Converting DITA Content to WebHelp using RoboHelp

This topic describes how to convert DITA content described by a DITA map into RoboHelp's WebHelp format.

The DITA Open Toolkit provides only rudimentary support for tri-pane, HTML-based documents. Help Authoring Tools such as RoboHelp have long set the benchmark for feature-rich, HTML-based documents. Adobe describes the RoboHelp tri-pane HTML output as WebHelp.

  1. Generate HTML Help output from your DITA content using the DITA Open Toolkit.
  2. Start RoboHelp.
  3. From the File menu, choose New Project. The New Project window displays.
  4. Select the Import tab, select Microsoft HTML Help Project (*.hhp), and click OK. The Select HTML Help Project dialog box displays.
  5. Browse to the directory into which the DITA Open Toolkit generated your DITA document's output, select the project (.hhp) file, and click Open. The HTML Help project files will be imported into a new RoboHelp project.
  6. Generate the WebHelp output.

RoboHelp will generate the WebHelp output into the /!SSL!/WebHelp subdirectory of the project path. The default file name to launch the WebHelp document takes its name from the project file name.

Tony Self

HyperWrite Pty. Ltd.

Chairperson, OASIS DITA Help Subcommittee

Parent topic: Developing DITA-based Help for Existing Help Authoring Tools