[Gambas-user] Authoring user level application help

Me adamnt42 at gmail.com
Fri Nov 2 09:16:43 CET 2018


(from my helper)

>> We have used various methods of authoring user level help systems over the past years. To put it plainly, most
>> have not been easy to implement and generally problematic. For the last 2 years we have used the java based
>> "helpsetmaker" which has proven to be quite reliable, if not very simplistic in its' capablilities. 
>> 
>> The "helpsetmaker" project has been dormant for some time now and could be generously considered to be
>> abandoned. The version I have been using is 8? years old and still has significant stablity issues. I have tried 
>> contacting the author with no results. As a result, this is starting to cost time in excess of what we generally 
>> allow for help authoring on a project.
>> 
>> I am reluctant to incur the cost of a commercial authoring product. However,  I need to say 

[... a lot of stuff excised...] 

So, I would like to ask for some community input here.

How do you all write "user level" help, and
how do you show it?

Many many months ago, I did have a very "flakey" authoring system to generate html help files that I (ahem) wrote
myself, probably in Gambas 2.verylow, but that is well and truly gone now. Since then I have used some fairly
amazing (read "*$%!@* useless) linux applications and utilities to work with our own in-house documentation. The
only one that leaps to mind as being a significant outstander was Olivier Cruille's (sp?) markdown tool. Unfortunately,
even though it is still available through the farm, I have lost the translations I did and some tweaks I made. Sad.

Probably enough said. Any input would be really gratefully received.

regards
bruce

p.s. My "assistant", Fels, and I got married a couple of years ago. So when I receive an "O-FFicial" email like that, I
know that I'd better take notice. 


-- 
adamant42 at gmail.com


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