RH2020 - Problems generating TOC

[mjgm]

I am trying to generate Responsive HTML output in RH 2020.4.173, and I ran into these problems:
1. If I use an auto-generated TOC and I define Output Presets for the first time, the output comes out fine, with the skin I chose and a working TOC. If I add any new topics and generate again, the Output does not generate a TOC.

2. If I edit my TOC in any way and try to use the same Preset, the output does not produce a TOC.

3. If I use an auto-generated TOC and define my Output Preset, but this time I edit the skin, the output does not produce a TOC.

I am waiting for my IT Dept. Techs to update my version to 6, but until that happens (give it a day or two after this posting), I won't know if the update will cure my output woes. Has anyone encountered similar problems?

[Peter Grainge]

You do mean you add the new topics to the TOC as well as to the project?

After generating, how are you opening the output? If you are opening a topic from File Explorer that might explain. Open if from the eye icon in the preset.

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[mjgm]

Hi Peter! Yes, add new topics to the project and the TOC. I always use the eye icon to open. 

[Peter Grainge]

Try opening the About RoboHelp sample project and see if you hit the same issue.

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[mjgm]

Just tried it and everything worked perfectly. I tried with a TOC I generated, and with a new skin, then with custom changes to skin, then with a changed TOC and it worked perfectly every time. The failure in my project must be related to something in the topics themselves? I am importing them from a 2019 project. I feel tempted to start importing them into a copy of the About project, just to see when it breaks down.

[mjgm]

Forgot to mention - some of the topics I am importing have customized CSS and some js functions. Not enough to warrant a separate file, but directly embedded in the page. 

[Peter Grainge]

Are you using Import File rather than Import HTML Topic?

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[mjgm]

Import HTML. I've come to the conclusion that it must be some code inside a topic that breaks up the output, so what I am doing now is I'm starting anew and importing topics one by one, generating the TOC and and the Output. So far, so good. Tedious but it will ensure that I will hit the jackpot sooner or later. 

[Peter Grainge]

Correct approach. I was taught by a forensic scientist to change one thing at a time if you can, if not the minimal number.

Keep us posted.

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[mjgm]

Thnaks Peter - I will. I start today, we'll see.

[mjgm]

Hi Peter, 

I thought I would get around to this sooner, but life interrupted. I found the culprit and now am correcting my topics. If the HTML of  a topic contains any JavaScript functions from the 2019 RoboHelp (anything starting with rh-), my RH2020 will not generate a Table of Contents. It strikes me that somehow the upgrading utilities of RH 2020 did not correctly upgrade my project.

In any case, most of the 2019 functions will not work (for example, drop-down text will not work when output is generated). This does not happen when I use my own JavaScript functions (mostly to hide or scroll text, or open another page). I can use my own JS or CSS directly in the HTML page or by referencing to a source, no problem with that. It's just the old 2019 functions that seem to paralyze the generation of the TOC. So I am going over all my topics, deleting all the old rh-, and either using my own JS or substituting with the 2020 equivalent. 

In the end, it has been a productive exercise, because my project was originally built with RH2015, then upgraded to  2017, then to 2019 and now to 2020. When a project that has been around this long (since the beginning of 2016), there are a lot of styling changes and topics to upgrade, so we are taking care of that too as we go. Number 1 benefit so far: all baggage files (over 900)  have been moved out of the project and stored in SharePoint, and now we just link to them. We should have done this a long time ago, but inertia. Oh well, like we say in Spanish, "no hay mal que por bien no venga", or roughly translated, "every cloud has a silver lining". 

[Peter Grainge]

If the HTML of  a topic contains any JavaScript functions from the 2019 RoboHelp (anything starting with rh-), my RH2020 will not generate a Table of Contents. It strikes me that somehow the upgrading utilities of RH 2020 did not correctly upgrade my project.

Built in scripts should upgrade and I haven't seen anyone report that they prevent the TOC from building. However, you have fixed things so all is good. There's a bit about scripts at RH2020 Scripts (grainge.org)

In any case, most of the 2019 functions will not work (for example, drop-down text will not work when output is generated). This does not happen when I use my own JavaScript functions (mostly to hide or scroll text, or open another page).

Were the dropdowns using the RoboHelp method or the scripts on my site? The latter will not upgrade as they are third party as far as RoboHelp is concerned. For a long time anyway I have been recommending using the built in method.

In the end, it has been a productive exercise, because my project was originally built with RH2015...

That might well be behind some of this. 

Glad you are now getting the show back on the road.

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[mjgm]

Thank you for always been there with good advice and moral support. My first go-to whenever I have a problem is going to grainge.org!

Dropdown text and expanding text were using the 2019 dropdown text method. These would simply not work in the 2020 version. I agree with you, I think the fact that the project started out as a 2015 and then upgraded several times must have broken something. Anyway, all's well that ends well. Merry Xmas and a happy new year!

[Peter Grainge]

@mjgm Thank you for your kind words, always appreciated.

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