatusId: string): TColor;
Get the color of a status
• function GetStatusCount: Integer;
Return the number of available statuses.
• function GetStatusExists(const aStatusId: string): Boolean;
Returns true is a specific status exists.
• function GetStatusFirst: string;
Returns the first status in the statuses list.
• function GetStatusList: THndStatusInfoArray;
Get a list of statuses.
• function GetStatusNext(const aStatusId: string): string;
Get the next status.
• function GetStatusOrder(const aStatusId: string): Integer;
Returns the order of a specific status.
• function GetStatusPrevious(const aStatusId: string): string;
Returns the previous status.
• procedure MoveStatusAfter(const aStatusId: string; const
aAfterStatusId: string);
Move a status after another one.
• procedure MoveStatusBefore(const aStatusId: string; const
aBeforeStatusId: string);
Move a status before another one.
• procedure MoveStatusFirst(const aStatusId: string);
Move the status first in the list.
• procedure MoveStatusLast(const aStatusId: string);
Move the status last in the list.
• procedure SetStatusCaption(const aStatusId: string; const
aCaption: string);

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Set the caption of a status.

• procedure SetStatusColor(const aStatusId: string; const aColor:
TColor);
Set the color of a status.

Var HndTags

Properties and methods for Tags

• function CreateTag(aTagName: string): string;

Create a new tag. Returns the created tag name.
• procedure DeleteAllCustomTags;
Delete all custom tags for the current project.
• procedure DeleteCustomTag(aTagName: string);
Delete a specific custom tag.
• function GetTagCount(const doIncludeSystemTags: Boolean): Integer;
Returns the number of tags, including or not system tags.
• function GetTagListAll: TStringList;
Returns a list of all system and custom tags.
• function GetTagListCustom: TStringList;
Get a list of custom tags.
• function GetTagListSystem: TStringList;
Get a list of system tags.
• function IsSystemTag(aTagName: string): Boolean;
Returns True if the specified tag is a system tag

Var HndTemplates

Properties and methods for Templates

• function GetDefaultTemplateFor(const aTemplateKind: string):

THndTemplateInfo;
Get the default template info for the specified kind.
• function GetTemplateCategoryHierarchy: THndTemplateHierarchyArray;
Returns the full category hierarchy of available templates.
• function GetTemplateFromName(const aTemplateName: string; const
aTemplateKind: string): THndTemplateInfo;
Returns a specific template based on its name and kind.
• function GetTemplateList: THndTemplateInfoArray;
Returns a list of available templates on specified kind, or all kinds if none specified.
• procedure UpdateTemplateList;
Retrieves the templates from the hard drive.

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Var HndTemplatesEx

Additional properties and methods for Templates

• function CopyAndMergeTemplateToFolder(const aTemplateInfo:

THndTemplateInfo; const aFolder: string): Boolean;
Copy the template to the specific folder, merging its info file with existing template in that
folder.
• function GetTemplateInfoFromPath(const aTemplatePath: string):
THndTemplateInfo;
Get template info from its path.
• function GetTemplateKindFromPath(const aTemplatePath: string):
string;
Returns the kind of template available at the specified path.
• function GetTemplateRawNameFromPath(aTemplatePath: string):
string;
Returns the template directory name from path.

Type THndTopicsAttachMode

Specify how the moved topic will be attached: - htamAdd: Adds a node at the same level as the
existing node and makes the new node last. - htamAddFirst: Adds a node at the same level as the
existing node and makes the new node first. - htamAddChild: Adds a child node to the existing
node and makes the new node last. - htamAddChildFirst: Adds a child node to the existing node
and makes the new node first. - htamInsert: Inserts a node at the same level just before the
existing node.

• htamAdd
• htamAddFirst
• htamAddChild
• htamAddChildFirst
• htamInsert

Var HndTopics

Create, edit and manage topics within the current project.

• procedure CopyTopicToClipboard(const aTopicId: string; const

isCut: Boolean);
Copy the specified topic to clipboard.
• procedure CreateMultipleTopics(const aTopicList: TStrings; const
aParentTopic: string = ''; const aGeneratedIds: TStrings = nil);
Creates multiple child topics of the specified parent based on a tabular lists.
• function CreateTopic: string;

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Create a new topic. The topic will be placed at the bottom of the topic list.
• procedure DeleteAllTopics;
Delete all the topics in the project, except the parent topic.
• function DeleteTopic(const aTopicId: string): Boolean;
Delete a specific topic and its children. Project topic can't be deleted.
• function GenerateUniqueHelpContext(const aBaseHelpContext:
Integer; const aFilteredTopics: array of string): Integer;
Generates a unique help context among all the topics except the filtered ones.
• function GenerateUniqueHelpId(const aBaseHelpId: string; const
aFilteredTopics: array of string): string;
Generates a unique help id among all the topics except the filtered ones.
• function GetCurrentTopic: string;
Returns the ID of the currently edited topic.
• function GetProjectTopic: string;
Returns the root project topic.
• function GetTopicCaption(const aTopicId: string): string;
Get the caption of a specific topic.
• function GetTopicContent(const aTopicId: string): TMemoryStream;
Returns the content of the specified topic.
• function GetTopicContentChecksum(const aTopicId: string): string;
Returns the checksum (MD5) of a topic's content. Useful for comparison purposes.
• function GetTopicContentAsHtml(const aTopicId: string): string;
Get the topic's content as HTML. Only available when generating an HTML related
documentation.
• function GetTopicCount: Integer;
Returns the number of topics available in the current project.
• function GetTopicCreationDateTime(const aTopicId: string):
TDateTime;
Returns the date and time when the topics was created.
• function GetTopicDescription(const aTopicId: string): string;
Returns the description of the topic
• function GetTopicDirectChildrenCount(const aParentId: string):
Integer;
Returns the number of direct children a topic has.
• function GetTopicDirectChildrenList(const aParentId: string):
THndTopicsInfoArray;
Returns a list of direct children of the specified topic.
• function GetTopicFirst: string;
Returns the first topic in the project.
• function GetTopicFooterKind(const aTopicId: string): Integer;

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Returns the topic's kind of footer text: normal, custom, hidden.

• function GetTopicFooterText(const aTopicId: string): string;
Returns the custom topic footer text.
• function GetTopicFooterTextCalculated(const aTopicId: string):
string;
Returns the footer text based on the header kind: project caption, custom text or empty text
for hidden footer.
• function GetTopicHeaderKind(const aTopicId: string): Integer;
Returns the topic's kind of header text: normal, custom, hidden.
• function GetTopicHeaderText(const aTopicId: string): string;
Returns the custom topic header text.
• function GetTopicHeaderTextCalculated(const aTopicId: string):
string;
Returns the header text based on the header kind: topic title, custom text or empty text for
hidden header.
• function GetTopicHelpContext(const aTopicId: string): Integer;
Get a specific topic's help context.
• function GetTopicHelpId(const aTopicId: string): string;
Get a specific topic's help id.
• function GetTopicIconIndex(const aTopicId: string): Integer;
Get the icon index for a specific topic.
• function GetTopicIndex(const aTopicId: string; const isZeroBased:
Boolean): Integer;
Returns the index of the topic from its parent.
• function GetTopicIndexHierarchy(const aTopicId: string; const
isZeroBased: Boolean): THndIntegerArray;
Returns an array representing the topic's index hierarchy. Ex: [1,0,3,4] for 1.0.3.4.
• function GetTopicIsLocked(const aTopicId: string; out aLockUser:
string; out aLockDateTime: TDateTime): Boolean;
Returns True if a topic is locked, as well as lock data
• function GetTopicKind(const aTopicId: string): Integer;
Returns the kind of the specific topic (0: normal; 1: empty; 2: Link to URL; 3: Link to file).
• function GetTopicLast: string;
Returns the last topic in the project.
• function GetTopicLevel(const aTopicId: string): Integer;
Returns the level of the specified topic.
• function GetTopicList(const aIncludingProjectTopic: Boolean):
THndTopicsInfoArray;
Returns a list of topics and their associated ID as object.
• function GetTopicListWithCaption(const aCaption: string; const

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isPartialCaption: Boolean): THndTopicsInfoArray;

Returns a list of topics with a specific caption.
• function GetTopicModificationDateTime(const aTopicId: string):
TDateTime;
Returns the date and time when the topic was last modified.
• function GetTopicNext(const aTopicId: string): string;
Get the next topic in line. Could be a child or a sibling topic.
• function GetTopicNextSibbling(const aTopicId: string): string;
Get the next sibling topic.
• function GetTopicOrder(const aTopicId: string): Integer;
Returns the order of the topic based on sibling topics.
• function GetTopicParent(const aTopicId: string): string;
Returns the parent topic of a topic.
• function GetTopicPrevious(const aTopicId: string): string;
Returns a list of topics and their associated ID as object.
• function GetTopicPreviousSibbling(const aTopicId: string): string;
Get the previous sibling topic.
• function GetTopicStatusId(const aTopicId: string): string;
Get the status id of a topic
• function GetTopicUrlFile(const aTopicId: string): string;
Returns the topic's URL file property.
• function GetTopicUrlLink(const aTopicId: string): string;
Returns the topic's URL link property.
• function GetTopicVisibility(const aTopicId: string): integer;
Returns the topic's visibility.
• function MoveTopic(const aTopicId: string; const
aReferencedTopicId: string; const oAttachMode:
THndTopicsAttachMode): Boolean;
Move the topic to a new position in reference to nReferencedTopicsId.
• function MoveTopicDown(const aTopicId: string): Boolean;
Move the specific topic bellow the next sibling.
• function MoveTopicLeft(const aTopicId: string): Boolean;
Move the specific topic left in the hierarchy.
• function MoveTopicRight(const aTopicId: string): Boolean;
Move the specific topic right in the hierarchy.
• function MoveTopicUp(const aTopicId: string): Boolean;
Move the specific topic above the previous sibling.
• procedure PasteTopicFromClipboard(aParentId: string);
Paste the topic from clipboard as a child of the parent specified or as a child of the project
topic.

