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H
HDcap
Participating Frequently
December 14, 2017
Question

RoboHelp 2017 WebHelp search not working in IE11

  • December 14, 2017
  • 2 replies
  • 1869 views

Hello. My issue is similar to a problem posted earlier. However, there are a few differences. We recently upgraded from RH9 to RH 2017 release (build 13.0.2.334). When generating WebHelp, FlashHelp, or Responsive HTML5 output the search feature did not work at all when previewed or when uploaded to our web server (not SharePoint). Adobe Tech Support sent the following instructions for a fix:

  1. Download the file from the fowling link: Link deleted by Moderator. See Post numbered 4 in thread.
  2. Once downloaded extract the zip file. Copy the file “loadprojdata.js”.
  3. Go to  the location <RoboHelp_install_location>\RoboHTML\ResponsiveHelpExt\widgets\common\scripts> and replace with the existing one.

This fixed the search issue for Responsive HTML5 output when previewed and when uploaded to web server and viewed with IE11. It did not fix the issue for FlashHelp or WebHelp when uploaded to web server and viewed with IE11. Search works when previewed, but not when it's been uploaded to the web server. (Note: Adobe Tech Support told me that FlashHelp is dated technology, and it would be better to use WebHelp or Responsive HTML5 output. Given that our existing projects are quite large, it made sense to opt for WebHelp output. Otherwise we would have to "recreate" our projects if using Responsive HTML5 output.)

In summary, when our WebHelp output is viewed with IE11, the search feature does not work. However, when that same output is viewed using Firefox, the search feature works fine. IE11 is our primary web browser. Is the issue with RoboHelp 2017, or is it an IE11 problem? I appreciate any thoughts or suggestions you all may have.

This topic has been closed for replies.

2 replies

S
Community Manager
Stefan GentzCommunity Manager
Community Manager
December 15, 2017

I strongly recommend considering to switch to a newer browser. Internet Explorer is very outdated (released in 2013!) and Microsoft's recommendation is to migrate to Microsoft Edge. Internet's support for modern web technologies is very limited. To get an idea of how much back IE is, you can go to HTML5test - How well does your browser support HTML5? and open it in IE 11 and on new versions of Edge, Chrome, and FireFox. The results speak for themselves.

And the same recommendation applies to WebHelp. If you want to provide a modern user experience to your customers, I suggest publishing to Responsive HTML5. It looks much nicer, it's responsive and works better on different screen sizes, it provides much better search experience to users and functionalities like dynamic content.

Peter Grainge
Peter Grainge
Community Expert
December 14, 2017

The zip file you have downloaded only has one JS file in it. Problems similar to this were reported in Tracker​ Bug 960 where a user posted two JS files that have fixed issues for some users.

I will liaise with Adobe on this difference but meantime you may wish to try the two files in the bug report. I suggest you don't mix and match the files there and the file from Adobe.

Yes FlashHelp is getting less popular because of Flash issues but why would you have to recreate your projects to use the responsive layouts. They are just another output.

See www.grainge.org for RoboHelp and Authoring information

@petergrainge

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H
HDcapAuthor
Participating Frequently
December 14, 2017

Hi. Thanks so much for your response. I’ll try the two files you mention. Regarding “recreating” project for responsive layout: when I open my existing projects, I could not see the output option for Responsive HTML5. I feel like a real dummy having just noticed I can select Create a New Output. Ugh.

Given all the WebHelp issues, would you recommend selecting the Responsive HTML5 output instead (even though we don’t use mobile devices to view content)?

Peter Grainge
Peter Grainge
Community Expert
December 14, 2017

WebHelp will be around for some time yet as there is just too big a user base. Responsive can hit problems too but that is where the focus is for new features such as Dynamic Content Filtering. See the RoboHelp Tour on my site if you are not familiar with that.

You will need to liaise with your developers if you use URLs for context sensitive help and I would alert them regardless.

See www.grainge.org for RoboHelp and Authoring information

@petergrainge

Help others by clicking Correct Answer if the question is answered. Found the answer elsewhere? Share it here. "Upvote" is for useful posts.
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