A

Anonymous

Question

Problems with Word Import

Forum|Forum|17 years ago
May 20, 2008
12 replies
2896 views

I work for a company that uses Microsoft Word as the primary tool for developing documentation. We then import the docs into RH5 creating topics by heading levels.

I downloaded the RH7 30 day trial and I noticed when I imported the docs it would not split by heading styles. Instead it just lumped evything together based on my heading 1 style with the sublevels linked to the heading1 topics. I could not find a way to unlink the topics so that I can reorganize and reuse content. Also when I clicked on a topic it appeared as just one long topic.

Not sure if this is a limitation of the trial, but any support would be welcome, since my company is trying to decide if we will upgrade.

Also on a side note, i was curious what peoples experience where with converting styles on import with RH7. RH5 had this feature but it had many issues with crashing and not being able to convert some style elements from word.

HTML

This topic has been closed for replies.

Peter Grainge

Community Expert

There are no functionality differences between the trial and full versions.

Use the menu (bottom right) to mark the Best Answer or Highlight particularly useful replies. Found the answer elsewhere? Share it here.

Peter Grainge

Community Expert

It would be way too easy to ask why your granny didn't teach you that HTML does not support outline numbering. Point taken?

There is no neat solution I know of but I don't use outline numbering so I haven't dug into it enough to find a kludge, apart from manually entering the numbers which is a real pain.

The only idea I have is maybe using RoboHelp for Word. I haven't tried it but maybe when generating the help, RH substitutes the correct numbers hard coded as it were. RH for Word is not so well supported on these forums so you won't get the same level of assistance.

A couple of thoughts.

First, HTML 5 specs are being developed and I believe they may include outline numbering, but that's way off.

Second, I gave a presentation recently and made the point that whilst I understand why outline numbering is used, it gets in the way of readability. The Word templates being shown had left aligned headings and indented body text. Even the guys who love numbering had to admit it got in the way of the eye picking up on the headings to help them find what they wanted on second read. So maybe take another look and decide whether you really want that numbering, especially in an online environment.

The help files are being worked on for the next version but that doesn't help right now. Did someone point out the offline help is better than the online help?

Use the menu (bottom right) to mark the Best Answer or Highlight particularly useful replies. Found the answer elsewhere? Share it here.

MergeThis

Inspiring

Ah, Wrigbone, you're still not getting the point.

MS Word .doc files are binary thingies loaded down with macros, hidden xml, and other filth.

HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) files are flat files (straight text) whose tagged content gets interpreted by modern browsers.

Some of what complicates the whole Word conversion effort:

* Many Word files have had styles created and applied in random fashion, usually by multiple users.

* If RH doesn't have an identically named style to match a style it encounters in the Word file being converted, it creates one on the spot and tries the best it can to replicate its formatting. This can apply to all elements: headings, lists, etc.

As to the outline numbering: that's a print conceit only, and has been superceded by hyperlinks in the online world. End of discussion.

The good news is that Word allows you to change and rename styles very easily. For example, RH recognizes the style "Heading 1." Therefore, in Word you would select Edit > Replace > More. In the Replace tab, place your cursor in the Find what box and click Format > Style. In the Find what style box, select the "MyRedHeading1" (or whatever the custom styles are named) and click OK. Repeat these steps in the Replace with box and select "Heading 1" as the replacement style. Unfortunately, you'll probably still have to do some manual style changes if any of those custom headings were edited after the style was applied (an altogether likely possibility).

Another issue to contend with is Word's AutoFormat option, which gives RH the heebie-jeebies, specifically things like smart quotes, hyphens with dash, etc. Again, there's good news. In Word, first turn off all the checkboxes in Tools > AutoCorrect Options > Autoformat As You Type. Then use the Edit > Replace > More option and type each of the characters (double quotes, hyphens, etc.) in both the Find what box and the Replace with box.

And, you're right: none of this is explicitly stated in the "spotty help files," nor might you have obtained it from "the atrocious foreign based tech-support of Adobe." But then again, we users here in the forum love dispensing "entry level BS," even though it probably won't help you.

Good luck,
Leon

A

Anonymous

Preciate the pointers fellas. Yes I do understand the limitations when converting to HTML however my point, and I believe the point of the others who started this discussion, is that the older versions of RoboHelp did this job just fine. I assume the old version just ignored the number, picked up the heading, then hard coded the number in HTML. This version of RoboHelp will not "see" the headings when importing if there is numbering preceding them. FYI MegreThis, it doesn't matter if you use the standard Microsoft Heading 1 or My Custom Heading it will not pick it up on import. As soon as you strip out the numbering, bam, My Custom Heading 1 2 3 etc are all available.

I agree Peter, and I would love to do away with the numbering, but we are dealing with bureaucrats here and they want to refer to a section and sound important when they do if you get my drift. So it looks like I'm stuck with old school editing on this one. Thanks again for the input. Hope this helps someone in the future.

A

Anonymous

Come on, Wrig. You'll probably end up hearing nothing but crickets if you ask for assistance as you have.

We are all in the same boat, plugging away using RH in all its flavors, with all its challenges. No software is perfect. Not a single one is distributed without flaws - everyone and their grandma knows that too. But needlessly insulting the tool that many of us have invested years in to produce whatever it is we produce isn't going to win you friends and gain you assistance.

Which, as you know, isn't paired with an invoice. How many communities can you go to to get the extremely competent level of assistance you get here, without spending a dime? Hmm?

You are new to the forum, or you would have already seen that many of our colleagues do need the basic level of instruction that Leon took the time to offer.

