The state of Help today - Part 9
By Justin Darley. Contact us if you would like a PDF version of this article.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it seems to me that the main feature of the Help world today is its variety. We have a choice between 10 or more Help formats ranging from the 8-year-old WinHelp 95, through to OmniHelp and FlashHelp: still in their infancy. This leaves us with some hard thinking to do when it comes to choosing a format. I hope I've managed to shed some light on what's available. You have plenty of options. In brief, you need to:
- Research these formats thoroughly
- Find out as much about your users as you can
- Try to match the solution to the needs of your users.
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References
Martin, C (2003) Microsoft Takes Its Help Technology in a New Direction. [Internet] Seattle. WinWriters. Available from:<http://www.winwriters.com/resarch.htm> (sic)
Northern California STC WinHelp SIG WinHelp Survival Kit [Internet] Available from:<http://www.geocities.com/Area51/6793/helpsurv.htm>
Welinske, J (2000) 2000 WinWriters Skills and Technologies Survey. [Internet] Seattle. WinWriters. Available from:<http://www.winwriters.com/resarch.htm> (sic)
Welinske, J (2001) 2001 WinWriters Skills and Technologies Survey. [Internet] Seattle. WinWriters. Available from:<http://www.winwriters.com/resarch.htm> (sic)
Welinske, J (2002) 2002 WinWriters Skills and Technologies Survey. [Internet] Seattle. WinWriters. Available from:<http://www.winwriters.com/resarch.htm> (sic)
Ulli, M (2003) Historische Entwicklung der Microsoft online Hilfesysteme. [Internet] Available from:<http://www.help- info.de/de/welcome.htm>
Chandler, R (2003) HTML Help - Tech Info. [Internet] Melbourne. The Helpware Group. Available from:<http://www.helpware.net>
OmniHelp Design Report [Internet] Available from:<http://www.omsys.com/>
Perry, JM (2002) Flash MX Accessibility Issues. [Internet] O'Reilly. Available from:<http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/javascript/2002/11/08/flashmx.html>
Northern California STC WinHelp SIG WinHelp Survival Kit [Internet] Available from:<http://www.geocities.com/Area51/6793/helpsurv.htm>
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