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Work Write, Inc. and KeyWorks Software Announce Microsoft HTML Help Enhancement Tool

PHILADELPHIA, PA, June 20, 2001 - Work Write, Inc. and KeyWorks Software today announced the release of KeyHelp, an ActiveX control that provides significant capabilities to Microsoft HTML Help compiled help systems or Internet Explorer-based online help systems and intranet information.

KeyHelp's features include:

• Programmable embedded help. Just about every HTML-based help development system provides some support for embedded help - that is, help that's part of the real estate and behavior of the software rather than a separate window that "floats" above it. KeyHelp is a completely customizable and embeddable HTML Help development environment. With a programmer's assistance, you can embed an HTML pane into a dialog box and open a context-sensitive help topic. You can control user interaction by type of content, user level, and other information types. In addition, unlike other HTML-based help environments and embedded help facilities, KeyHelp provides complete programmatic access to Dynamic HTML through the Dynamic Object Model (DOM). KeyHelp can be used with any programming language that supports COM.
   
• Fully HTML popups. One of the deficiencies of HTML-based help is the lack of easily opened and dismissed popups - that is, temporary windows that are typically used for definitions. Unlike other popup windows, KeyHelp's popups support all types of HTML information - including text, links, stylesheets, graphics, backgrounds, animation, and Dynamic HTML. In addition, these popups provide control over characteristics such as dimensions and placement. As such, they are suitable not simply for traditional uses, but also for multimedia, animation, and other types of training and reference purposes. KeyHelp popups may be opened from an HTML page or, because they support mapped ids, used for context-sensitive help. KeyHelp popups can be used in compiled HTML help systems or through a website (if viewed with Internet Explorer).
   
• Topic information types. The intent of information types is to allow authors to control when specific topics are made available, based on such characteristics as computer knowledge, language, or subject matter. While KeyHelp doesn't change the information types capabilities of the HTML Help tripane design, it does provide programmatic control of topics based on a variety of attributes: user level, subject matter, time elapsed, and a variety of author-defined settings. These settings can be controlled by the author or from a program.
   
• Auto-sizing secondary windows.
  KeyHelp supports secondary windows, which are typically used for procedures, messages, and tutorials. Like the autosizing windows in WinHelp 4.0, these windows will automatically size to the amount of content in the window, rather than being a fixed size.
   
• Script extensions. KeyHelp's scripting features offer capabilities that HTML Help system doesn't offer on its own, as well as adds features to existing HTML Help capabilities. These features include information types, popups, training cards, ShortCut command, and others.
   

KeyHelp can be downloaded from:

http://www.keyworks.net/keyhelp.htm

Like the other foundation technologies developed by Work Write, Inc. and KeyWorks Software, KeyHelp is free of charge, except for the price of the download.

KeyHelp is just one of the innovative technologies resulting from the partnership of Cheryl Lockett Zubak and Ralph Walden. Ralph Walden is best known as Microsoft's lead developer for WinHelp and HTML Help. He began working on online help systems for Microsoft in 1987 with the creation of QuickHelp. In 1992, he took over the development of WinHelp, producing WinHelp 4.0 and Help Workshop. In 1996, he began creating the largest team Microsoft has ever put on a help project, and was the system architect for HTML Help. He left Microsoft in 1997, and is now principal of KeyWorks Software (http://www.keyworks.net).

Upon leaving Microsoft, Ralph teamed up with Cheryl Lockett Zubak, president of Work Write, Inc., a consulting firm that specializes in the development of user assistance for the Windows and Web platforms. An accomplished popular speaker on hypermedia design and development, Cheryl is coauthor of Designing Windows 95 Help and a forthcoming book about HTML-based help design. In February 1999, Cheryl was named "Best Speaker or Instructor" and "All Time, All Around Help Guru" at the Help Authors Choice Awards at the WinWriters Online Help Conference in Seattle, Washington. Because of her industry standing and expertise with HTML Help, Microsoft named Cheryl a charter member of the Microsoft HTML Help MVP proram. Cheryl also teaches courses on HTML-based help design, as well as how to create HTML-based help with RoboHelp HTML, ForeHelp, Dreamweaver, and HomeSite.

HTML Help is the Microsoft development environment for HTML-based help and online reference information. TML Help has replaced WinHelp as the standard help facility for Microsoft products. It is shipping with a variety of Microsoft applications, including Internet Explorer 4.0 and higher, most versions of Windows, Office 2000, and Money 99.

For further details, contact Cheryl Lockett Zubak at Work Write, Inc., 128 South Eastview Avenue, Feasterville, PA 19053 USA. Phone: +1 215.357.3453 Fax: +1 215.357.0695 Email: cheri@workwrite.com Website: http://www.workwrite.com

Last updated, May 2001

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