What help file format for cross-platform app ? Topic is solved

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eranon
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What help file format for cross-platform app ?

Post by eranon »

What's the prefered help file format for a wxWidgets based application which will run, at the end, under Windows, Linux and OSX ? For Windows, I would use CHM, for example, but under Linux and OSX, I don't know... So what's the best cros-platform format ? Does wxWidgets provides an ease toward a specific format about contextual help (to reach the right topic according to app context) ?
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Re: What help file format for cross-platform app ?

Post by Manolo »

html is understood everywhere.
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Re: What help file format for cross-platform app ?

Post by eranon »

Manolo wrote:html is understood everywhere.
OK for HTML about source help-files, but what about the final single help file delivered in package ? Does the CHM archive format (compiled from HTML tree) right for Linux and OSX ?

Or, maybe, a PDF ?

--
EDIT : found http://www.wxwidgets.org/docs/tutorials/help.htm
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Re: What help file format for cross-platform app ?

Post by Auria »

eranon wrote:
Manolo wrote:html is understood everywhere.
OK for HTML about source help-files, but what about the final single help file delivered in package ? Does the CHM archive format (compiled from HTML tree) right for Linux and OSX ?

Or, maybe, a PDF ?

--
EDIT : found http://www.wxwidgets.org/docs/tutorials/help.htm
maybe you can explain why you think it needs to be a single file. It should be quite easy to just place a bunch of HTMl files in your app's data, and then load them in a wxWebView control.

Alternatively if you want to distribute a single file then PDF of CHM may be better. PDF files would be difficult to show directly in the application however. As you may have seen, wxWidgets can read .hhp, .hhk, .hhc files, however this is using the old wxHTML package and not the new wxWebView so this may be a little more limitating

And as for viewing help outside of wx, CHM is readable on OSX and Linux but the user may need to install third-party programs before being able to do so
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Re: What help file format for cross-platform app ?

Post by eranon »

Single file because my package has to be as compact as possible ; in term of size, but also in term of number of files.

Well, I've well noted all your indications, Auria, but surfing in the meanwhile, I've seen a pages talking about the "wxWidgets HTML Help" format (from what I've understood, a .htb files). What about it ? Is it HTML files compiled with a tool delivered with wxWidgets ? Or does it exists a software to write and produce this kind of format ?
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Re: What help file format for cross-platform app ?

Post by NinjaNL »

You might care to look at HelpBlocks http://www.helpblocks.com/ written by Julian Smart.
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Re: What help file format for cross-platform app ?

Post by eranon »

Thanks, NinjaNL ; bookmarked :)
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