Text Variables not working in v7.05 Build 3680

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Glenn
Posts: 31
Joined: Wed Sep 13, 2006 5:55 am

Text Variables not working in v7.05 Build 3680

Unread post by Glenn »

Hi,

I have upgraded my Premium Pack today to v2.71 and configured some new Text variables; specifically, the email and sub-title for my project. For some reason they don't seem to be displaying correctly when I build the project. Is there something I am doing incorrectly? (Please see attached files for what I entered and view afterwards).

Also I was wondering if it's possible to adjust the width of the first tab (displaying the topic title) so that the entire topic title can be displayed?

One more, :roll: sorry... I searched for a topic about managing multiple outputs for different devices and couldn't find it. What I am looking for is your user info on how to produce the same output in different skins so that a body of work can be viewed on multiple devices, e.g. a PC, tablet and smartphone. Is there a link you can send me please? :mrgreen:

Thanks for your awesome support as always.

regards,

Glenn
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Tim Green
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Re: Text Variables not working in v7.05 Build 3680

Unread post by Tim Green »

Hi Glenn,

You just misunderstood where you are supposed to configure the variables. They already exist in the skin, and since they do adding them to the project will be ignored, because the skin versions have priority. You need to delete them in your project and configure the existing variables directly in the skin file. Just copy the .hmskin to your project folder so that you can edit it and open it in Help & Manual. You will find everything in the same location as in a normal Help & Manual project. After editing, make sure you select the edited version in the Publish screen, then it will work as expected. :)
Regards,
Tim (EC Software Documentation & User Support)

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Ryan Williams
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Joined: Tue Sep 08, 2015 3:02 pm

Re: Text Variables not working in v7.05 Build 3680

Unread post by Ryan Williams »

Tim,
Glenn wrote: One more, :roll: sorry... I searched for a topic about managing multiple outputs for different devices and couldn't find it. What I am looking for is your user info on how to produce the same output in different skins so that a body of work can be viewed on multiple devices, e.g. a PC, tablet and smartphone. Is there a link you can send me please? :mrgreen:
I'd also like some information on how to manage the multiple outputs. I've found the redirect entries in the different skins, but don't know which output format should be specified as the root to my website. Example:

I'm publishing a project for a dedicated domain "abcxyz.com". I'm going to publish to smartphone, tablet, desktop, and responsive outputs.

Which one would go at the root http://abcxyz.com/index.html?

Then do I just create subfolders for the other devices like: http://abcxyz.com/tablet/index.html and http://abcxyz.com/responsive/index.html?

Thanks,
Ryan
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Tim Green
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Re: Text Variables not working in v7.05 Build 3680

Unread post by Tim Green »

Hi Ryan,
I'd also like some information on how to manage the multiple outputs.
Sorry, I missed that part of your mail this morning. 8)

In the current version of the Premium Pack you need to generate different versions of your project with different skins for the different device categories. Since the main WebHelp skins will also work pretty acceptably on tablets you can get by with just two versions (WebHelp and Phones), or you can use the tablet skin as well.

Creating different versions is more work, but it has the benefit that you can modify the text appropriately using Help & Manual's conditional output features -- for example with shorter versions of your text for phones, where users have much shorter attention spans.

Basically, you create two or three different folders for your help on your web server and put the different versions of your WebHelp in each folder. Each skin has variables for automatic redirects, and you put the URLs of the appropriate versions in those. Then a user on an iPhone automatically gets redirected to the phone version if they start at the desktop version, and so on.
Which one would go at the root http://abcxyz.com/index.html?
If you want to have a "main" one then I would put the desktop version produced with the main WebHelp skin there. Then you could put the other ones in sub-folders, like this:

Code: Select all

http://abcxyz.com/index.html?
http://abcxyz.com/tablet/index.html?
http://abcxyz.com/phone/index.html?
But generally you will also have other things on your site. It is much better to create a separate branch for your documentation, with a structure like this:

Code: Select all

http://abcxyz.com/help/desktop/index.html?
http://abcxyz.com/help/tablet/index.html?
http://abcxyz.com/help/phone/index.html?
You can find the instructions for setting up the redirect variables for the individual skin types in the sections on those skin types in the main Help & Manual Premium Pack chapter in the main Help & Manual help.

In just a few more weeks Premium Pack 3 is coming out and will include fully responsive skins that adapt automatically to the device type, so you just need to create a single version. They will also allow you to display formatted popups from your help in your other web pages without having to display the entire help interface there (also supports video). At the moment there are some very basic responsive skins included as standard with Help & Manual 7, but they are quite limited in comparison.
Regards,
Tim (EC Software Documentation & User Support)

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Ryan Williams
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Joined: Tue Sep 08, 2015 3:02 pm

Re: Text Variables not working in v7.05 Build 3680

Unread post by Ryan Williams »

Tim,
In just a few more weeks Premium Pack 3 is coming out and will include fully responsive skins that adapt automatically to the device type, so you just need to create a single version. They will also allow you to display formatted popups from your help in your other web pages without having to display the entire help interface there (also supports video). At the moment there are some very basic responsive skins included as standard with Help & Manual 7, but they are quite limited in
comparison.
Will ver3 have the ability to configure links to the other formats of the document?

If not, is it too late to ask for a feature request:
Add Variables for each format (epub, pdf, mobi, etc...) similar to how redirects are entered in "Project Explorer > Configuration > Common Properties > Text Variables". In the Value field of the variable, enter the url and the display text separated by some unique character maybe $$. Add a display text instead of an image true/false variable. Add variables or baggage files for icons if an image is to be used instead of text. And finally have options for each one in the "Skin include options" area when you go to publish the project.

Thanks,
Ryan
Glenn
Posts: 31
Joined: Wed Sep 13, 2006 5:55 am

Re: Text Variables not working in v7.05 Build 3680

Unread post by Glenn »

Hi Tim,

Thanks for first solution and the additional info based on Ryan's posts. Regarding Premium Pack 3 due in a few weeks, I just upgraded this week to Premium Pack 2, will it be a free upgrade to PP3 as I would like to use the skins that adapt to the device type.

regards,

Glenn
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Tim Green
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Re: Text Variables not working in v7.05 Build 3680

Unread post by Tim Green »

Hi Glenn,

Everyone who has purchased or upgraded to PP2 recently will get the PP3 upgrade free of charge. 8)
Regards,
Tim (EC Software Documentation & User Support)

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Glenn
Posts: 31
Joined: Wed Sep 13, 2006 5:55 am

Re: Text Variables not working in v7.05 Build 3680

Unread post by Glenn »

Thanks Tim,

That's great news :D

Best regards,

Glenn
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