Use <title> in TOC?

[Sonja]

Would it be possible to have an option (right-click on TOC entry, or in the Manage Topics ribbon tab group) "Use topic title for the TOC caption" / "Synchronize caption with topic title"?

[Tim Green]

Hi Sonja,

This function is already there, it is fully automatic and works like this: After creating a topic, the TOC caption and the topic header caption are linked and identical. If you edit the TOC caption, the topic header caption will change automatically. However, if you edit the header caption, Help & Manual assumes that you want it to be different and it turns off the link. After that, you can edit both items separately.

To make the two items linked again you just need to edit them so that they are identical again. After that, editing the TOC caption will once again automatically update the header caption as well.

[Winsteps]

Tim: thanks for the explanation, but the procedure you outline for TOC and titles is error-prone. A copy-editor sees one or the other first and edits it. It is difficult to remember that both change simultaneously for the TOC but only one changes for the Title. It would be easier if they were always synchronized unless synchronization is deliberately turned off by the user for that Title/TOC pair. Then editing that pair of TOC and title would always be independent.

Also, the whole text is visible for the Title, but often only partial text for the TOC, so editing the TOC is more difficult.

[Tim Green]

Sorry, but this is not going to change any time soon.