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Re: Survey: Preferred Help Format

Damien Sykes <damien@...>
 

Hi,
I know how to use CHM. But it seems that the CHM viewer is deteriorating. It’s not that we don’t know how to use it (granted there may be some who don’t), but my friend can’t read content in CHM documents that I compile (the actual HTML content is just showing a blank page for him on every item), and it seems to be the 64-bit version of the viewer gives me a treeview of items that NVDA reads as “unknown”. I find the index useful in large programming references and such, but usually a table of contents suggests a recommended order to read something in. And that’s fairly hard if all you have is a treeview with a bunch of items that read as “unknown” and that can’t even differentiate whether an item is opened, closed or on its own...I only ever had that problem since switching to 64-bit Windows. On 32-bit, I could read CHM files with absolutely no issues whatsoever.
Cheers.
Damien.
 
From: Gene
Sent: Monday, December 11, 2017 5:45 PM
Subject: Re: [nvda] Survey: Preferred Help Format
 
I haven't used PDF to any extent.  Isn't HTML mostly used now?  Whatever the case, if people have problems using CHM, that's another instance of poor instruction or of people picking up Windows and other learning not in an organized manner.  CHM is just as easy to use as HTML if you know how to use it.  I won't go into how to use it in this message, but it's a question of knowing  how to use it.  and knowing how to work with a treeview, an essential piece of knowledge for CHM help, is important to know in other contexts.  I'm not blaming people for not knowing how to use CHM help for whatever reason or reasons.  But it is worth knowing. 
 
CHM not only has a contents treeview, it has a search function and an index function as well.  I run into a CHM help system now and then and it is an advantage for blind people to know how to use it.
 
Gene

----- Original Message -----
Sent: Monday, December 11, 2017 11:35 AM
Subject: Re: [nvda] Survey: Preferred Help Format
 

Hi,


Perhaps either the .chm or .html versions would be best because they are what we as blind users are most familiar with. If I had to choose one over the other though, the .chm file version was good for me for the longest time and it's more of a preference thing than anything else.  you get use to the .html version eventually.


Tony


On 12/11/2017 9:44 AM, tonea.ctr.morrow@... wrote:

My team hasn’t told me which help format we will be using for the online help. So, I thought I’d ask a little survey:

 

Which online help system do you prefer to use and a brief why, a.k.a. does one grant you more opportunities than another or is one more difficult with which to make a screen reader work?:

<!--[if !supportLists]-->A)      <!--[endif]-->Win Help (chm): old-style windows help system with a content tree on the left, a large pane containing information filling the right and center areas, and a header across the top with forward, backward type buttons.

<!--[if !supportLists]-->B)      <!--[endif]-->HTML Help: the design is similar to Win Help, but the whole thing runs in a web browser—whichever one is your default browswer.

<!--[if !supportLists]-->C)      <!--[endif]-->PDF – Portable Document Format with proper tags.

 
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