Link not taking user to TOC

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Dale Aceron
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Link not taking user to TOC

Unread post by Dale Aceron »

When I publish the Help File, navigate to our application online and click the link for a Help Topic, our Help opens but it does not show where I am in the TOC.
However, when I click a link within a Topic, it does show where I am in the TOC.

Is there a setting I need to engage to make that happen?
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Tim Green
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Re: Link not taking user to TOC

Unread post by Tim Green »

Hi Dale,

What skin are you using and what syntax are you using in the URL to link to the help? Without that information it's impossible to say anything. However, what you describe generally sounds either like a skin that has been damaged, possibly by accidents in editing, or by upload errors (not all files uploaded, resulting in a mixture of old an new files, for example).
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Tim (EC Software Documentation & User Support)

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Dale Aceron
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Re: Link not taking user to TOC

Unread post by Dale Aceron »

Hi Tim,

I don't recall the skin exactly, but, I believe I am using a skin that came with H+M titled: 'Webhelp, iFrames Responsive, Blue.hmskin" and then modified the colors and added a few icons.
Would it help if I uploaded the file?

As far as syntax is concerned, I am not entirely sure what to say, but in asking a Dev, looking at it, they said it's simply our root/base link with the Topic ID as the Page. Does that make sense?
So essentially 'website.com/lmsdev/int/lmshelp/j_BL_Application.html'
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Re: Link not taking user to TOC

Unread post by Tim Green »

Hi Dale,
So essentially 'website.com/lmsdev/int/lmshelp/j_BL_Application.html'
That's the problem. If you are using a standard skin you need to use:

website.com/lmsdev/int/lmshelp/index.html?j_BL_Application.html

However, if you look at the page you are getting, you will see that there is a link above the topic title with which you can reload with the table of contents. The reason for this behavior with these skins is Google: If you access a page directly with a URL and the page reloads itself directly, Google interprets this as an attempt to increase page rankings by indexing two page loads, and it then stops indexing the site.
Regards,
Tim (EC Software Documentation & User Support)

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Dale Aceron
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Re: Link not taking user to TOC

Unread post by Dale Aceron »

However, if you look at the page you are getting, you will see that there is a link above the topic title with which you can reload with the table of contents. The reason for this behavior with these skins is Google: If you access a page directly with a URL and the page reloads itself directly, Google interprets this as an attempt to increase page rankings by indexing two page loads, and it then stops indexing the site.
Are you talking about the Navigation Breadcrumbs?
Attached is what I see?
website.com/lmsdev/int/lmshelp/index.html?j_BL_Application.html
How do I add the extra index.html? behind the Topic ID?
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Tim Green
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Re: Link not taking user to TOC

Unread post by Tim Green »

Hi Dale,

It would have been nice to see the entire layout in your screenshot. It's not possible to see what's really going on there, but that is definitely either not the standard 'Webhelp, iFrames Responsive, Blue.hmskin' you said you are using or something is badly wrong with it. Please try publishing with an unedited copy of the original skin.
How do I add the extra index.html? behind the Topic ID?
You would enter that in the URL you use to access your help. So if you are creating a link somewhere to open your help, you would include the index.html? with the question mark in the place shown. However, I really need to know which skin you are actually using. A screenshot of the WebHelp you are seeing would help.
Regards,
Tim (EC Software Documentation & User Support)

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Dale Aceron
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Re: Link not taking user to TOC

Unread post by Dale Aceron »

I manually added the index.html? and I still get the same results.
is this a publishing thing? Is there a configuration setting within H+M that adds the index.html? If so, how do we do that?


Below is a screenshot of our Webhelp Page.
2019-10-21_10-56-27 TOC User Search Screenshot2-min.jpg
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Tim Green
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Re: Link not taking user to TOC

Unread post by Tim Green »

Hi Dale,

That isn't the skin you were describing at all. It is a Premium Pack V3 skin for which you don't need the index.html? prefix at all. The fact that the TOC is not synchronizing with the topic displayed (highlight not in the right place) indicates either that the skin is damaged or that not all files were uploaded correctly. Please try the following:
  • First just hold down CTRL and press F5 in your web browser to reload the page without the cache (temporary internet files) to make sure that it is not just a cache issues.
  • Republish to an empty folder with your existing skin and make sure that the option to open the WebHelp automatically after publishing is ON. If it works normally just delete all the files in the folder on your web server and upload the new version.
  • If that doesn't work republish with an unchanged skin from \Templates\HTML Skins\Premium Pack 3.48\V3 Responsive WebHelp Skins\ in the Help+Manual program directory. This will work normally. The one you are using is Minimalist_Plain_White_WebHelp.hmskin.
  • After that you will need to make your changes to the new skin. Do this slowly, one step at a time, and publish and test locally after every change. That will show you which change causes the problem, if there is one.
Regards,
Tim (EC Software Documentation & User Support)

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Dale Aceron
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Re: Link not taking user to TOC

Unread post by Dale Aceron »

Thanks Tim.
I think try those suggestions.
One clarification though. I do not see the option to
...Republish to an empty folder with your existing skin and make sure that the option to open the WebHelp automatically after publishing is ON.
This is what I see.
2019-10-22_10-56-27 TOC User Search Screenshot Publish.jpg
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Dale Aceron
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Re: Link not taking user to TOC

Unread post by Dale Aceron »

Hey Tim,

We figured out and after adding the index.html?TOPICID.html, it worked.

Thank you so much for all your help!
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Tim Green
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Re: Link not taking user to TOC

Unread post by Tim Green »

Dale Aceron wrote:We figured out and after adding the index.html?TOPICID.html, it worked.
That shouldn't be necessary for the V3 skin you are using. It only supports the old index.html?topic.html syntax for backward compatibility. The correct syntax with those skins is really just topic.html. If that is not highlighting the topic in the TOC, either that topic doesn't have a TOC entry (which is possible) or something is broken, as I indicated in my earlier mail. :?
Regards,
Tim (EC Software Documentation & User Support)

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