Questions and Notes - Robohelp 2020 (2020.0.156) - Related Topics, Lists/Para Styles, Updates

[Regiolanthe1]

Using trial of RH2020 (upgrade from 2017) and it is ... unintuitive and somewhat buggy. Couple of questions/notes based on my experience so far.

1) Related Topics - Where are they in the user interface Standard Toolbar? They appear to have ported over from an upgraded topic, but I don't see how to add them. 

I see mention of "Related Topics" in the help and in posts in this forum, but damned if I can figure out where the icon is to create them. The toolbar icons display in the following order: Contents > TOC > Index > Glossary > See Also > Microcontent (no RT, which I assume would show under or next to See Also).

2) What is it with combining lists and paragraph styles? Say I create an ordered or bulleted list - when I apply a paragraph style TO that list, I get double-paragraphs between each list entry in the Author UI (instead of a single paragraph). It does appear that you should be applying formatting to the list (not the paragraph), but I'm having trouble aligning the left margin/indent, which is enforced when I apply the paragraph style.

3) What is it with upgrades? I click on Help > Check for Updates, and I get the Creative Cloud Desktop update window (have a subscription). RoboHelp is not even listed as an application in CC. Not sure if this is just because it is a trial, although I intend to get the subscription just to keep up-to-date with the software.

4) In general - it crashes. A lot. 

[Peter Grainge]

The Reply button has now come back in this thread. Give me a few moments.

[Regiolanthe1]

Thank you. I now also have a "5".

5. Topics associated with sections. After outputting, I can click on a section (Chapter) - but the associated topic info is not displayed in the output (there is an associated file in the TOC. I checked).

[Peter Grainge]

1) Related Topics - Take a look at the About RoboHelp sample project. It's explained there.

2) What is it with combining lists and paragraph styles?

Say I create an ordered or bulleted list - when I apply a paragraph style TO that list, I get double-paragraphs between each list entry in the Author UI (instead of a single paragraph).

That sounds like something in one style getting inherited. Are you happy to use just the list style if we can get that working?

Start by removing the paragraph style. Then in the list style try padding rather than margin or vice versa. If that doesn't work. Give us some more precise information.

3) What is it with upgrades? I click on Help > Check for Updates, and I get the Creative Cloud Desktop update window (have a subscription).

It's right you get the CCD window. There is no update yet for 2020.

[mcdalga]

3) What is it with upgrades? I click on Help > Check for Updates, and I get the Creative Cloud Desktop update window (have a subscription).

It's right you get the CCD window. There is no update yet for 2020.

About this question: Is it planned to have robohelp updates from the CCD?

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

IIRC there was a bug in the first release of RH2020 that tried to use the Creative Cloud - try looking at https://www.adobe.com/support/robohelp/downloads.html to pick up the patches.

[Peter Grainge]

Not sure why you are getting crashes as it doesn't seem to be a general issue.

• Work in the About RoboHelp for a while to see if that has the same problem.
• Is there anything specific that seems to cause the crash.

[Peter Grainge]

Re the topic not showing, which output?

[Regiolanthe1]

Attempt to open the sample project to learn more on Related Topics. Encounter "Application Error" and restart prompt. Restart Robohelp (x2). Repeat. Sigh....

[Regiolanthe1]

HTML5 - in Edge.

[Regiolanthe1]

FWIW - Generated Frameless and topic/section link does work.

[Peter Grainge]

Something definitely wrong with your setup if you can't open About RoboHelp.

1. Have you tried rebooting the machine?
2. Was RoboHelp installed to the default location with admin rights?
3. How are you opening the sample? Via the menu? Try locatiing it in your Documents folder and double clicking the RHPJ file.

[Regiolanthe1]

Tried opening sample project from FileEx. Same result.

The person who installed it had admin rights. Alas - my company has a pretty strict policy about admin rights to machine. Properties for the file show that I have Read/Execute permission to Blank Project.rhpj ... but no modify/write, so yes - looks like a permissions issue... That's solved anyway. Thx.

[Peter Grainge]

Wondering if permissions could be linked to the crashing?

[Regiolanthe1]

Seems to be. I copied the sample project folder and pasted outside of the App folder. No issues now. Not sure if other crashes are related though... It's more like someone else noted in this forum, it's mostly the prompt to restart the app ... not a blue screen of death or anything...

Back to the sample project - I don't see any relevant info in it RE Related Topics. Am I missing something? There's only a single First Topic file ...

[Peter Grainge]

If you are saying you were opening the sample project from the Program Files, that is a protected folder. You should open the copy in Documents > My RoboHelp projects. It should also be listed on the start page. The copy in Program Files should never be opened, that is also explained in About RoboHelp. 

If you are seeing First Topic, that is not the sample project, it is just a new project you have created somehow. 

Open the correct copy of About RoboHelp and look in the Authoring folder for See Also and Related Topics.

Please take a good look at About RoboHelp as it explains most of the features.

[Regiolanthe1]

Thanks - I just realized my mistake looking at your page. I had somehow thought that looking at C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe RoboHelp 2020\resources\data\sample\projects should be what I was looking for. Silly me. 

It doesn't show up in Documents > My RoboHelp Projects - so I'll copy/paste from the application directory as above. Thx.

[Regiolanthe1]

Okay - I still don't get it. I don't see any Related Topics icon in the toolbar. If I open a project with related topics, they are there and show in the Properties panel, but I still don't see a way to create a new Related Topics list. Even with the topic with Related Topics, the icon is not in the toolbar...

[Peter Grainge]

It is explained if you read the topic. There isn't an icon any more. You simply create links to the topics. That's all Related Topics ever were.

OK now?

[Regiolanthe1]

Well - it would be a bit more clear if the About RoboHelp topic in question and the online help both didn't mention THIS. Are you telling me this information is innacurate?:

Edit - to clarify, I cannot see the icon that the big red arrow is pointing to. I see the See Also, but not Related Links icon.

[Peter Grainge · Accepted solution]

It is incorrect because somewhere along the line it got changed and that wasn't picked up. The topic does say Insert Related Topics Placeholder and if you hover over the icon I have highlighted it does read Insert Placeholder. Related Topics got subsumed.

[Regiolanthe1]

Thank you! I just wanted to confirm that I wasn't going bonkers. It does work as you described, obviously - but I didn't know from how it was described. I would suggest that Adobe keep on top of its changes ... there is no mention in the associated

AR topic or online help of doing it in the manner that you supplied.

[Peter Grainge]

There is a lot of content in that project and there have been so many changes in RoboHelp since it was first launched. The project follows on from its predecessor which had 14 updates. Not too surprising something slipped through.

[Regiolanthe1]

Example - Issue 5 (sections do not display associated content in Responsive HTML5 output). New 3-topic project, with one topic associated with a section.

[Peter Grainge]

I'm getting confused here. You posted this in another thread and I suggested moving it to the relevant thread. There is nothing in this thread about sections missing but I do recall seeing a thread that had this problem. You did post that, correct?

Each post has a date and if you click on it a link to that post is added to your clipboard. Please let me have a link to that thread as I can't find it now.