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• function SetCurrentTopic(const aTopicId: string): Boolean;

Defines the currently selected topic.
• procedure SetTopicCaption(const aTopicId: string; const
sNewCaption: string);
Defines the specific topic's caption.
• procedure SetTopicContent(const aTopicId: string; const
aContentStream: TStream);
Set the topic's content.
• procedure SetTopicDescription(const aTopicId: string; const
aDescription: string);
Set the topic's description.
• procedure SetTopicFooterKind(const aTopicId: string; const
aFooterKind: Integer);
Sets the topic footer kind.
• function SetTopicFooterText(const aTopicId: string; const
aFooterText: string): string;
Sets the custom text for the topic footer.
• procedure SetTopicHeaderKind(const aTopicId: string; const
anHeaderKind: Integer);
Sets the topic header kind.
• function SetTopicHeaderText(const aTopicId: string; const
anHeaderText: string): string;
Sets the custom text for the topic header.
• function SetTopicHelpContext(const aTopicId: string; const
aHelpContext: Integer): Integer;
Set a specific topic's help context. Returns the corrected context.
• function SetTopicHelpId(const aTopicId: string; const aHelpId:
string): string;
Set a specific topic's help id. Returns the corrected string.
• procedure SetTopicIconIndex(const aTopicId: string; const
nIconIndex: Integer);
Set the icon index of a specific topic.
• function SetTopicKind(const aTopicId: string; const aNewKind:
Integer): Integer;
Set the topic kind (0: normal; 1: empty; 2: Link to URL; 3: Link to file)
• procedure SetTopicStatusId(const aTopicId: string; const
aStatusId: string);
Set the topic status ID
• procedure SetTopicUrlFile(const aTopicId: string; const anUrlFile:
string);
Set the topic's URL file.
• procedure SetTopicUrlLink(const aTopicId: string; const anUrlLink:

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string);
Set the topic's URL link.
• procedure SetTopicVisibility(const aTopicId: string; const
aVisibility: Integer);
Set the visibility for the topic

Var HndTopicsEx

Additional properties and methods for Topics

• function FindTopicWithHelpContext(const aHelpContext: Integer):

string;
Returns the topic with the specific Help Context.
• function FindTopicWithHelpId(const aHelpId: string): string;
Returns the topic with the specific Help Id.
• function GetTopicCaptionHierarchy(const aTopicId: string; const
aIncludingProjectTopic: Boolean): TStringDynArray;
Returns the captions of all parent topics of the specified topic
• function GetTopicDirectChildrenCountGenerated(const aParentId:
string; const doExcludeHiddenInToc: Boolean): Integer;
Returns the number of direct generated children a topic has.
• function GetTopicDirectChildrenListGenerated(const aParentId:
string; const doExcludeHiddenInToc: Boolean): THndTopicsInfoArray;
Returns a list of direct generated children of the specified topic.
• function GetTopicIndexGenerated(const aTopicId: string; const
isZeroBased: Boolean; const doExcludeHiddenInToc: Boolean):
Integer;
Returns the index of the topic from its parent. Considering only generated topics.
• function GetTopicIndexHierarchyGenerated(const aTopicId: string;
const isZeroBased: Boolean; const doExcludeHiddenInToc: Boolean):
THndIntegerArray;
Returns an array representing the topic's index hierarchy. Ex: [1,0,3,4] for 1.0.3.4. Considering
only generated topics
• function GetTopicIsGenerated(const aTopicId: string; const
doExcludeHiddenInToc: Boolean; const doCheckParentVisibilityToo:
Boolean): Boolean;
Returns True if a topic is generated: visible and exported in current build.
• function GetTopicIsGeneratedForBuild(const aTopicId: string; const
aBuildId: string; const doExcludeHiddenInToc: Boolean; const
doCheckParentVisibilityToo: Boolean): Boolean;
Returns True if a topic is generated for a specific build: visible and exported in that build.
• function GetTopicListGenerated(const doExcludeHiddenInToc:
Boolean; const aIncludingProjectTopic: Boolean):
THndTopicsInfoArray;

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Returns a list of generated topics and their associated ID as object.

• function GetTopicNextGenerated(const aTopicId: string; const
doExcludeHiddenInToc: Boolean): string;
Returns the next generated topic.
• function GetTopicNextSibblingGenerated(const aTopicId: string;
const doExcludeHiddenInToc: Boolean): string;
Returns the next generated sibling topic.
• function GetTopicPreviousGenerated(const aTopicId: string; const
doExcludeHiddenInToc: Boolean): string;
Returns the previous generated topic.
• function GetTopicPreviousSibblingGenerated(const aTopicId: string;
const doExcludeHiddenInToc: Boolean): string;
Returns the previous generated sibling topic.
• procedure SynchronizeAllHelpIds;
Overwrite all topic's help Ids based on caption.

Var HndTopicsKeywords

Handle relationship between topics and keywords

• function AreTopicAndKeywordAssociated(const aTopicId: string;

const aKeywordId: string): Boolean;
Indicates whether the specified topic and keyword are associated.
• function AssociateTopicWithKeyword(const aTopicId: string; const
aKeywordId: string): Boolean;
Link a specific topic to a specific keyword.
• function DissociateKeywordFromAllTopics(const aKeywordId: string):
Boolean;
Check all topics and if they are associated with this keyword, dissociate them.
• function DissociateTopicFromAllKeywords(const aTopicId: string):
Boolean;
Check all keywords and if they are associated with this topic, dissociate them.
• function DissociateTopicFromKeyword(const aTopicId: string; const
aKeywordId: string): Boolean;
Remove the association between the specified topic and keyword.
• function GetKeywordsAssociatedWithTopic(const aTopicId: string):
TStringDynArray;
Get a list of keyword Ids associated with a specific topic.
• function GetTopicsAssociatedWithKeyword(const aKeywordId: string):
TStringDynArray;
Get a list of topic Ids associated with a specific keyword.

Var HndTopicsKeywordsEx

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Additional properties and methods to handle relationship between topics and keywords

• function GetGeneratedTopicsAssociatedWithKeyword(const aKeywordId:

string): TStringDynArray;
Get a list of generated topic Ids associated with a specific keyword.

Var HndTopicsMeta

Access to topics meta data

Type THndTopicsPropertyInfo

Information about a specific property

• key: string;
• value: string;
• topicid: string;
Type THndTopicsPropertyInfoArray

Array of THndTopicsPropertyInfo

Var HndTopicsProperties

Handle relationship between topics and properties

• procedure DeleteAllTopicCustomProperties(const aTopicId: string);

Delete all custom properties for a specific topic
• procedure DeleteTopicCustomProperty(const aTopicId: string; const
aCustomPropertyName: string);
Delete a custom property for a specific topic
• function GetTopicCustomPropertiesList(const aTopicId: string):
THndTopicsPropertyInfoArray;
Returns a list of custom properties for this topic
• function GetTopicCustomPropertyExists(const aTopicId: string;
const aCustomPropertyName: string): Boolean;
Returns true if a custom property with that name exists
• function GetTopicCustomPropertyValue(const aTopicId: string; const
aCustomPropertyName: string): string;
Returns the value of a custom property
• function RenameTopicCustomProperty(const aTopicId: string; const
aOldCustomPropertyName: string; const aNewCustomPropertyName:
string): Boolean;
Rename a custom property
• procedure SetTopicCustomPropertyValue(const aTopicId: string;
const aCustomPropertyName: string; const aValue: string);

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Set the value of a custom property

Var HndTopicsTags

Handle relationship between topics and tags

• function AreTopicAndTagAssociated(const aTopicId: string; const

aTagName: string): Boolean;
Indicates whether the specified topic and tag are associated.
• function AssociateTopicWithTag(const aTopicId: string; const
aTagName: string): Boolean;
Link a specific topic to a specific Tag.
• procedure DissociateAllForTag(const aTagName: string);
Remove any association with the specified tag.
• procedure DissociateAllForTopic(const aTopicId: string);
Remove any association with the specified topics.
• function DissociateTopicFromTag(const aTopicId: string; const
aTagName: string): Boolean;
Remove the association between the specified topic and tag.
• function GetTagsAssociatedWithTopic(const aTopicId: string):
TStringDynArray;
Get a list of tag Ids associated with a specific topic.
• function GetTopicsAssociatedWithTag(const aTagName: string):
TStringDynArray;
Get a list of topic Ids associated with a specific tag.