So please, have a sense of humor, and appreciate the support you receive.

Peacefully, L.

A

Anonymous

If I'm curt with you, it's because time is a factor. I think fast, I talk fast, and I need you two guys to act fast if you want to get out of this. So pretty please, with sugar on top – help me with ROBOHELP!

MergeThis

Inspiring

In your initial post, your last sentence was "Could you spell out the process of clearing the heading format then re-applying a little more?" (I think I provided the MS method for this.)

Yet, in your next post, you say "My grandma know[sic] how to select text, clear, and apply formatting in Word."

And your most recent one "I think fast, I talk fast, and I need you two guys to act fast if you want to get out of this." Indeed!

Try to keep in mind, that there are now three major versions of RH in use, dueling browsers interpreting HTML and XML very differently at random times, conversions being made from Word, FrameMaker, WinHelp, etc., and a community of users that range from absolute neophytes to 20-year users, with hundreds of types in between, including software developers and other non-writers. As a matter of fact, it sometimes takes even experienced users a dozen back-and-forth replies before we can determine exactly how we can speak the right user-speak for each user that comes to us with a problem (e.g., What do you mean by the index? and other such questions).

We enjoy helping users fix their problems, except when they come in bomb-throwing. Throwing C*** around is not appreciated. Take the time to actually read our suggestions, instead of blowing us off and insisting that we haven't helped at all.

Good luck (and I really, really mean that!),
Leon

Peter Grainge

Community Expert

You have two options.

1] Merged webhelp.

You create a merged setup, described on my site, and supply each customer with the parent and the required child projects.

2] Build Expressions

You create one project with multiple outputs that provide the different output combinations that you require. You don't delete stuff, you exclude it from the output.

I think the general view is that performance of RH prior to RH7 when working on projects tailed off a bit after around 5000 topics in a project. I don't think RH7 will be different in that respect but no data to support that view.

For the end user there is no database so the method of production is not relevant. Neither would security be affected, not sure what concerns you there.

Use the menu (bottom right) to mark the Best Answer or Highlight particularly useful replies. Found the answer elsewhere? Share it here.

Peter Grainge

Community Expert

When you look at the folder in Project Manager, is it showing the images below?

Are you seeing red crosses in the topics where the images should be?

If not, what do you see?

Use the menu (bottom right) to mark the Best Answer or Highlight particularly useful replies. Found the answer elsewhere? Share it here.

F

F-Techie

Participating Frequently

Only a folder name Images. No subsidiaries. thats what i see in the project manager.
and no there are no red plusses in the topics where the images should be.

Let me explain the situation :

I am importing a word document so i can turn it into HTML pages. everythings going like it should be except for the images. Kindly note that I did the same steps for a previous project and it worked fine. This document in specific is giving me a hard time! could the problem be in the word document itself?

Peter Grainge

Community Expert

Please send me some screenshots via my site. Include a link to this thread.

1] A topic marked to show where the images should be.

2] Project Manager showing the folder with the topic. Click any + signs for the folder

3] Windows Explorer showing the same folder.

It would help to see the source document as well. Zip it all up.

Use the menu (bottom right) to mark the Best Answer or Highlight particularly useful replies. Found the answer elsewhere? Share it here.

Peter Grainge

Community Expert

Wherever your project is located on your PC. When you open RH you should be able to see where your project is located.

Speak to one of your developers, I think they will follow what I am getting at.

Use the menu (bottom right) to mark the Best Answer or Highlight particularly useful replies. Found the answer elsewhere? Share it here.

F

F-Techie

Participating Frequently

both folders exist.. same name same everything! What do i check next?

F

F-Techie

Participating Frequently

I'm new to all this Robohelp stuff so bear with me please.

Peter Grainge

Community Expert

Compare the folders in Windows Explorer with the folders in RH's Project Manager. I think you will find there is a folder you will see in Windows Explorer that does not appear in PM.

That folder will have the images.

Check that first.

Use the menu (bottom right) to mark the Best Answer or Highlight particularly useful replies. Found the answer elsewhere? Share it here.

F

F-Techie

Participating Frequently

Where do I view this "folder in Windows Explorer " ?

Peter Grainge

Community Expert

If you look at the project in Windows Explorer you will see the images in a sub-folder to the topic. Go to Project Manager in RH and create exactly the same folder. I think you will find the images then start appearing in it.

Use the menu (bottom right) to mark the Best Answer or Highlight particularly useful replies. Found the answer elsewhere? Share it here.

F

F-Techie

Participating Frequently

I'm sorry but i don't understand. Can you please explain more!

I really appreciate your help!

Peter Grainge

Community Expert

It is important that your heading styles are those defined by Microsoft as the Heading 1, 2 etc. If you have created styles such as Heading 1 My Version, they are not seen as headings and will fail.

Look in Word's style organiser and see what headings are listed.

Use the menu (bottom right) to mark the Best Answer or Highlight particularly useful replies. Found the answer elsewhere? Share it here.

F

F-Techie

Participating Frequently

Thank you for your help.

I'm facing another problem.

After importing the word document using robohelp, i found out that the images do not appear throughout the pages. Please note that it worked fine for another project.. i just don't know where did i go wrong in this one!

So can anyone help me out here!

Show more replies

Sign up

To post, reply, or follow discussions, please sign in with your Adobe ID.

Sign in to Adobe Community

To post, reply, or follow discussions, please sign in with your Adobe ID.

Scanning file for viruses.

This file cannot be downloaded