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HTML Help has emerged as the new standard help file format. HTML Help is distributed in a single (.chm) file. This file is compressed and made from several .html files. All images, table of contents, index, search files are compiled into this single .chm file. This makes for easier distribution of your help system.
HTML Help is available on any 32 bit windows platform, Windows 95/98, Windows 2000, NT 4, XP, and Vista. On Windows 95 and NT 4, the HTML Help Display Engine, Internet Explorer 4.0 or later, or Microsoft Office 2000 must be installed on the user's system.
Clarion's HTML Help implementation is a DLL that communicates with the Microsoft HTML System. The DLL is accessed by a Class Interface and is hooked to your application using simple standard Clarion code. Clarion's HTML Help intercepts the call to the Windows Help system when the F1 key is pressed. These calls are re-directed to the HTML Help System. There are several templates available which make the HTML Help system easily accessible from your Clarion program. Accessing Topics, Table of Contents, Indexing, Searching, Keywords, and Hyperlinks are a snap.
Clarion's HTML Help implementation is compatible with both the ABC and Legacy templates. It can only be used in a 32-bit application. Multiple HTML Help files may be called from a single application.
At the time of this writing, the Microsoft web site has extensive online documentation regarding design tips and considerations for a standard HTML help project. For example, it it strongly recommended that each of your windows has a specific topic, the standard OK, Cancel, Save button do not need specific help, etc.