Webhelp Instead of HTML Help for Desktop Applications?

[hermi14]

For a couple of reasons, we are leaning towards using Webhelp instead of HTML Help for our Windows desktop application. The application is client-server based and so requires constant connection to a statewide WAN. (In fact there is at least one third-party interface component to the application that is web-based.) The reasons we want to use Webhelp are:

**The client also wants us to convert their business procedures to RoboHelp format to be linked to the application help. Ideally both the business procedures and the application help should be in the same RoboHelp output format.

**They need to be able to update their business procedures independently of any application updates, and with minimal input from the IT department.

**We're using page-level context-sensitivity, and for collaboration purposes we'd like to use merged projects (even within the application help portion). Webhelp merged projects generated from RH7 easily and automatically provide CSH (documented on PG site). HTML Help merged projects require lots of manual tweaking even before introducing CSH. And AFAIK there is no documented solution for trouble-free CSH in merged HTML Help projects.

I know that CHM is the industry standard for desktop applications, and that developers are wary of calling the browser application, but they're willing to do what we want. Still, I'd like to be able to tell them they're not alone.

Has anyone else implemented this model?

[Peter Grainge]

The thought that comes to me about your scenario is that with WebHelp you publish to one location and the job is done whereas with CHMs you have to install on what sounds like thousands of PCs.

I think Pete Lees responded to a post on calling CSH in Merged CHM fomat in the last few months with some detailed information.