Search and Skin Differences after Publishing to RH Server 8

[criswelljulie]

I am new to RH Server and getting ready to change our link to point to the published server version of online help.  I am experiencing two issues with RH Server.

1)  We use a custom skin with a custom button that opens a new window for users to submit ideas.  If I generate WebHelp Pro and view the result, the custom button appears and works as designed.  However, once I publish the help to the RH Server and view project, the custom button is no longer displayed.

2)  Search results appear differently between just generating and publishing.

Please see screen shots below:

I would love for the buttom and the search results to remain the same after publishing to the RH Server.  Can anyone please tell me what I am doing wrong?

Thanks

Julie

[johndaigle]

Hi, Julie

I have been working with the new Adobe RoboHelp Server 9 for so long (and loving it) that I need to refresh my memory on a few things when working with RH Server 8. Sorry, this is a bit long-winded

With regard to the Search results - What is missing in your second example is called "Search with context". The solution is for you, or your Web Admin to change a simple text file on the server machine itself. Here's the process.

There  are two kinds of search in Robohelp Server 8. Client Side and Server  Side. By default, Server Side is installed. To see the search features I  think you are preferring, you would want to switch to Client Side  (basically the search index is created on your authoring machine before it is  published vs. having the server do the search indexing.)

The  way you change to "client side" is to edit a simple text file in a  folder where RoboHelp Server 8 is installed on the server machine (not  your authoring machine). The filename is robohelp_server.properties and can be found along this path on the server.

Tips:

1. Stop the Tomcat Server before you edit the property file. You can do that by using this app
   C:\Program Files\Apache Software Foundation\Tomcat 6.0\bin\tomcat6w.exe
   
2. Open the file in Notepad (Run as Administrator if using Windows Vista or Windows 7)
   C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Adobe RoboHelp Server 8\WEB-INF\robohelp_server.properties
3. Look for the lines that look like this:

#reindex = false

reindex = true

Put  a # mark in front of the true line to comment it out and then delete  the # mark in front of the false line. Save it, restart Tomcat,  re-generate and republish your project to the server.

You  should now be able to see more features like Search Context, etc. There  are tradeoffs in client side an server side. It takes some experimenting  to determine which mode works for your situation. BTW, this is an area that is much improved in the new RoboHelp Server 9.

Missing Custom Button in the Skin - Not sure about this one. In your WebHelp Skin, is your "Ideas?" custom button pointing to a straightforward http:// URL, or are you using some Javascript code underneath the hood to make it open in a new window? Also, if you could share the code behind that button, it might help us diagnose. Finally, what browser are you using and what is the Windows Server OS you are using (Windows 2003 Server? etc.)

Thanks!
John Daigle

Adobe Certified RoboHelp and Captivate Instructor

www.showmethedemo.com

[johndaigle · Accepted solution]

Me again

Doh! I just remembered a couple of things on the Custom Button thing.

1. Make sure WebHelp Pro is your Primary Layout
2. Create new custom window from the Project Setup pod
3. Give it a name like, RHServer
4. In the Buttons section of Window Properties, tick the box for your custom button and click OK.

Now, when you generate your WebHelp Pro, make sure you select the correct skin name AND select your new custom window from the dropdown

See if that works.

John Daigle

Adobe Certified RoboHelp and Captivate Instructor

www.showmethedemo.com

[criswelljulie]

Thanks John.  The missing button is now displayed.  Pointing me to the Windows properties in the Project Set Up worked; I found that I had created a custom window when the project was originally started.  Looking at the properties of this window I found that the Ideas button was not selected to display.  Now the generated version and the published to RS8 version are matching in appearance.  Currently our sys admins are performing the edit to the server properties file to switch to client side versus server side.  I am sure that will get us the end result we are looking for, but I will repost once they are complete.

Thanks again.  

[RoboColum_n_]

Hi Julie.

John's expertise will see you right. His advice to change the properties file is spot on and works like a dream.

---

The RoboColum(n)

@robocolumn

Colum McAndrew

[criswelljulie]

Thanks again John.  Sorry it took me a couple of days to get back to you.  Our IT Ops made the change from server to client and the search results are looking more like myself and clients will expect.  And as I mentioned before, the custom button on the skin is fine.

My only hiccup is some verbiage shown in the search pane..

In the published version versus the simply generated version, the Search directions appear differently.

The published version asks the user to hit GO yet there is no GO button.  Is this something that can also be changed in a properties file somewhere?

[johndaigle]

Hi Julie

I see what's happened. You are using a modified version of an "old" custom skin created years ago called "Chrisi". It happens that the designer had substituted the default "GO" icon that sits to the right of the search input field with a custom icon representing a magnifying glass. If you hover over the icon you can see the tooltip that says Go.

So there are a couple of ways around this.

1. You can replace the magnifying glass image in the WebHelp Skin Editor with some custom substitute graphic that has the word Go on it:

2. Or, you can go to the Project Settings > Language Advanced Button > LNG File tab and modify the wording of this entry:

nls_body_instruction=Enter your question in the text box above, then click GO.

...maybe "then click the Magnifying Glass icon." or whatever wording you like.

Glad you're making progress

John Daigle
Adobe Certified RoboHelp and Captivate Instructor
Evergreen, Colorado
www.showmethedemo.com

[criswelljulie]

Have you ever been stumped?  Thanks so much for helping me out - saved me a ton of time and stress.   I am looking at both options right now and will figure out what looks best.

Again, thank you very much.