Help TasksDuplicating a Help Window
Using Help Manager to Browse Desktop Help
&sigspace;These instructions assume that you are using a mouse. Most tasks
can also be done without a mouse. See Keyboard Shortcuts for the Desktop
for more information.
See AlsoHome Topic
Getting Help
You can request help in these ways:requesting helpOn Item helphelp, ways to requestHelp keyHelp menuHelp Manager, control iconUse the Help Key
The F1 key is a Help key. When you press F1, the application you are using
displays a help topic most closely related to the component&emdash;a window
or dialog box for example&emdash;that is highlighted.Your computer may have a dedicated Help key on the keyboard. If so, it may
take the place of the F1 key.Use the Help Menu
Most Common Desktop Environment applications use these main level topics in their
Help menu.OverviewDisplays an introduction that tells you how to
start the application. This is the home topic, or beginning of the
application's help volume.TasksDisplays task instructions for using features of the application.Reference&sigspace;Displays reference summaries for components such as menus,
windows and dialog boxes, and resources.On ItemChanges the pointer to a ? (question mark) and enables you to click an
item in an application window. A description of the item you clicked is
displayed.Using HelpProvides help on using the help windows.About ApplicationDisplays the version and copyright
for an application.
Use Help Manager
Help Manager is a special help window that lists all of the online help that has been registered on your system.
To browse the desktop help volumes see .
See AlsoHome Topic
To Browse Desktop Help Using Help Managerbrowsing helphelp, browsingHelp Manager, openingbutton, Top LevelTop Level buttoncommand, Top LevelHelp Manager is a special help window that lists online help
that has been registered on your system.
Click on the Information Manager subpanel in the Front Panel and
choose Help Manager.(To look at a sample Help Manager window, click here.)Scroll the window to find the product you are interested in.
To open a help volume, choose its title (underlined).
The Help Manager window contains an additional navigation button
called Top Level. After browsing different help volumes,
you can use Top Level to return to the Help Manager's main screen.To view more than one topic at a time, Help Manager windows
can be duplicated (see ).&sigspace;See AlsoHome Topic
To Duplicate A Help Windowhelp window, duplicatingcommand, New WindowThe New Window command is only available in the Help
Manager help window.
Choose New Window from the Help Manager File menu.&sigspace;To use the keyboard: Hold the Control key and click mouse button 1 on
a topic in the topic tree or a hyperlink.
&sigspace;The current help window is duplicated. You can size the new window and
select topics independently of the original window.To remove the window, choose Close from the File menu.See AlsoHome Topic
Displaying Help Topicshelp, choosing topicstopics, displayingtopic tree, choosing topicshyperlinks, choosingThere are two ways to select help topics. You can choose a topic in
the help window topic tree or select a hyperlink.
To Select a Help Topic in the Topic TreeMove the pointer into the topic tree.Click a title to display the help topic.Use the Backtrack button to return to a topic, or
select a new title in the topic tree to display a different topic.
topic tree, selecting topicstopic tree, resizingTo scroll the list of titles, drag the vertical scrollbar in the topic
tree. Use the horizontal scrollbar to view long title names.To change the number of titles displayed, select the sash control located
below the navigation buttons and drag.
Release the mouse to set the new size.
To Select A Help Topic HyperlinkMove the pointer into the topic display area.Click the underlined text or graphic image.
For a description of hyperlinks, see .See AlsoHome Topic
Moving Between Topicsnavigation buttonsbuttons, navigationUse the Backtrack, History and Home Topic commands to move back and
forth between topics.
Backtrack
History
Home Topic
See AlsoHome Topic
To Return to a Previous Topiccommand, Backtrackbutton, BacktrackBacktrack commandpop-up menuThe Backtrack command returns to the previous topic. You can revisit each
topic you have viewed.
Click the Backtrack button. &newline;Or, press Control+B or
choose Backtrack from the Navigate menu.Repeat Backtrack to go back as many steps as you need.
&sigspace;menu, help pop-uphelp, pop-up menuThe Backtrack command is available in a pop-up menu
in a general help window. To display the popup menu, point to the
topic display area, then press mouse button 3.&newline;(On a two-button mouse, press both buttons simultaneously.)
See AlsoHome Topic
To List Previous Topicscommand, Historybutton, HistoryHistory commandThe History dialog box lists topics and help volumes that you have displayed.
