Using RH Search Function

[JGaf]

Hi,

For a few years now, I've successfully incorporated Zoom search into documentation generated by RH, using the javascript method.  I now need to improve the search function beyond the limitations of the javascript method, so I thought I'd look again at the search feature that comes with RH.

I haven't been able to find the answers or options to do the following:

1.  Let the user limit their search to 2 out of 3 content categories.  At the very least, I want to exclude the "appendix" content category from the main search, but still have a separate appendix search if the user chooses.  Can users only search one category at a time?

2.  How do I get the TOC TITLES to display in the search results - and NOT the filename? This one is really annoying me., displaying filenames is ugly.

3. How do I get meaningful descriptions to display in the search results - and not, by default, the first text of the files which often includes the "return to top" script I have on each page.

4.  Can I display the RH search function within the content pane and therefore NOT hide the TOC? How do users know where this file is within the context of the TOC? Can I display breadcrumbs instead?

5. Has anyone who uses Zoom + RH, successfully switched from javascript to CGI "on a CD" using their FlyingAnt product?  

Thanks in advance!

RH Webhelp 11.0.4.291

Zoom Search 6 (1028)

[Peter Grainge]

1.  Let the user limit their search to 2 out of 3 content categories.  At the very least, I want to exclude the "appendix" content category from the main search, but still have a separate appendix search if the user chooses.  Can users only search one category at a time?

I believe I showed on my site how to create a page with multiple search buttons, each one pointing to a search of specific topics. The only way in RoboHelp that I can think of is to use Dynamic Filtering. If the user applies a filter first, their search will be limited to that.

2.  How do I get the TOC TITLES to display in the search results - and NOT the filename? This one is really annoying me., displaying filenames is ugly.

I have just checked the sample projects in RoboHelp 2015 and they show the titles.

3. How do I get meaningful descriptions to display in the search results - and not, by default, the first text of the files which often includes the "return to top" script I have on each page.

I don't think that is a RoboHelp option.

4.  Can I display the RH search function within the content pane and therefore NOT hide the TOC? How do users know where this file is within the context of the TOC? Can I display breadcrumbs instead?

That can be done with the responsive layouts.

5. Has anyone who uses Zoom + RH, successfully switched from javascript to CGI "on a CD" using their FlyingAnt product?

I haven't used the CGI method or Flying Ant. Maybe it will work on this "server".http://www.helpandmanual.com/hm2go.html

Download Help+Manual 2 Go, a free local WebHelp server, perfect for Webhelp testing

---

See www.grainge.org for RoboHelp and Authoring information

@petergrainge

[JGaf]

Thanks for the quick reply, Peter!

1.  Let the user limit their search to 2 out of 3 content categories.  At the very least, I want to exclude the "appendix" content category from the main search, but still have a separate appendix search if the user chooses.  Can users only search one category at a time?

==I believe I showed on my site how to create a page with multiple search buttons, each one pointing to a search of specific topics. The only way in RoboHelp that I can think of is to use Dynamic Filtering. If the user applies a filter first, their search will be limited to that.

=====I'm using webhelp and the only dynamic filtering I could find reference to was in responsive....so maybe I need to look into that.

2.  How do I get the TOC TITLES to display in the search results - and NOT the filename? This one is really annoying me., displaying filenames is ugly.

==I have just checked the sample projects in RoboHelp 2015 and they show the titles.

=====Ok, so my mistake.  My "titles" are also the filenames.....yea, maybe I should change those once and for all.  I will if I decide to quit Zoom...

3. How do I get meaningful descriptions to display in the search results - and not, by default, the first text of the files which often includes the "return to top" script I have on each page.

==I don't think that is a RoboHelp option.

======and neither is "exclude this from search" (zoomstop) apparently.....

4.  Can I display the RH search function within the content pane and therefore NOT hide the TOC? How do users know where this file is within the context of the TOC? Can I display breadcrumbs instead?

==That can be done with the responsive layouts.

=====Ok, see my response to your 1st comment.  Maybe I should look into responsive layouts.  How does one deal with content categories using responsive layouts??  I have 3 categories: User, Installation and an Appendix.  ech.

As far as trying a different "server" other than flying ant, I really like to keep things all in the family if I can.  It's good when or if there are issues so that they are not able to point their fingers to "the other software" and so begins my merry-go-round 🙂    There's a bit of learning curve with flying ant for me..

[Captiv8r]

But Dynamic Filtering is a Responsive HTML 5 only feature, no?

[Peter Grainge]

@Rick. Yes.

[TSR1881]

I have the same problem as described in bullet 2.: the search result shows sometimes a different topic title than the one in TOC (or the file name). Because TOC uses the title given in page properties (field Page Title) and search result uses the title that is in html page's <title> tag.

Content to <title> tag is generated when creating a new topic using the given topic title (in New Topic dialog). By default that is also used as the file name. So you should give the same name for Page Title (in New TOC Page dialog) and Topic Title (in New Topic dialog), yes that can be done. But the problem is that we often update the Page titles (or use some draft title when creating the first drafts). In this case the title should also be manually changed in the html code's <title> tag to get the search result title updated.

And actually we have used just random numbers as file names because the titles change and to avoid duplicate file names (there's a bunch of similar manuals and pages in one project). And because we didn't first notice that search uses the topic title instead of page title for search results we have ended up with search resulting to random numbers as 'titles'.

Am I missing something? Or is there any way that the search result would show the page titles as a title (as shown in TOC) instead of the html topic title? Or do I just always have to fix them manually to the code?

[Captiv8r]

Hi there

I sense that there may be some confusion brewing, so I think a bit of context is in order here.

Indeed, when a topic is created, it has a Title attribute and a file name attribute as shown below.

It's just a good habit to keep those names identical or pretty close to one another. Just for your own sanity when working with your RoboHelp project.

But having said that, there is nothing that prevents you from deviating. Perhaps making the Topic Title read: RedRabbit while the File Name reads: DumbBunny.htm. Things will continue to work flawlessly if you do this.

Of course, when you click the OK button and the topic is then created and opened in the editor, it looks a bit like this:

And at this point, that "New Topic1: is simply text at the first of the topic. And often folks will change it up. The fact RoboHelp inserts this text for you really has no bearing on the attributes of the topic. It's done merely for your own convenience. So, if you wanted, your Topic Properties and the Topic Text could look like this:

That's just for the topic. Now let's look at the TOC.

Sure, if you just drag a topic to the TOC and pop it in that way, you would end up with the TOC entry mirroring the Topic Title. In the case above, it would look like this:

Notice that the Topic Title reads RedRabbit, so just plopping the topic in the TOC causes the Topic Title to be inserted there.

But you don't have to live with that. You are free to amend the TOC so it reads differently. Perhaps you change it to read: Dumb Cottontail.

It's best to just think of the TOC as being like another HTML topic page. You have words that can literally say anything that have links on them that you click to visit topics they are linked to.

When I perform a search, the results list both the Topic Title as well as the first line of text on the topic.

Now if you want that the TOC, Topic Title and text at the top of the page should all always be the same, it's possible to achieve. What you would do is to insert a Topic Title Field so it replaces that first line of text in the topic.

This can be simplified by creating a Master Page where the field is already in place. Then as you create topics, the field is there. Additionally, if you ever want to deviate from that Topic Title or change it, you do it through properties of the topic.

Cheers... Rick

[JGaf]

Thanks everyone to your tips and helpful information.  Just don't know why RH search is so sloppy....