Customizing the HTML Help viewer

Every new HTML Help project includes a window with standard settings for the HTML Help viewer. The window design specifies how the HTML Help viewer looks and functions when your Help system is running.

The default window in your project is titled "NewWindow." You can customize the features of the HTML Help viewer by changing the properties of "NewWindow" (including its name). The window design is based on Internet Explorer functionality with added features for HTML Help. It includes a navigation pane on the left side with Contents, Index, and Search tabs, and topic content in a viewing pane on the right.

To customize the HTML Help viewer:

  1. From the File menu, select Project Settings.

  2. Click the Windows tab.

  3. Select NewWindow and click Properties.

  4. In Window Name, edit the text and assign a unique name to the window. This is the name you will select whenever you change properties for the HTML Help viewer.

  5. In Caption, enter the text to display in the title bar of the window. The HTML Help viewer displays this text in the title bar of the window when your Help system is open.

  6. Select the tabs to include in the navigation pane on the left side of the window.

  7. Select navigation pane features.

  8. Select buttons to include in the toolbar.

  9. Change the size and location.

  10. Add jump and home buttons to the toolbar.

  11. Configure the window to be always on top of other windows when open.

Tips:

  • If your project includes several windows, you should assign one of the windows to use as the default window. For more information, see Assigning default windows.

  • The HTML Help viewer includes a default topic. This is the topic that is displayed in the right-hand pane when the viewer first opens. By default, the topic displayed is the first one used in the table of contents. You can select the topic that you want to display and change it whenever necessary. For more information, see Assigning default topics.

  • If TOC & Index is selected and your project does not include a table of contents, the HTML Help viewer will not display the Contents tab. The Index tab is always displayed, whether it includes keywords or not.

  • You can add or remove the WebSearch button from the window. For more information, see Enabling WebSearch.