Developing Online Help
Course Resource List for Summer 2005 Session

This class is taught by Linda Urban through the UC Berkeley Extension, Technical Communication program.
Course Description

Resources on the Web (and a few books)

To download the Microsoft HTML Help Workshop (to create HTML Help), start at http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/htmlhelp/html/vsconhh1start.asp
You’ll find great info on HTML Help and a download for the workshop.

To download FAR, start at http://www.helpware.net.

Tutorial for Using HTML Help Workshop
Books about Online Help
Online Help Tool and Utility Vendors
Help Consultant Pages
Online Help Discussion Lists and MVP Program
Learning HTML
HTML Tutorials
Dreamweaver Tutorial
CSS and Design References
Web-authoring Discussion Lists
Accessibility Links
Usability Links Relating to Online Help

Tutorial for Using HTML Help Workshop

http://www.mvps.org/htmlhelpcenter/htmlhelp/hhtutorials.html

Books about Online Help

Building Enhanced HTML Help with DHTML & CSS, by Jeannine M.E. Klein, from Hewlett Packard Professional Books, through Prentice Hall, 2001

Standards for Online Communication, by Joann Hackos and Dawn Stevens, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1997.

Hot Text: Web Writing that Works, by Jonathan and Lisa Price, 2002

Developing Online Help for Windows 95, by Scott Boggan, David Farkas, and Joe Welinske, 1996 (out of print, but some still lurking around)

Designing Windows 95 Help, by Cheryl Lockett Zubak & Mary Deaton (also out of print)

Designing and Writing Online Documentation, William Horton, 1994.

For further information about information types and "chunking," take a look at some of the books about content management, such as Bob Boiko's Content Management Bible.

Online Help Tool And Utility Vendors

Macromedia (makers of RoboHELP) http://www.macromedia.com

Quadralay (makers of WebWorks Publisher; versions that work with FrameMaker and Word) http://www.quadralay.com

Component One – now offer Doc-To-Help and some ForeHelp features http://www.componentone.com

AuthorIt Software (makers of AuthorIt) http://www.author-it.com

OMNI Systems (makers of MIF2Go) http://www.omsys.com

Helpware Group (makers of FAR – terrific shareware) http://www.helpware.net/

Keyworks Software (makers of KeyTools – great utility) http://www.keyworks.net/

Help Consultant Pages (All have good information and/or resources)

Help Stuff: Creative Computing Company (Char James-Tanny) http://www.helpstuff.com/

Work Write User Assistance (Cheryl Lockett Zubak) http://www.workwrite.com

Sageline Publishing (Bill Meisheid) http://www.sageline.com/

Knopf Online - Training and Consulting Services http://www.knopf.com/

WritersUA (used to be WinWriters) http://www.winwriters.com (Great conference!)

Shadow Mountain Tech (Don Lammers) http://www.smountain.com/

HelpMaster's Site. Maintained by Josef Becker http:http://www.helpmaster.com/

Online Help Discussion List, Online Journal, and MVP Program

HATT – help authoring discussion group http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HATT/

STC Online Information SIG http://www.stcsig.org/oi/www.html

HTML Help MVP Program – great stuff here! http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/htmlhelp/html/hwHTMLHelpMVPProgram.asp

eServer TC Library – great resource of articles about online help and other technical communication topics: http://tc.eserver.org/

Learning HTML

There are so many resources available! Do a Google search. Here are a few.

Free, downloadable editor (HTML-Kit) at: http://www.chami.com/html-kit/

HTML Tutorials

http://www.w3.org/MarkUp/Guide/

http://www.w3schools.com/html/default.asp

Dreamweaver tutorial

http://www.gslis.utexas.edu/technology/tutorials/webpub/dreamweaver/basic/dwweb.htm

CSS and Design References

CSS Basics, http://www.sizefactory.com/xhtml/cssbasics.html

Mulder’s Stylesheets Tutorial, by Steve Mulder, http://hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey/authoring/stylesheets

WebMonkey Reference: Stylesheet Guide http://hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey/reference/stylesheet_guide/

Cascading Style Sheets: The Designer's Edge, by Molly Holzschlag, Sybex, 2003. (Excellent book, starting from the basics.)

Eric Meyer on CSS: Mastering the Language of Web Design (this guy must know more about CSS than just about anyone), New Riders, 2002

CSS Layout Techniques: Look Ma, No Tables (plus other interesting info on the site
http://glish.com/css/

Online site that backs up a book on XHTML. Has lots of interesting stuff on it, like the HTML and CSS Quick Reference Guides http://www.utoronto.ca/ian/books/xhtml1/index.html

Design Issues (from W3C): http://www.w3.org/DesignIssues/Overview.html

Info on CSS (from W3C): http://www.w3.org/MarkUp/Guide/Style.html

Article on Absolute Positioning with CSS http://www.webreview.com/1997/06_27/webauthors/06_27_97_2.shtml

Web Standard Project: http://www.webstandards.org/learn/

Web-authoring Discussion Lists

Web Designers Forum (requires you to become a member, but no charge - very active email discussion group where you can post all kinds of questions, or just read other peoples' Q&A)
http://www.wdf.net/about.html

Web Design List - another discussion list - a lot of very experienced people here, who write books about this stuff, generously answer questions for people, and have interesting conversations about everything web-design related. Tends to be fairly techy at times.
http://webdesign-l.com/