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Louisa_de
Known Participant
May 5, 2011
Question

Conditional build tag invalid?

  • May 5, 2011
  • 1 reply
  • 1538 views

Hello everyone!

I'm using RoboHelp 9 and I had to add a new conditional build tag to my documentation yesterday.

It's not the first time I had to do this since switching to RoboHelp 9 and it never was problematic.

However, when I try to create a document now, RoboHelp tells me that this new build tag is invalid.

I googled and searched but I cannot even find this error message anywhere on the net.

Does anybody know what might cause this error and how I can fix it?

Thank you very much in advance!

Louisa

This topic has been closed for replies.

1 reply

RoboColum_n_
RoboColum_n_
Legend
May 5, 2011

Hi Louisa,

Can you tell us the name of the CBT you are trying to create? Is the error being generated when you create the CBT, applying it to some content or building a CBT expression? Also are there any other CBTs in this project? Is the problem only in one project? Sorry for all the questions but we haven't got a lot to go on.

  The RoboColum(n)   @robocolumn   Colum McAndrew
L
Louisa_deAuthor
Known Participant
May 5, 2011

Hi!

No, questions are good! Thank you for them!

I don't think I can tell you the name due to confidentiality issues.  But I can tell you it's capitalized, consists of 37 characters, 5 of them being _ and it's by far not the only (nor the longest) cbt in the document. It's one of over 100.

I have only tried entering the cbt in this project because I only need it in this project.

Does that help?

Otherwise just ask.

Thank you so much!

Louisa

RoboColum_n_
RoboColum_n_
Legend
May 6, 2011

Hi Colum! Hi Leon! Hi everybody else!

I have created different layouts and don't select the CBTs manually, but they are selected for me by a special tool depending on which text sections are needed.

For example: When product A features "function 1", "function 1"'s conditional tag is activated and then the section concerning "function 1" is contained in the output. Product A does not feature "function 2", so there's an inverted conditional tag for "function 2", so the section of the text concerning "function 2" is excluded from the output.

That also explains why I don't name the CBT's, they're named by those developing the functions.

Changing them is always a big issue as that also influences the product and that's why they have to have certain names, too, so that they can be easily recognized, you see?

I hope, that's an understandable description, English is not my mothertongue.

Still, I managed to narrow down the problem: RoboHelp doesn't like CBTs longer than 32 characters.

For this reason it doesn't accept the above mentioned tag in full, but cuts it off after character 32 which is basically the reason why I get the "invalid" message.

The selected tag that is given to me is "xyz_interface", the project cuts this down to "xyz_inte".

However, I have one CBT that's 38 characters long. I don't even understand how this could've have been added to the project. My predecessor must have managed that somehow, but how? I haven't found anything about that 32 character limit and how to avoid it.

Does anybody have an idea?

Thanks a million!

Louisa


Hi Louisa.

Apologises for the slow response today. I am travelling until Monday and have limited email access. Anyway if you want to progress this issue you really will have to consider shortening your CBTs. No matter who produces them. I'd strongly urge you to change your working practices by going to whoever creates them and asking them if they'd like it if you told them what to do. If you go to them with the limitations already outlined they will have to agree to letting you decide. After all you are the RoboHelp user, not them!

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