HP OpenVMS Systems Documentation

3 Getting Help

Requesting Help

Press F1 -- The Help Key

Using an Application's Help Menu

To Select On Item Help

Using Help Manager

Using Help Windows

Selecting Help Topics

Using the Topic Tree

To Select A Topic

Using Hyperlinks

To Select A Hyperlink

Moving between Help Topics

To Display the Help Pop-up Menu

Knowing Where You Are

Knowing Where You've Been

To Use History To Return to a Topic

Searching for Specific Information

To Search for Topics Using the Help Index

Browsing Help on Your System

To Open Help Manager

To Duplicate a Help Window

Displaying a Man Page

To Display a Man Page

Printing Help Topics

To Print a Help Topic

Printing Configuration

To Set the Printer Resource for an Application

Modifying Help Window Colors

To Change Help Window Colors for an Application

Other applications installed on your desktop may take advantage of using
the desktop's Help System or provide help in other ways.

Requesting Help

• Press F1--also known as the "help key"--to get context-sensitive help

• Choose a command from an application's Help menu

• Open Help Manager from the Front Panel to browse help on your system

• Open the Help subpanel to choose help about the desktop or to choose On Item Help

Press F1 -- The Help Key

The F1 key is a quick way to get help on an application menu or dialog box. For example, to request help about the File Manager File menu, display the File menu and press F1. File Manager displays a description of each item in the menu. Or, if a dialog box is open, pressing F1 will display an explanation of the dialog box. The F1 key is a shortcut for clicking the dialog box's Help button.

Using an Application's Help Menu

Figure 3-1 CDE application Help menu

A typical CDE Help menu includes these commands:

Overview

Displays the home topic for the application. The home topic is the first topic of the application's help topic hierarchy.

Tasks

Displays task instructions for most operations performed with the application.

Reference

Displays reference summaries for various components, such as windows and dialog boxes, menus, and application resources.

On Item

Enables you to click an item in any window of an application and view a description of the item.

Using Help

Provides help on using the help windows.

About Application

Displays the version and copyright information for the application.

On Item Application Help

To Select On Item Help

1. Choose On Item from the Help menu.

   The pointer changes to a ? (question mark).

2. Move the pointer to an item in the application and clickmouse button 1.

   A description of the item is displayed.

Using Help Manager

Figure 3-2 Help Manager control

Click any of the underlined titles to view the corresponding help information. For additional instructions about using Help Manager see "Browsing Help on Your System".

For convenience, you can also find help about the desktop and the Front Panel in the Help subpanel. It also provides On Item help for the Front Panel and its subpanels.

Figure 3-3 Help subpanel

Using Help Windows

Applications can use two types of help windows to display help topics: a general help window and a quick help window, shown in Figure 3-4.

Figure 3-4 Types of help windows

General help windows have a topic tree and a topic display area. The topic tree is a list of help topics that you can browse to find help on a subject. When you choose a topic, it is displayed in the lower portion of the help window called the topic display area.

Quick help windows are streamlined help windows. A quick help window has just a topic display area and one or more buttons.

Selecting Help Topics

Graphic images can also be used as hyperlinks. For more information about hyperlinks, see "Using Hyperlinks".

Using the Topic Tree

You can also change the size of the topic pane. To do so, drag the sash control shown in Figure 3-5. Then release the mouse button to set the new size.

Figure 3-5 Resizing the topic tree

To Select A Topic

1. Move the pointer into the topic tree.

2. Click mouse button 1 on the topic you want to display.

Using Hyperlinks

What Hyperlinks Look Like

A dashed underline indicates a definition link, which displays a quick help window.

A graphic--an icon, for example--can also be a hyperlink. A grey open-cornered border identifies a graphic hyperlink. Figure 3-6 shows the different hyperlink formats that can be used in help topics.

Figure 3-6 Hyperlink formats

Links That Display a New Window

To Select A Hyperlink

1. Move the pointer to the underlined text or graphic image.

2. Click mouse button 1.

Moving between Help Topics

Backtrack

Returns to the previous topic. Backtrack enables you to return to each topic you have visited.

History

Displays a History dialog box that lists help volumes and topics you have visited. Select a help topic to re-display it.

Home Topic

Returns to the home topic, or beginning of the help volume.

Help Pop-up Menu

Quick help windows do not have a pop-up menu.

To Display the Help Pop-up Menu

1. Point to the topic display area and press mouse button 3.

2. Choose Backtrack or Home Topic.

   Figure 3-7 Help pop-up menu

   

Knowing Where You Are

Figure 3-8 Help volume organization

The home topic is the first topic, or beginning of the help volume. Main level topics are accessible from the home topic, or may also be listed in your application's Help menu.

Browsing between Different Help Volumes

A group of related applications, however, may use hyperlinks to cross-reference information in different help volumes. For example, an application could include a hyperlink to the desktop's introductory help volume that explains basic mouse and keyboard skills.

Because hyperlinks can quickly take you from one piece of information to another, you may need to know where you are. A quick look at your help window can give you the information you need.

• The line located below the menu bar reports the name of the volume you are viewing. This is helpful when you have explored several help volumes using Help Manager, the help index, or cross-volume links.

  
  

• Within the topic tree, the first item is the home topic, or the beginning of the help volume. After exploring topics, you can easily return to the home topic by scrolling to the top of the topic tree. Or, you can choose Home Topic from the Navigate menu or pop-up menu.

• An (arrow) points to the title of the current topic. As you choose topics, the arrow moves to identify your selection. Scrolling the topic tree shows you where you are located relative to other topics.