Type TUIControlType

Reference to a specific UI control: uiMainForm, uiTreeToc, uiTreeKeywords, uiTreeLibrary,

uiTopicEditor

Type THndSelectedExecMethod

Method run for each selected node. Return True to break the loop: function(aSelectedId: string):
Boolean;

Var HndUI

Methods and properties of HelpNDoc's user interface.

• procedure CancelEditTree(aTree: TUIControlType);

Cancel any edition being done on one of the trees (toc, library, keywords)
• function EditSnippetContent(const aSnippetId: string; const
aSelStart: Integer; const aSelLength: Integer; const aLinearPos:
Integer): Boolean;
Show the snippet content editor. Return true if edit was successful. If selection arguments

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are defined: selection is performed

• procedure FocusFirstTopic(const doExpandAll: Boolean);
Focus the first topic, right after the project topic
• procedure ForEachSelectedKeywordDo(aSelectedExecMethod:
THndSelectedExecMethod);
Call the specified method for each keyword selected in the keywords tree
• procedure ForEachSelectedLibraryItemDo(aSelectedExecMethod:
THndSelectedExecMethod);
Call the specified method for each library item selected in the library tree
• procedure ForEachSelectedTopicDo(aSelectedExecMethod:
THndSelectedExecMethod);
Call the specified method for each topic selected in the table of contents tree
• function GetControl(const aControlType: TUIControlType): TObject;
Returns a specific UI control
• function GetCurrentControl: TObject;
Returns the currently active control
• function GetCurrentFrame: TObject;
Returns the currently visible frame in the UI (e.g. topic editor, topic options...)
• function GetCurrentKeyword: string;
Returns the currently selected keyword in the UI.
• function GetCurrentLibraryItemId: string;
Returns the currently selected library item in the UI.
• function GetCurrentTopic: string;
Returns the currently selected topic in the UI.
• function GetTopicEditorObject: TObject;
Returns the topic editor object, which can be manipulated using HndEditor methods.
• procedure SaveCurrentFrame();
Save the currently edited content to project file
• function SetCurrentKeyword(const aKeywordId: string): Boolean;
Select the specified keyword in the UI.
• function SetCurrentTopic(const aTopicId: string): Boolean;
Select the specified topic in the UI.
• procedure SetCurrentTopicAndPlaceCursor(const aTopicId: string;
aLinearPos: Integer);
Select the specified topic in the UI and place the cursor where specified.
• procedure SetCurrentTopicAndSelect(const aTopicId: string;
aSelectionStart: Integer; aSelectionLength: Integer);
Select the specified topic in the UI and select a specific part of that topic.
• procedure SetCurrentTopicAndShowCheckpoint(const aTopicId: string;
const aCheckpointName: string);

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Select the specified topic in the UI and show the checkpoint specified.
• function SetCurrentTopicByHelpContext(const aHelpContext:
Integer): Boolean;
Select the topic with the specified help context
• function SetCurrentTopicByHelpId(const aHelpId: string): Boolean;
Select the topic with the specified help ID

Migrating scripts and templates

The HelpNDoc API evolves from time to time and this requires an update of older scripts and
templates.
The following topics explain the changes required for each new versions of HelpNDoc:

· Migrating scripts from V4 to V5

· Migrating scripts from V5.0 to V5.1

· Migrating scripts from V6 to V7

Migrating scripts from V4 to V5

HelpNDoc version 5 includes several modifications to scripting methods. The following list helps
migrate scripts (and templates) from earlier versions of HelpNDoc.

Older versions HelpNDoc v5 Remarks

HndProjectsMeta.GetItemMet Use this method to get the

HndProjects.GetProjectDefaultTopic()
aStringValue('DefaultTopic') default topic

HndBuilds.GetBuildCustomVal Where * can be: Bool, Int,

HndBuildsMeta.GetItemMeta*Value
ue... List or String

HndBuildsEx.GetChmButtonVi HndBuildsMetaEx.GetChmButtonVisibi
sibilityHex lityHex

HndBuildsEx.GetChmNavigati HndBuildsMetaEx.GetChmNavigationP
onPaneStyleHex aneStyleHex

HndTopics.GetTopicDirectChil HndTopicsEx.GetTopicDirectChildrenC
drenCountVisible ountGenerated

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HndTopics.GetTopicDirectChil HndTopicsEx.GetTopicDirectChildrenLi
drenListVisible stGenerated

HndTopics.GetTopicIsVisible HndTopicsEx.GetTopicIsGenerated

HndTopics.GetTopicListVisible HndTopicsEx.GetTopicListGenerated

HndTopics.GetTopicNextVisibl
HndTopicsEx.GetTopicNextGenerated
e

HndTopics.GetTopicNextSibbil HndTopicsEx.GetTopicNextSibblingGe
ingVisible nerated

HndTopics.GetTopicPreviousVi HndTopicsEx.GetTopicPreviousGenerat
sible ed

HndTopics.GetTopicPreviousSi HndTopicsEx.GetTopicPreviousSibblin
bbilingVisible gGenerated

HndTopics.SetTopicIsVisible HndTopics.SetTopicVisibility HndTopics.GetTopicVisibility

User interface related operations

To speed-up global processing, all operations are done in memory and doesn't affect the user
interface (UI). It might be required to update the UI. This is why the following methods must be
considered based on the need of the script:

Non-UI version UI version Remarks

UI version will return the

HndTopics.GetCurrentTopic HndUI.GetCurrentTopic
currently edited topic

UI version will set the

HndTopics.SetCurrentTopic HndUI.SetCurrentTopic
currently edited topic

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Migrating scripts from V5.0 to V5.1

The following modifications where made between HelpNDoc 5.0 to HelpNDoc 5.1. If upgrading
from an earlier version, other modifications need to be applied: Migrating scripts from V4 to V5

HelpNDoc v5.0 HelpNDoc v5.1 Remarks

The build id is now

HndBuildsMetaEx.GetChmNav HndBuildsMetaEx.GetChmNavigationP required. Note: this is
usually only used in the
igationPaneStyleHex() aneStyleHex(const aBuildId: string)
CHM documentation
format

The build id is now

HndBuildsMetaEx.GetChmBut HndBuildsMetaEx.GetChmButtonVisibi required. Note: this is
usually only used in the
tonVisibilityHex() lityHex(const aBuildId: string)
CHM documentation
format

Migrating scripts from V6 to V7

HelpNDoc 7.0 introduces a completely new script engine. It is still based on the Pascal language
but some differences with previous versions are listed bellow. If upgrading from an earlier version,
other modifications need to be applied: Migrating scripts and templates

HelpNDoc v6 HelpNDoc v7 Remarks

var var Variables with different

int1, int2: int1, int2: integer; types must use the var
integer; var
str1, str2: string; str1, str2: string; keyword for each type

const const Constants with different

int1, int2: int1, int2: integer; types must use the const
integer; const
str1, str2: string; str1, str2: string; keyword for each type

SetLength(ARRAY_OR_ST ARRAY_OR_STRING.SetLength(N The SetLength()

RING, NEW_LENGTH) EW_LENGTH)
method can't be used for
arrays anymore

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Print 'VALUE' Print('VALUE') The Print() method

requires parenthesis

procedure proc1(); procedure proc2(); If a procedure calls another

begin begin one, it must be declared
proc2(); end;
end; procedure proc1(); before that method.
procedure proc2(); begin Alternatively, proc2 can be
begin proc2(); declared before proc1 as a
end; end; forward method:
procedure proc2;
forward;

HndGeneratorInfo.Asse HndGeneratorInfo.GetAssetsL Method return type has

tsList: TStringList ist(): TStringDynArray
changed from
TStringList to
TStringDynArray

HndGeneratorInfo.Gene HndGeneratorInfo.GetGenerat Method return type has

ratedFiles: edFiles(): TStringDynArray
changed from
TStringList
TStringList to
TStringDynArray

HndBuildsEx.GetBuildB HndBuilds.GetBuildWithName( Method has moved to

yName(const const aBuildName: string) another object and has
aBuildName: string)
been renamed

Code only template files

Template files which only contains code must now encapsulate code within the<% and %>
delimiters.

Frequent errors in custom templates

Here are some possible errors that you might see with custom templates after you upgrade. Refer
to the table above to update custom templates and remove those errors:

· [Error] aliases.pas.html(4, 5): Unknown name "nCurTopic"

· [Error] context.pas.html(4, 5): Unknown name "nCurTopic"
· [Error] keywords.pas.hhk(4, 2): Unknown name "nBlocLevel"
· [Error] topics.pas.html(4,5): unknown name sDefaultTopicId

Using the integrated web server

Most web-browsers won't allow the HTML documentation generated by HelpNDoc to run on the

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local computer due to security restrictions. That's why HelpNDoc includes a full featured web
server to work around this limitation: local HTML documentation generated by HelpNDoc can be
tested as if it was uploaded to a real web server.

