Re: Win95 Help questions

Subject: Re: Win95 Help questions
From: Scott Browne <sbrowne -at- UNICOMP -dot- NET>
Date: Wed, 12 Jun 1996 11:32:18 +0000

On Wed 12 Jun 1996, Bruce H. Johnson wrote:

<snip>

> For "standard" Help, leave it [help window size] at default. The
> last Help window size is stored in WIN.INI and is used for display.
> Same with position; with the size and position defaulted to the
> last-used, the user can put it anywhere needed or wanted. Sometimes
> the user may want it full-screen, other times may want to shrink it
> down so he can see his program, too.

<snip>

This is an excellent practice to follow. I do this with all my online
help that I create. Nothing annoys me more than running someone's
online help and having it always come up a certain size and in a
certain position. It is virtually *never* in the location I want it
nor is it the right size for what I want. Coming up maximized is the
worst!

So, If I'm going to have to resize and move it anyway, at least let
it come up in the size/location of the last Winhelp file I used - the
odds are greater that the previous location will be where I want it.
More so than where someone else thinks it should be.

As for colors, I also usually make the non-scrolling region match
company colors (with perhpas a logo) and leave the scrolling area at
default so the user's Windows colors will be used. The user chose
those colors because s/h/it liked them - let 'em use what they like.

Keep in mind that this may (sometimes) produce interesting effects
with graphics. The .BMP's used can only be square. Now, you may have
a round dot or circle to be used as a bullet, but the actual .BMP is
square - a round colored picture, with a (usually) white backgound
making the whole image square. Since some readers like colored
backgrounds (e.g. blue background with white text) and since there
are a few of the Windows color schemes that use a backbround window
color other than white, the square white of the graphic will show up.

Scott Browne "Writing is like Prostitution. First you do
Technical Writer it for the love of it, then you do it for a
Greenleaf Software, Inc. few friends, and finally, you do it for the
Dallas, TX money."
sbrowne -at- unicomp -dot- net -Moliere

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