Knowing Where You've Been

Figure 3-9 History dialog box

To Use History To Return to a Topic

1. Click the History button.

2. Choose the title of the help volume or topic that you want to display.

3. When you're done, click Close.

Searching for Specific Information

Figure 3-10 Index Search dialog box

Because the help index can be quite large even for a single volume, index entries can be expanded or contracted. A + (plus) sign indicates that the index entry relates to more than one help topic. The number shows the count of help topics. You can click the index item to list the topics.

For instance, the result of an index search for the word "display" is shown in Figure 3-10. The -36 prefix tells you that there are 36 index entries that contain the keyword "display." Clicking any title marked by a + (plus) expands the list and the + (plus) changes to a - (minus) sign. The last index entry shown in the figure has been expanded in this way.

To Search for Topics Using the Help Index

1. To open the index, click the Index button.

   The index lists all of the entries for the current help volume. You can choose All Volumes to view an index for all available help volumes or choose Selected if you want to select only certain volumes.

2. Select the Entries with field, type the word or phrase you are looking for, and press Return.

   Index searches are not case sensitive. Wildcards such as * (asterisk) and ? (question mark) can be used (see "Pattern Searches" below).

3. Select the index entry you want to view.

   If the entry has a + (plus sign) prefix, the list will expand to show additional choices. Then select a help topic to view.

   You may view as many topics as you want.

4. Click Close when you are done.

Pattern Searches

Two frequently used wildcards are asterisk (*) and question mark (?). The * matches any string of characters (including no characters), and ? matches any single character. Other wildcards include:

. (period)

Matches any character

| (vertical bar)

Specifies two search patterns and matches either pattern (logical OR)

( ) (parentheses)

Encloses a pattern expression

Examples

mouse.*clicking

Matches entries that contain the word "mouse" followed by any number of characters followed by "clicking"

mouse | click

Matches entries that contain the word "mouse" or "click"

(session | style).*manager

Matches entries that contain "Session Manager" or "Style Manager"

Browsing Help on Your System

At the top level, Help Manager groups help volumes into help families. For example, the help family Common Desktop Environment lists help volumes for the standard desktop applications. You can browse and display any of the volumes listed.

To Open Help Manager

1. Click the Help Manager control in the Front Panel (see Figure 3-2).

   A help window displays a list of help families with online help. This is the top level of Help Manager.

   Figure 3-11 Top-level view in Help Manager

   

2. Scroll the window to find the product group you are interested in and click its title (underlined).

   This lists the help volumes available for that product.

3. To open a particular help volume, click its title (underlined text).

4. To return to the top level of Help Manager, click the Top Level button.

Example

1. Click the Help Manager control.

2. Choose Common Desktop Environment.

3. Scroll the list of help volumes until you see File Manager Help.

4. Click File Manager Help.

   File Manager's help is displayed. This is the same help information you would see if you opened File Manager and chose Overview from the Help menu.

   Figure 3-12 File Manager help viewed in Help Manager

   

To Duplicate a Help Window

1. Choose New Window from the Help Manager File menu.

   The current help window is duplicated. You can size the new window and select topics independently of the original window.

2. To remove the window, choose Close from the File menu.

Displaying a Man Page

Figure 3-13 Man Page action icon

To Display a Man Page

1. Click the Application Manager control in the Front Panel.

   

2. Double-click the Desktop_Apps icon.

3. Click the Man Page Viewer icon.

   A dialog box is displayed, prompting you to enter a man page name.

   

4. Type the name of the man page you want to see and press Return.

   The man page is displayed in a quick help window.

5. Click Close to dismiss the man page.

Printing Help Topics

Printed help topics are directed to your default printer unless you provide a different printer name in the dialog box. Printed output is text only.

To Print a Help Topic

1. Choose Print from the File menu. (In a quick help window, click the Print button.)

   You can use the default values in the Print dialog box and skip to step 5 or enter new values for your print job.

   

2. Optional. Type the name of the printer that you want to use.

3. Optional. Type the number of copies to print.

4. Optional. Click the paper size button to choose a paper size.

5. Select the topic or topics you want to print.

   Current Topic (the default)

   Prints only the current topic

   Current and Subtopics

   Prints the current topic and its subtopics

   Table of Contents and Index

   Prints the help volume table of contents and index

   Entire Volume

   Prints the contents of the help volume including the table of contents and index

6. Click Print.

Printing Configuration

To Set the Printer Resource for an Application

application_name*printer             name

If you do not have an .Xdefaults file, create the file in your home directory.

Example

Add this resource to your .Xdefaults file:

ImageScan*printer:              laser2

Modifying Help Window Colors

To Change Help Window Colors for an Application

1. Edit your HomeDirectory/.Xdefaults file by adding these resources:

   application_name*DtHelpDialog*DisplayArea.foreground:   color
   application_name*DtHelpDialog*DisplayArea.background:   color
   application_name*DtHelpDialog*TocArea.foreground:   color
   application_name*DtHelpDialog*TocArea.background:   color
   application_name*DtHelpQuickDialog*DisplayArea.foreground:   color
   application_name*DtHelpQuickDialog*DisplayArea.background:    color
   
   

   Substitute the name of the application whose help windows you want to change for application_name.

   You can ask your system administrator for a list of colors that you can use or refer to your system documentation.

2. Save and close the file.

   When you restart your application, it will use the new color values for the topic tree and topic display area in its help windows.

Example

DtCardCatalog*DtHelpDialog*TocArea.foreground:  yellow
DtCardCatalog*DtHelpDialog*TocArea.background:  blue
DtCardCatalog*DtHelpDialog*DisplayArea.foreground:  yellow
DtCardCatalog*DtHelpDialog*DisplayArea.background:  blue
DtCardCatalog*DtHelpQuickDialog*DisplayArea.foreground:  yellow
DtCardCatalog*DtHelpQuickDialog*DisplayArea.background:  blue