Launching the web server from the generation window

Once the HTML documentation generation process finishes, HelpNDoc will provide multiple. Using
the "Launch web server" option will immediately start the integrated web server with the correct
options, and launch the default web browser at the required URL to display the newly generated
documentation for testing purposes.

Serving a previously served location

When a specific folder or file has been served using HelpNDoc's integrated web server, it will be
remembered so that it can rapidly be served another time. This can be achieved as follows:

· From HelpNDoc's "Tools" ribbon tab, locate the "Extra" group

· Click the arrow of the "Launch web server" button to display a list of recently served folders
and files
· Click one of those items to serve it again

Serving random files and directories

It might be useful to serve specific files or directories using HelpNDoc's built-in web server. This
can be achieved as follows:

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· From HelpNDoc's "Tools" ribbon tab, locate the "Extra" group

· Click the top part (without the arrow) of the "Launch web server" button to display the server
configuration window

· Customize the web server's options (see bellow) and hit the "Launch" button to start the web
server

The following options can be configured before launching the server:

· File or directory: what file or directory will be served. If a file is chosen, the root of the server
will be the directory where that file is placed

· Port to listen to: which port will be used by the web server to listen to incoming connections

· Launch web-browser: whether the default web-browser will be launched at the correct URL
when the server is started

Using the AI Assistant

HelpNDoc's AI Assistant is an advanced tool powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI), seamlessly

incorporated into HelpNDoc's user interface. This integration simplifies and enhances the content
creation, revision, and improvement processes for technical writers. Utilizing the capabilities of
OpenAI's APIs (the same technology behind ChatGPT) the AI Assistant streamlines daily tasks,
making them quicker and more accurate for technical writers.

Note: An authentication token must be obtained from OpenAI and entered in HelpNDoc's
options. Using this service might incur additional fees depending on the nature and volume of its
usage.

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Overview of the user interface

The AI Assistant user interface is similar to standard conversational interfaces such as ChatGPT's. It
includes the following elements:

1. The toolbar, which includes common actions

2. If content is select within the topic editor before the AI Assistant is open, it will appear under
the "HelpNDoc" prompt

3. The prompt that was previously entered by HelpNDoc's user

4. AI Assistant's response followed by possible actions such as:

o Copy: Copy the response in the clipboard

o Insert: Insert the content of the response within the currently opened topic editor
o Replace: Replace the currently selected content within the currently opened topic editor
5. The input field to enter a prompt to be sent to the AI Assistant

Sample actions and prompts

Here is a list of some of the actions which can be performed using HelpNDoc's AI Assistant,
including sample prompts.

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Action Description Sample prompt

Content creation Generate drafts, outlines, and Suggest an outline for a

comprehensive guide on
complete sections of documents
integrating APIs into
automatically. The AI Assistant can existing software systems,
help expand on bullet points, fill in including potential
content under headings, or suggest challenges and solutions.
new topics that are relevant to the
current documentation.

Content revision Improve the clarity, grammar, and Review this draft about
network security protocols
style of existing documents. The
and suggest improvements for
Assistant provides suggestions to clarity, accuracy, and
refine and polish content, ensuring it readability.
meets professional standards and is
easy to understand.

Clarification and Explain complex technical concepts in Explain the concept of

"Blockchain Technology" in
explanation simpler terms. It can also provide
simple terms suitable for a
definitions, context, and detailed non-technical audience.
explanations of technical terms and
processes, making technical
documentation more accessible.

Content Summarize long documents or Summarize the main points of

this document on machine
summarization sections quickly, allowing writers and
learning applications in
readers to grasp the main points healthcare, focusing on key
without going through the entire text. findings and recommendations.
This is especially useful for creating
abstracts or executive summaries.

Translation and Translate documentation into multiple Translate this content from
English to Spanish, ensuring
localization languages. The AI Assistant supports
it is culturally appropriate
various languages, making it easier to and easy to understand for a
localize content and reach a global Latin American audience.
audience.

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SEO Enhances the visibility of online Analyze this content on

digital marketing strategies
optimization content by providing suggestions for
and suggest changes to
SEO optimization, including keyword improve its SEO ranking.
integration, meta descriptions, and
readability adjustments.

Topic structure Automatically analyzes and suggests Assess the structure of this
technical report on renewable
analysis improvements to the overall structure
energy systems and recommend
of topics, ensuring logical flow and a more coherent flow of
coherence. This feature helps topics.
particularly with large topics or when
reorganizing sections.

Legal and Scan content for potential legal and Review this employee handbook
for any potential legal
compliance compliance issues, suggesting edits
issues or non-compliance with
checking to align with industry regulations or labor laws.
legal standards, particularly useful for
contracts and policy documents.

Backing up projects

It is very important to make frequent backup of HelpNDoc projects (as well as any important data)
to be able to recover a previous version in case of a software or hardware failure. HelpNDoc
includes a handy backup action:

1. Navigate to HelpNDoc's "Tools" ribbon tab

2. In the "Low level" group, click "Backup Project..."

3. Check the proposed backup location and file name and click "Save"

Note: Default backup saving path can be defined in HelpNDoc's options.

Documentation formats specifics

Documentation formats can be very different from one another. The following topics explain some
documentation format's specific information:

· CHM files and programming languages : How to open CHM help files using various
programming languages ;

· HTML help URL parameters : How to customize the HTML help via URL parameters ;

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· Context sensitive HTML help : How to open specific HTML documentation topics ;

CHM files and programming languages

HelpNDoc generates standard Windows CHM help files which can be opened from any Windows
application. The following section explains how to open CHM help files using various
programming languages. This includes:

· .NET (C#) Integration

· Delphi integration

· Java integration

· Microsoft Access integration

· Visual Basic integration

· WinDev integration

.NET (C#) integration

Opening a CHM help file from a .NET (C#) program

The .NET framework includes the Help.ShowHelp method to display the contents of a Help file.
See: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/api/system.windows.forms.help.showhelp

Delphi integration

Opening a CHM help file from a Delphi program

Modern versions of Delphi include the Vcl.HtmlHelpViewer unit which implements the
wrapper for Windows HTMLHelp function API. Check Embarcadero's web-site to learn how to use
it: http://docwiki.embarcadero.com/Libraries/en/Vcl.HtmlHelpViewer

Older versions of Delphi requires a dedicate unit. See: Older versions of Delphi

Older versions of Delphi

Opening a CHM help file from a program built using and older version
of Delphi
Courtesy of The Helpware Group, the Delphi HH Kit is a free download for Delphi 2/3/4/5/6/7... It
consists of two units and a document file. The first unit is a port of the C++ header file
"HtmlHelp.h". The second one is a library of HTML help related functions. Two versions exists
based on the Delphi compiler capabilities:

· Download "The Kit" version 2.1 - Size: 32KB, 3-Dec-2009

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o Unicode version now compatible with Delphi 6/7/... Delphi 2010.

o HH_Funcs.pas utility now compiles under D2010. ANSI and Unicode versions of funcs.
o HH.pas - HTMLHelp() function defaults to either ANSI or Unicode depending on the
version of Delphi.
· Download "The Kit" version 1.09 - Size: 32KB, 27-Aug-2008

o ANSI version for Delphi 2/3/4/5/6/...

o Fix bug with Windows Vista compatibility.
o Updated D6OnHelpFix.pas to fix small memory leak on shutdown.

Java integration

Opening a CHM help file from a Java program

Courtesy of Daniel Whitworth, the following Java code assumes the CHM help file is located in the
same directory as the program being run:

File file = new File("help.chm");

try
{
Runtime.getRuntime().exec("HH.EXE ms-its:" + file.getAbsolutePath() + "::/TOPIC_ID.html");
} catch (IOException e1)
{
e1.printStackTrace();
}

The highlighted parts should be customized according to your needs:

· help.chm: This is the CHM help file you would like to open

· TOPIC_ID: This is the topic ID you would like to open

Microsoft Access integration

Opening a CHM help file from Microsoft Access

You can find a detailed PDF document here, courtesy Dave Liske.

Visual Basic integration

Opening a CHM help file from a Visual Basic program

Courtesy of David E. Liske, the HTML help VB class is a free download for Visual Basic 5/6. It
includes the source code and the documentation on how to use it.

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Download HTML Help VB Class (Version: 3.0h, Size: 80 KB)

WinDev integration

Opening a CHM help file from WinDev

The WHelp function can be used to display a file or a help page for the CHM format.

Syntax using topics' Help Id:

WHelp(<NameOfHelpFile> [, <HelpId>])

Syntax using topic's Help Context number:

WHelp(<NameOfHelpFile> , <HelpContextNumber>)

Where:

· NameOfHelpFile is the name of the CHM help file to open

· HelpId is the topic help id to display

· HelpContextNumber is the topic's help context to display

See the How to manage your topic identifiers in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

HTML help URL parameters

It is possible to customize the behavior of the HTML documentation format through its
parameters.