Click the History button. &newline;Or, choose History from the Navigate menu.Select the topic title or help volume name that you want to
return to. You may have to scroll the list of titles to find the one you're looking for.Repeat step 2 for as many topics as you want to revisit.Click Close when you're done.See AlsoHome Topic
To Return to the Home Topiccommand, Home Topicbutton, Home TopicHome Topic commandThe Home Topic command returns to the top-level topic, or the beginning of
the help volume.
Press Control+H or choose Home Topic
from the Navigate menu. &newline;Or, select the first title in the topic tree, which is the
home topic. You may need to scroll to the top of the list.&sigspace;
The Home Topic command is available in a pop-up menu
in a general help window. To display the popup menu, point to the
topic display area, then press mouse button 3.&newline;(On a two-button mouse, press both buttons simultaneously.)
See AlsoHome Topic
To Locate Where You Arehome topic, definedHelp topics are grouped
into a help volume. The name
of the current help volume appears below the menu bar.Each volume has a home topic, or top-level topic, that is the
beginning of the help volume. The home topic is the first title
in the topic tree. An arrow marks the
current topic, which is displayed in the topic display area.See AlsoHome Topic
Copying Text From Helpcopying, from Helptext, copying from Helppaste, from Helptext, pasting from HelpYou can copy text from a help topic and paste it into other
applications such as a word processor or terminal window.
Select the text you want to copy:Using a MouseClick at the beginning of the text.Drag to the end of the text and release the mouse button.Using the Keyboard to Select an Entire TopicUse the Tab key to move the highlight to the topic display area.Press Control+/.&newline;To deselect the topic, press Control+\.
Choose Copy from the Edit menu.&newline;Click the pointer in the window where you want to add the text.Choose Paste from the application's Edit menu.&sigspace;Most applications support copy and paste using this method,
but some may not. If not, use this method:Select the text you want to copy.
Click the pointer in the window where you want to copy the text.
Click mouse button 2.&sigspace;
Use this method to copy text from quick help windows, which do not have an Edit
menu.
See AlsoHome Topic
Using a Help Indexindex, using help indexindex, searchingindex, entry prefixsearching for help topicsA Help index is a list of important words and phrases
in a help volume. Each index entry
has one or more help topics that you can display.To open the index, click the Index button in the help window.Choose the help volume or volumes you want included in the Index:Current Volume&sigspace;Displays the index of the current volume only.All VolumesDisplays indices for all help volumes.SelectedDisplays an index for each of the help volumes you select from
a dialog box that is displayed (see ).Choose whether to view the entire Index or to search for specific entries.To browse the entire index, select Complete Index. All index
entries are displayed.To search for a word or phrase:
Select Entries with, and type the word or phrase you want to find.Searches are not case sensitive. To make advanced searches for multiple
words or patterns, you can use regular expressions in the search.Press Return or click the Start Search button.Index entries that contain the search string are displayed.
Click an index entry in the list.The corresponding help topic is displayed.&sigspace;Index entries use these prefixes:A (-) indicates all the entries are displayed. To contract
a list, click the item. The (-) changes to a (+).A (+) indicates an entry can be expanded. For example, +2 indicates
there are two more entries. Click the item to display the additional
choices. The (+) changes to a (-).
Click Close when you are done.See AlsoHome Topic
Printing A Help TopicPrint commandprinting, help topicscommand, Printhelp, printing topicsYou can print an individual topic, a Table of Contents and Index, or an
entire help volume. Printed topics are text-only.
Choose Print from the File menu.
&newline;( In a Quick Help window, click the Print button.)Optional. Enter the number of copies to print (default is 1)
and press Return.Optional. Click the paper size button to display your choices.&newline;Letter8.5 x 11 in
Legal8.5 x 14 in
Executive7.25 x 10.5 in
A4210 x 297 mm
B5182 x 257 mm
Choose the topic or topics to print.
Current Topic &emdash;&sigspace; prints only the displayed topic (the default)
Current and Subtopics &emdash;&sigspace; prints the current topic
and any subtopics it containsTable of Contents and Index &emdash;&sigspace; prints the Table of
Contents and Index of the help volumeEntire Volume &emdash;&sigspace; prints all topics in the help volume,
the Table of Contents and Index
Click Print.
See AlsoHome Topic