Making a help system for a word.dot

[JustSomeGuy]

A word.dot (or .dotx) is being used as a sales proposal template. The
template needs to be simple, but we also need to give our sales reps who use
it, a considerable amount of context sensitive ''help" as they use the
template. And, we don't want the 'help' to be embedded in the file itself
since it might accidentally be left in when the proposal is delivered, where
it might be visible to a sales prospect.

I could easily write a Windows Help system to support this template, but how
would I trigger the context sensitive help from within the Word template?
Or is there a better way?

 

[Jonathan West]

A word.dot (or .dotx) is being used as a sales proposal template. The
template needs to be simple, but we also need to give our sales reps who
use
it, a considerable amount of context sensitive ''help" as they use the
template. And, we don't want the 'help' to be embedded in the file itself
since it might accidentally be left in when the proposal is delivered,
where
it might be visible to a sales prospect.

I could easily write a Windows Help system to support this template, but
how
would I trigger the context sensitive help from within the Word template?
Or is there a better way?

Can you give some examples of the sorts of occasions on which you want to
have the help diaplayed?

 

[Gordon Bentley-Mix]

Can you also tell us how the template is being completed? Does it just use
formfields that the user tabs through? Or is it fronted by a UserForm for
collecting the details?

The first instance might be a bit tricky to support, but there are myriad
options available for the second: e.g. labels on the UserForm that change in
response to the Enter event for a TextBox; displaying a (non-modal) UserForm
in response to a DblClick or KeyDown event in a control; etc. In addition,
with a UserForm you don't need to worry about "legacy" content being left in
the final document. All of the "help" will reside in the template, which the
sales prospect won't have access to.

Unfortunately, I don't think there's any easy way to provide functionality
that uses WinHelp or a .chm. It can probably be done, but it won't be simple.

--
Cheers!
Gordon

Uninvited email contact will be marked as SPAM and ignored. Please post all
follow-ups to the newsgroup.