Show a specific topic

It is possible to show a specific topic (contextual help) by using its Help Id. See the Context
sensitive HTML help topic to learn more.

Choose which tab is shown

By default, the HTML help includes 3 tabs: Contents, Index and Search. To choose which tab is
shown when the HTML documentation is opened, simply add the "?tab=" URL parameter. Here are
the available values:

URL parameter Tab

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no parameter Show the Contents tab by default

?tab=index Shows the Index tab

?tab=search Shows the Search tab

Example:

https://www.MY-SERVER.com/index.html?tab=index

Search for a specific term

It is possible to run the search engine on a specific term when the page is shown. Simple add the
"?search=" URL parameter.

Example:

https://www.MY-SERVER.com/index.html?search=help

Combining URL parameters

Behaving as normal URL parameters, it is possible to combine them altogether. For example,
showing the "Search" tab while searching for the "help" term can be achieved as follows:

https://www.MY-SERVER.com/index.html?tab=search&search=help

Context sensitive HTML help

HelpNDoc's generated HTML documentation can be used as a context sensitive help source by
using either a topic's Help ID or Help Context number

Using Help IDs

It is possible to show a specific topic using its Help ID. As an example, HelpNDoc's online topic
"Change topic properties" (whose Help Id is "Changetopicproperties") can be shown as follows:
https://www.helpndoc.com/documentation/html/Changetopicproperties.html

The pattern is http://www.WEB-SITE.com/HELP-ID.html

Where:

· "www.WEB-SITE.com" is the full address of your web site

· "HELP-ID" is the unique help id of the topic to show

Help IDs are unique topics identifiers (alpha-numeric) which you can customize. Learn more on

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how to get and define topic's Help Ids.

Using Context numbers

The default HTML template also generate redirects to access topics via theirHelp Context
numbers. As an example, HelpNDoc's online topic "Change topic properties" (whose Help Context
number is "78") can be shown as follows:
https://www.helpndoc.com/documentation/html/context/78.html

The pattern is http://www.WEB-SITE.com/context/HELP-CONTEXT.html

Where:

· "www.WEB-SITE.com" is the full address of your web site

· "HELP-CONTEXT" is the unique help context of the topic to show

Help context numbers are unique topics identifiers (numeric) which you can customize. Learn more
on how to get and define topic's Help Ids.

See the How to manage your topic identifiers in HelpNDoc step-by-step guide.

License key management

Once you've purchased the full version of HelpNDoc, you need to activate it using a license key.
How this is done depends on the licenses you've purchased:

· Named licenses

· Floating licenses

Named licenses

Named licenses can only be used by one specific person and installed on her own computer. To
validate the correct use of the license, HelpNDoc needs to be activated on the computer where it
will be used. To activate HelpNDoc, simply enter the license key you've retrieved from the
customer's section.

Warning: Activating HelpNDoc requires an Internet access to connect to the license server. Once
activated, HelpNDoc will check the license server from time to time (usually, every 90 days). If it
can't connect to the license server, it will keep working for a certain period of time (usually, 14
days). Once this period is over, it won't run anymore and will require access to the license server.
See Grace period topic for more information.

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How to: Activate HelpNDoc

Once you've purchased a named license, you will be able to download the full version of
HelpNDoc from your customer's section and request a license key.
When you launch your licensed copy of HelpNDoc, it will automatically ask you to enter that
license key and connect to the license servers to validate it. Once this is done, HelpNDoc will be
activated on that computer and you won't need to enter the license key again. It will periodically
check with the license server to make sure the key is still valid.

How to: Update you license

Once your license has expired, you can choose to purchase an update: the license key won't
change but you'll need to connect to the license server to update its content. This can be done by
using the "license -f" command line option while connected to the Internet. As an example, using
Windows' command prompt:

> C:\Program Files\IBE Software\HelpNDoc 9\hnd9.exe license -f

How to: Upgrade your edition of HelpNDoc

If you've placed an order to upgrade e.g. from the Standard Edition to the Professional Edition of
HelpNDoc, your license key will not be valid anymore. You can simply activate your new edition of
HelpNDoc after requesting a new license key.

Command line usage

It is possible to manage HelpNDoc's license from the command line. See Usage from the
command line to learn more.

See the following step-by-step guides:

How to activate a named license of HelpNDoc
How to deactivate a named license of HelpNDoc

Grace period

Once an instance of HelpNDoc is activated, it will connect to the license server from time to time
(usually, every 90 days) to check that the license is still valid. If it can't connect to the license server,
it will keep working for a certain period of time, the grace period (usually, 14 days).

To fix that, make sure that the computer running HelpNDoc is connected to the Internet and that
the following web sites are accessible and white-listed on your router / proxy / firewall:

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· http://www.ibe-software.com and https://www.ibe-software.com

· http://www.wyday.com and https://www.wyday.com

Floating licenses

Floating licenses can be shared between anyone within a company, with the limit of one person
per purchased license using it at the same time.

Floating license server

A floating license server is required to enforce this rule. It can be installed on any Windows, Linux
or MacOS computer which is accessible from running instances of HelpNDoc (same network). The
floating license server directory includes a file named UserManual.html which contains the
latest information about how to operate the floating license server. The following resources are
also useful:

· How to install and activate the floating license server to learn how to install the floating license
server and activate it using your license key

· How to connect HelpNDoc to the floating license server to learn how to connect to the
floating license server from an instance of HelpNDoc

Warning: Activating the floating license server requires an Internet access to connect to the license
server. Once activated, the floating license server will check the license server from time to time. If
it can't connect to the license server, it will keep working for a certain period of time (configurable
with a maximum of 90 days). Once this period is over, it won't run anymore and will require access
to the license server.
If an online activation is not possible, it is possible to proceed with an offline activation by
exchanging XML activation files with HelpNDoc's support team.
The HelpNDoc software (the client) will only need to connect to the floating license server, it won't
need to be connected to the Internet.

Configuring the floating license server

The file TurboFloatServer-config.xml is used to configure the floating license server. It
must be edited before the floating license server is run and contains many comments to explain all
available configuration options.

Using the log file

While troubleshooting the floating license server, the file tfs-log.txt can be used to get useful
information about what happens while it is running. Make sure that you set the log level to
"notification" in the TurboFloatServer-config.xml file to get as much information as

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possible:

<log file="tfs-log.txt" level="notification"/>

From the HelpNDoc instance

Floating licenses of HelpNDoc can be installed anywhere as long as it has network access to the
floating license server. When first run, it will request for the floating license server address and
port:

This configuration will be saved for later use. If for some reason the server is not accessible,
HelpNDoc will display a message with options to try again or change the server address or port:

Once connected to the server, it is possible that all leases are already taken: if for example you
have purchased 3 floating licenses of HelpNDoc and you are trying to launch a 4th instance. When
that happens, an error message will be shown. You'll need to close another instance of HelpNDoc
or purchase additional floating licenses to launch another instance of HelpNDoc:

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Troubleshooting
· Check the floating license server's status: Check if the floating license server is activated and
running

· Check that the floating license server is listening to incoming connections: Make sure that the
floating license server is running and listening to connections

· Check the connection to the server from HelpNDoc: Make sure that HelpNDoc can connect to
the floating license server

· How to handle dead leases: Deal with leases which haven't been correctly released
· Listen to HTTPS communication: Run the floating license server behind an HTTPS server

· Deactivating the floating license server: Deactivate a previously activated computer to activate
a new one

See the following step-by-step guides:

How to install and activate the floating license server
How to connect HelpNDoc to the floating license server

Activating the floating license server

Before running and listening to incoming connections, the floating license server needs to be
activated with your license key using the following command:

· Linux: sudo ./turbofloatserver -a="LICENSE_KEY"

· Windows: .\TurboFloatServer.exe -a="LICENSE_KEY"

Where:

· LICENSE_KEY is your private license key

Here are some errors which could occur during the activation process:

Error Explanation

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Failed to activate. Make sure that the server is connected to the Internet and that the
Connection to the following domains are accessible from your server (e.g. white-listed on
activation servers failed. your Firewall / Proxy) for both HTTP and HTTPS protocols: wyday.com ;
limelm.com ; ibe-software.com.
If you are behind a proxy, make sure that the proxy address is correctly
specified in the TurboFloatServer-config.xml file.
If an online activation is not possible, proceed with an offline activation.

Failed to activate. The A floating license key can only be activated on one computer. To
product key has already activate the floating license server on another computer, the previously
been activated on the activated computer needs to be deactivated first.
maximum number of
computers.

Check the floating license server's status

To check the floating license server's status, type the following command line:

· On Windows:
o .\TurboFloatServer.exe -v
· On Linux:
o sudo ./turbofloatserver -v

The output of that command could be:

· Server activated and running: "This floating license server instance is presumably activated.
However, details about the activation cannot be displayed while the instance is running."

· Server activated but NOT running : "This floating license server instance is currently activated
(with this product key: ABCD-EFGH-IJKL-MNOP-QRST-UVWX-YZ12) and will automatically re-
verify its license in 90 days."
· Server not activated: "This floating license server instance is not activated."

Check that the floating license server is listening to incoming connections

Checking that the floating license server is listening to incoming

connections on Windows
To make sure that the floating license server is running and listening to connections on the
specified port (13 by default) on Windows, run the resource monitor as follows:

· From the Windows Start menu, type "resmon" without the quotes, right click on the "resmon"
best match and click "Run as administrator"

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· Once the "Resource Monitor" window is open, go to the "Network" tab

· Open the "Listening Ports" group

· Locate the "TurboFloatServer.exe" item and check that it is listening twice (IPv4 and IPv6) to the
correct port (13), and that the "Firewall Status" column indicates "Allowed, not restricted"

Checking that the floating license server is listening to incoming

connections on Linux
Once activated and running, we can test that the floating license server is listening to incoming
connections on Linux. How this is done depends on your Linux distribution. On Ubuntu, you can
use the following command:

· sudo lsof -i:PORT_NUMBER

Where:

· PORT_NUMBER is the port the server should be listening to. It is “13” by default, and can be
changed from the “TurboFloatServer-config.xml” file

Check the connection to the server from HelpNDoc

When the floating license server is running correctly, we should be able to launch HelpNDoc, enter
the server's address and port, and start using it.

If that doesn't work, it means that the computer where HelpNDoc is installed can't reach the
floating license server. This could be caused by a software and/or hardware firewall on the server,
the network infrastructure or the client. We recommend that you contact your IT team to get help
with your specific network infrastructure.

You can also test the connection to the floating license server using the following PowerShell
command line:

· Test-NetConnection SERVER_ADDRESS -p PORT_NUMBER

Where:

· SERVER_ADDRESS is the address of the floating license server's computer;

· PORT_NUMBER is the port used by the floating license server to listen to incoming
connections. It is “13” by default and can be changed from the floating license server's
“TurboFloatServer-config.xml” file

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How to handle dead leases

If for some reason an instance of HelpNDoc crashes without releasing its lease, the license server
will think that the lease is still in use and will now issue another lease when requested: this could
lead to an error message indicating that "There are no more free leases available from the floating
license server".

Leases are usually updated every 30 minutes (configurable on the server side) and dead leases will
be eliminated then. If that happens often due to hardware or software failure, it is possible to
speed up the process by lowering the lease time from the server. See the <lease
length="1800"/> option from the floating license server's manual to learn more.

Listen to HTTPS communication

In addition to (or in place of) the default "raw" binary communication over the port you specified
in the "bind" element, you can configure the floating license server to communicate over HTTPS.
You can do this by "binding" the floating license server to an address and port for SCGI
communication with an existing web server (e.g. Apache, NGINX, etc.).

This guide covers the very basics of the HTTPS server configuration. We assume you have
experience running an HTTPS server.

Configure SCGI address and port

In the default "TurboFloatServer-config.xml" file you'll see an XML element like this:

<scgi just_scgi="false">
<bind address="127.0.0.1" port="42"/>
</scgi>

There are 3 options to configure:

1. The "just_scgi" attribute: Set this to "false" and raw, unencrypted connections will still be
allowed. Set this to "true" and only connections over SCGI (via an HTTPS server) will be accepted
and the global bind element will be ignored.

2. The "address" attribute in the "bind" element : Set this to the address you want the HTTPS
server that sits in front of the floating license server to connect to.

If the address is not present, the server accepts TCP / IP connections on all server host IPv6 and
IPv4 interfaces if the server host supports IPv6, or accepts TCP / IP connections on all IPv4
addresses otherwise. Use this address to permit both IPv4 and IPv6 connections on all server

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interfaces. This value is the default.

If the address is ::, the server accepts TCP/IP connections on all server host IPv4 and IPv6
interfaces.

If the address is 0.0.0.0, the server accepts TCP/IP connections on all server host IPv4 interfaces.

If the address is a "regular" IPv4 or IPv6 address (such as 127.0.0.1 or ::1), the server accepts
TCP/IP connections only for that IPv4 or IPv6 address.

3. The "port" attribute in the "bind" element : Set this to the port you want the HTTPS server
that sits in front of the floating license server to connect to.

For security sake, we recommend always bind to a local address (like "127.0.0.1") so that all data
that touches the floating license server must first go through an HTTPS server.

Configure the HTTPS server (Apache)

If you're using the Apache HTTPS server, modify your "httpd.conf" file to enable the "scgi" module
(so Apache can communicate with the floating license server instance):

LoadModule proxy_module modules/mod_proxy.so

LoadModule proxy_scgi_module modules/mod_proxy_scgi.so
LoadModule ssl_module modules/mod_ssl.so

Next add a "VirtualHost" element that will accept HTTP connections and pass them along to the
floating license server:

<VirtualHost yourhostaddress:443>
# Pass *everything* to the floating license server via SCGI
SetEnvIf Request_URI .* proxy-scgi-pathinfo
ProxyPass / scgi://127.0.0.1:42/

# ServerName gives the name and port that the server

# uses to identify itself. This can often be determined
# automatically, but we recommend you specify it
# explicitly to prevent problems during startup.
ServerName yourhostaddress:443

# Turn SSL on
SSLEngine on
</VirtualHost>

Replace "yourhostaddress" with the address name that the floating license server instance will be

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accessed from (i.e. the "public" address -- even if that "public" address is local network specific).
Also, if you changed the SCGI "address" or "port" in the "TurboFloatServer-config.xml" file you'll
also need to change the "ProxyPass" directive to use the address and port you changed them to.

Configure the HTTPS server (Nginx)

If you're using the NGINX HTTPS server, first make sure your NGINX has been compiled with the
SCGI module. You can do this by running "nginx -V" via command line and you should see
something like this:

nginx version: nginx/1.15.7

built by gcc 5.4.0 20160609 (Ubuntu 5.4.0-6ubuntu1~16.04.10)
built with OpenSSL 1.1.1a 20 Nov 2018
TLS SNI support enabled
configure arguments: --sbin-path=/usr/local/sbin --with-
http_ssl_module --with-http_v2_module --without-http_uwsgi_module --
with-pcre-jit --with-threads

If you don't see "--without-http_scgi_module" in the "configure arguments", then you know the
NGINX instance was compiled with the SCGI module. It's compiled by default, so it should be
available in every vanilla distribution of NGINX.

Next, modify your "nginx.conf" file to pass all communication to the address / port of your
choosing to the floating license server instance via SCGI:

server {
listen 443 ssl http2;
listen [::]:443 ssl http2;

server_name yourhostaddress;

# Maximum "request" size (i.e. max size the client sends us)
client_max_body_size 10m;

# pass every connection to the Hosted floating license server on

this machine.
location / {
scgi_param SCGI 1;
scgi_param HTTPS $https if_not_empty;
scgi_param REQUEST_METHOD $request_method;
scgi_param CONTENT_LENGTH $content_length;
scgi_param REMOTE_ADDR $remote_addr;
scgi_pass 127.0.0.1:42;
}
}

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Replace "yourhostaddress" with the address name that the floating license server instance will be
accessed from (i.e. the "public" address -- even if that "public" address is local network specific).
Also, if you changed the SCGI "address" or "port" in the "TurboFloatServer-config.xml" file you'll
also need to change the "scgi_pass" directive to use the address and port you changed them to.

Test and fix access to the floating license server over HTTPS
After configuring the floating license server, then configuring the HTTPS server, start both of them
up. If either one fails to start, read the error log and fix whatever problems are described. Once
both are successfully started, you're ready to test if the floating license server is accessible via
HTTPS. You can do this by opening a browser on your computer and typing the host address
you've configured in your HTTPS server configuration.

So, in this example, "yourhostaddress" is the address that the HTTPS server is accessible from.
Type, "https://yourhostaddress" into your browser, and if you've configured everything correctly
(and both the floating license server and your HTTPS server are running) then this page should
show:

If you see a certificate error page, then make sure you're using SSL certificates signed by a
Certificate Authority. There are multiple options available, such asthe free Let's Encrypt certificate
authority.

Deactivating the floating license server

To move the floating license server from one computer to another, it needs to be deactivated from

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the first computer before it can be activated on the second computer. To deactivate the floating
license server instance, use the "-deact" command line switch:

· Linux: sudo ./turbofloatserver -deact

· Windows: .\TurboFloatServer.exe -deact

This will proceed with an online deactivation: it is done instantly but requires a working Internet
connection.

To proceed with an offline deactivation (i.e. generate an offline activation request) then enter a file
path using the "-deact" command line switch:

· Linux: sudo ./turbofloatserver -deact="Location/To/OfflineReq.xml"

· Windows: .\TurboFloatServer.exe -deact="C:
\Location\To\OfflineReq.xml"

Then send the generated XML file to our support team at SUPPORT at IBE-SOFTWARE dot COM
(replace at with @ and dot with .) so that we can mark your key as deactivated from that
computer. Once done, you will be able to activate the floating license server on another computer.

FAQ and troubleshooting

Presents a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) as well as troubleshooting information.

Error and warning messages

Some common error and warning messages shown by HelpNDoc;

· HelpNDoc shows an exception when launched

· Project already opened by another software

· Project is too old to open

HelpNDoc shows an exception when launched

Symptoms
When launched, HelpNDoc shows an error message saying that an exception occurred.

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Solutions

Software incompatibility: Sticky Password

The software "Sticky Password" is known to force many Windows applications to crash. Here is
how to fix this problem is you are using this software:

· Navigate to the main Sticky Password window - Menu - Settings - Ignored Apps and try to
add the executable file of HelpNDoc to the list. Usually, this is "C:\Program Files\IBE
Software\HelpNDoc\HelpNDoc 9\hnd9.exe"

· If it doesn't help, on the same tab in the main Sticky Password window - Menu - Settings -
Ignored Apps, try to disable autofill for the 32bit or the 64bit applications accordingly to the
version of HelpNDoc that you are using.

Project already opened by another software

Message
This project is already opened by another software or instance of HelpNDoc. Please close the
project first.

Explanation
This means that this HelpNDoc projects can't be opened or saved because either:

· Another instance of HelpNDoc has already opened this project without closing it

· It is used by another software or anti-virus

· It is marked as read-only or in a read-only folder

· The Windows user doesn't have rights to read and/or write to that location

Solutions
· Try rebooting your computer to make sure that no process is using that file anymore

· Make sure that only one instance of HelpNDoc has this project file opened
· Make sure that no other software has this project file opened

· White-list that file or folder in your anti-virus software

· Make sure that your Windows user has read / write access to that folder and project file

· Try to move the project file to a local simpler path such as c:\doc\doc.hnd to see if that is
working better

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Project is too old to open

Message
This project is too old to be opened with this version of HelpNDoc. Please open it and save it
using HelpNDoc version x.9 to convert it first.

Explanation
The HND project file evolves from time to time in order to be able to support newer features: it is
then automatically migrated to the newer version. However, when a project is too old, some
migrations couldn't be applied and older versions of HelpNDoc need to be temporarily installed in
order to migrate the project first.

Solution
Temporarily download and install older versions of the Free Personal Edition of HelpNDoc to
proceed with the migration.

Older versions can be downloaded from: https://www.helpndoc.com/whats-new

The following versions are the one we recommend based on the requested migrations:

· Version 4.9.2 for projects created with HelpNDoc 3 and later: https://dl.ibe-
software.com/hnd/helpndoc-setup-4.9.2.132.exe

· Version 3.9.2 for projects created with HelpNDoc 1 or 2: https://dl.ibe-

software.com/hnd/helpndoc-setup-3.9.1.648.exe

Notes
· Warning: Make sure that you backup your projects first as it is not possible to go back to an
earlier version otherwise

· Older versions can be installed in their own folder without un-installing newer versions as they
are independent
· Once migration is complete, older versions can simply be un-installed from the computer

Help compilers

FAQ and troubleshooting about Help compilers.

What compilers of libraries do I need to install?

HelpNDoc can generate the PDF, Word and HTML documentation by itself. However, to generate a

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CHM documentation, you will need to download and install the Microsoft HTML Help Compiler.

Installing the Microsoft HTML Help Compiler displays a warning message?

Symptoms
When installing the Microsoft HTML Help Compiler on recent operating systems, you can receive a
warning message saying that "This computer already has a newer version of HTML Help".

Solutions
· Discard the message as your system already has a valid and up-to-date help viewer. The
compiler has correctly been installed despite of this message.

CHM and HTML help

FAQ and troubleshooting about CHM and HTML help.

The CHM viewer indicates that the page cannot be displayed

Symptoms
When viewing your CHM documentation, Microsoft's HTML Help Viewer is showing an error page
saying either that:

· "The action has been canceled"

· "The page cannot be displayed"

Solutions
· Make sure your help file is not accessed from a network path or via a mapped networked
drive. Try to copy the file locally and launch it again;

· Make sure your help file isn't in a path with symbols such as "#" (sharp). Once again, try to
copy it locally before launching it;
· In some cases, you can have access to an "unblock" button in the properties page of the help

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file. Right click on the file then go to its properties and click the "unblock" button. This button
is not available in all systems though.

CHM content is not displayed after Internet Explorer update

Symptoms
After an Internet Explorer update, when viewing your CHM documentation, Microsoft's HTML Help
Viewer isn't showing anything in the topic's contents.

Solutions
The update process might have caused problems with some files registration. You can try to
register them manually from the Start / Run prompt by entering each of these commands:

· regsvr32 %systemroot%\system32\hhctrl.ocx <press the enter key>

· regsvr32 %systemroot%\system32\itss.dll <press the enter key>

Despite modifying the navigation pane's width the CHM file is not updated

Symptoms
You change the navigation tab's width in the HelpNDoc's projects settings but when opening the
CHM file, nothing has changed.

Solutions
The Microsoft HTML help viewer stores the help window's size and position for each individual
help file as soon as it has been launched. Modifying the help settings after that won't have any
effect as the help viewer will only read local configuration for that help file and ignore the file's
settings set up using HelpNDoc.

A solution would be to erase the help viewer's configuration file, but be warned that this file
contains all the configuration made to all the help files viewed on the system. So deleting this file
will delete the configuration options for all the other files too.

This file is usually located there: C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\HTML

Help\hh.dat where %username% is your Windows user name.

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The search feature is not working in the CHM documentation

Symptoms
When trying to search within the CHM documentation, no results are found.

Solutions
· In your HelpNDoc project, click "Project options" in the "Home" ribbon tab and make sure the
project language and charset are correct

· Make sure you are using a Windows installation setup with the same language as your
HelpNDoc's project language

· Click the top part of the "Generate Help" button in the "Home" ribbon tab to access the
"Generate documentation" dialog, then select your CHM build in the list on the left, then click
"customize" if the "Template settings" tab is not already visible on the right, then check the
option "Use project charset for topics"

· Generate the CHM documentation again

Google Chrome shows an error when searching HTML documentation

Symptoms
When viewing a local (not uploaded to a server) HTML documentation, Google Chrome will show
an error when trying to search within the documentation.

Solutions
HelpNDoc's HTML documentation generated using the default HTML template uses an AJAX call
to retrieve the search data. This provides faster loading times for the overall documentation.
However, when the HTML documentation is viewed locally, using the file:// protocol, Google
Chrome will not allow the AJAX call.

· To work around this limitation, Chrome can be launched with the "--allow-file-access-from-
files" command line switch. As an example, run:

o chrome.exe --allow-file-access-from-files
· Another possible solution is to serve the local documentation via a server such as Apache or
IIS, and therefore viewing your documentation using the http:// protocol. Google Chrome
won't have the same restriction in that particular case.

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The HTML help is broken when hosted by CloudFlare

Symptoms
We are hosting our HTML documentation produced by HelpNDoc on the CloudFlare CDN but it
appears broken with various JavaScript errors.

Solutions
CloudFlare's Rocket Loader technology rewrites part of your HTML to provide faster loading which
can break some JavaScript. The solutions are:

· Turn off Rocker Loader in the Performance Settings of CloudFlare. See: Why is JavaScript or
jQuery not working on my site?

· Write a custom HTML template and disable Rocket Loader for some scripts. See: How can I
have Rocket Loader ignore my script(s) in Automatic Mode?

Missing files when generating a CHM file in the same directory as HTML

Symptoms
Your project contains an HTML build which is followed by a CHM build and while the CHM build is
fine, the HTML one is missing files such as topics, library items...

Solutions
This is due to the fact that most of the temporary files generated by the CHM build overwrite
existing files generated by the HTML build. And by default, the CHM build will delete those
temporary files after successful generation: the HTML build is therefore missing some files.

The best solution is to generate each build into its own specific folder to avoid such unwanted
interactions.

The HTML documentation is not loading or behaving incorrectly

Symptoms
The HTML documentation is not correctly loaded or its behavior is chaotic.

Solutions
HelpNDoc's responsive HTML 5 template uses advanced techniques to provide a greater user
experience and lower download sizes. See: https://www.helpndoc.com/feature-tour/produce-html-

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websites

Unfortunately, most web-browsers won't allow this code to run on local HTML files (using the
file:// protocol) due to security restrictions. That won't happen when the HTML documentation is
uploaded to a web server and viewed using the http:// or https:// protocols. And that's why we
included a local HTTP web server: HTML documentation can be tested locally as web browsers are
tricked into thinking it has been uploaded to a real web server.

The solution is to use HelpNDoc's included HTTP web server or upload the whole
documentation file to a real web server.

If browsing local HTML files is mandatory, we recommend the use of the "legacy framed HTML
template" that ships with HelpNDoc. Be aware that some web-browsers might block it due to the
same security restrictions though. Here is how to select a template for a specific build:
https://www.helpndoc.com/step-by-step-guides/how-define-build-settings-helpndoc

HelpNDoc's powerful template system can be used to create completely customized HTML
documentation to fit specific requirements. See: Working with templates

Table of contents is empty or loading in default HTML template

Symptoms
When browsing the HTML documentation produced using HelpNDoc's default responsive
template, the table of contents is empty, shows an infinite loading animation or an error message.

Solutions
First of all, make sure that the documentation is correctly browsed from a web server. See: The
HTML documentation is not loading or behaving incorrectly
Some web servers such as older versions of Microsoft IIS or Amazon S3 must be configured to
return the correct mime type for JSON, WOFF and WOFF2 files. Requesting such files will have the
following results:

· The web server will return a "404 Not Found" error for those files: this will break the table of
contents in your HTML documentation;

· The web server will return those files as "text/plain" mime type. The default HTML template will
try to seamlessly work around that problem for JSON files, but can't do anything about font
files.

In any case, we recommend that you web server is correctly configured to return the correct mime

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type for those files. Here is how this can be done for some servers:

Microsoft IIS

Edit your web.config file and add the following content:

<system.webServer>
<staticContent>
<mimeMap fileExtension=".json" mimeType="application/json" />
<mimeMap fileExtension=".woff" mimeType="application/font-woff" />
<mimeMap fileExtension=".woff2" mimeType="application/font-woff2" />
</staticContent>
</system.webServer>

Amazon S3

Specify the property Content-Type property for every JSON, WOFF, and WOFF2 files. See Amazon
S3 documentation: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonS3/latest/API/RESTObjectPUT.html

HTML documentation hosted on GitHub are broken

Symptoms
While everything is working with the local web server, your HTML documentation hosted on
GitHub and served as a GitHub pages has a broken or indefinitely loading table of contents.

Solutions
By default, GitHub assumes that you are hosting Jekyll (a static site generator) compatible pages:
file names starting with a "_" (underscore) are ignored and not served by the GitHub web server.
However, HelpNDoc generates files starting with a "_" (table of contents, keywords...) and those
files are needed for the default HTML template to work correctly.
The solution is to include a .nojekyll file in the root path of your HTML documentation to turn off
Jekyll on GitHub pages. See this article from GitHub for more information.

Windows reserved file names

Symptoms
When generating an HTML based documentation format, an error occurs saying that it is not
possible to create a specific file.

Solutions
HelpNDoc uses the each topic's unique help Id as it's file name. However, some file names (such as
CON, NUL, COM1, LPT1...) are not valid file names, and Microsoft Windows will not allow the file to
be created.

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From Microsoft's documentation:

Do not use the following reserved names for the name of a file: CON, PRN, AUX, NUL, COM1,
COM2, COM3, COM4, COM5, COM6, COM7, COM8, COM9, LPT1, LPT2, LPT3, LPT4, LPT5, LPT6,
LPT7, LPT8, and LPT9. Also avoid these names followed immediately by an extension; for example,
NUL.txt is not recommended.

The only solution is to change the problematic topic's Help Id and use a value which will be
accepted as a valid file name by Microsoft Windows.

PDF documentation

FAQ and troubleshooting about PDF documentation.

Adobe Reader won't print with "drawing error" message

Symptoms
Printing a PDF document using Adobe PDF reader fails with the message saying "Drawing Error".

Solutions
Try updating the Adobe PDF Reader software to the latest version. It can be downloaded freely
from Adobe's servers

Microsoft Word documents

FAQ and troubleshooting Microsoft Word documents.

Table of contents page numbers are wrong in Word documents

Symptoms
When viewing a Microsoft Word document generated by HelpNDoc, the page numbers displayed
in the table of contents are wrong.

Solutions
HelpNDoc generates fields for the page numbers in the table of contents of Microsoft Word
documents. They are automatically managed and update by Microsoft Word and they are usually
updated when printing the document. It is possible to force the update of those fields by selecting
the whole table of contents in Microsoft Word, then hit the F9 keyboard shortcut.

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Qt Help

FAQ and troubleshooting about Qt Help documentation.

Modifications made to a Qt help file are not updated in assistant.exe

Symptoms
When generating a modified Qt Help file and viewing it using the Qt assistant.exe software, the
latest changes are not displayed.

Solutions
This is a known bug of the Qt assistant.exe software which creates a cache version of the .qhc help
file. The only solution is to manually delete this cache as follows:

· Note the name of the .qhc file that you are creating. E.g. sample.qhc

· Hit the Windows+R keyboard shortcut to show the "Run" dialog

· Type the path of the Qt Help assistant cache folder. Usually this is: %USERPROFILE%
\AppData\Local\QtProject\Assistant
· Delete the .qhc file and folder with the same name of your generated documentation project.
E.g. sample.qhc and .sample

Sales and license information

FAQ and troubleshooting about sales and license information.

What is HelpNDoc's update policy?

By purchasing one of the full versions of HelpNDoc, you are entitled for free updates for a full
version cycle with a one year safety period. This means that, no matter what, you will benefit from
one year of free updates. And if by the end of that year we haven't reached a full version cycle -
for example if you buy version 9.0, a full version cycle will go up to version 10.0 included - you will
still get free updates until that version cycle has been reached.

How much does HelpNDoc costs

Some factors influence the price of HelpNDoc:

· The HelpNDoc edition acquired: Standard Edition, Professional Edition or Ultimate Edition

· The number of licenses needed: Volume discounts are available as well as Site and Global
licenses

· Whether you need a named (per-seat) or floating (concurrent) user license

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· Whether HelpNDoc will be used for Educational or Governmental purposes

The most up-to-date prices are available from the HelpNDoc Store.

Do you provide a discounted Educational license ?

We do offer Educational discounts. Please contact us to receive further details.

Do you provide a government license ?

We do offer Governmental discounts. Please contact us to receive further details.

I need a special license: site license or global license?

Site license provide an unlimited number of licenses for a single location in the world. World
license provide an unlimited number of licenses for multiple locations throughout the world.
HelpNDoc can be licensed site-wide or world-wide. Please contact us to receive further details.

What kind of payment devises and currencies do you accept?

We use MyCommerce as our payment handling partner. They are globally known for their security
and efficiency in payment processing. They accept many currencies including US dollars, Euros,
British pound, Australian dollar, Japanese yen, Canadian dollar, Swiss franc, Russian rouble,
Brasilian real, Norwegian krona, Swedish krona, Polish zloty, Chinese renminbi yuan, Taiwan dollar,
Indian rupee. You can pay using various payment methods including credit card, paypal, wire-
transfer, check and cash. To learn more about MyCommerce and the ordering options, visit the
MyCommerce FAQ page.

How can I request a written quote before ordering?

To obtain a written quote, first choose the edition and license that you'd like to acquire from
HelpNDoc's Store page and click the "Buy Now" button. Use the "Request Quote" tab and fill-in
the requested information to receive a written quote.

Miscellaneous

Miscellaneous FAQ and troubleshooting.

HelpNDoc download problem

Symptoms
You downloaded the HelpNDoc installation program but can't launch it.

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Solutions
· Check that the installation program's extension is correctly set as an .EXE file. Some programs
such as CA Security Software can rename downloaded .EXE files to .EFW

Doc or DocX files can't be imported

Starting with HelpNDoc 8, *.doc documents can't be imported anymore. You can use an external
application such as Microsoft Word to convert the legacy *.doc file format to the recommended
*.docx format.

Starting with HelpNDoc 7, *.docx documents are imported by HelpNDoc without the need for
any third-party software.

For earlier versions, the free "Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
File Formats" must be installed on some systems in order to import Microsoft Word *.doc or
*.docx files. It is automatically installed with some older versions of Microsoft Office but not with
the latest versions. It can be downloaded from https://www.helpndoc.com/downloads/office-
converter/FileFormatConverters.exe

Some panels are missing or HelpNDoc's Window is hidden

Symptoms
When launching HelpNDoc, either the main window can't be seen or some panels are missing.

Solutions
Use the "-reset" command line option to reset HelpNDoc's layout:

If you are using HelpNDoc 6.8 or later, you can try to reset HelpNDoc's user interface settings as
follows:

· Close any opened HelpNDoc projects

· From HelpNDoc's "File" menu, click "Options"

· Click the "Reset" button at the bottom left of the newly opened "HelpNDoc Options" dialog

· Click "Reset Forms, Panels and Toolbars"

· Launch HelpNDoc again

If that doesn't fix the problem or if you are using an older version of HelpNDoc, please try to
launch HelpNDoc with the "-reset" command line option to reset all its settings as follows:

· Use the WINDOWS + R keyboard shortcut to open the Run panel

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· Indicate HelpNDoc's installation path with the -reset option. Usually it is "C:\Program Files\IBE
Software\HelpNDoc 9\hnd9.exe -reset"

· Restart HelpNDoc normally from now on

Note: for older HelpNDoc 7, 6 or 5 versions, adapt the command line accordingly.

The table of contents is missing topics or behaving strangely

When the table of contents is filtered, some filtered topics might be missing and the table of
contents could behave strangely. Make sure that you clear any filters first to restore the default
behavior. Some possible strange behaviors include:

· Newly added topics might not be visible, because they are filtered

· Moving a topic using the "Move" button could make it move intermittently, because it is
actually moved based on currently filtered topics

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