Comparison of online help formats
Many online help formats exist. This article lists the basic differences between four of the most common ones. To see the differences, download the samples.
Feature comparison
The table compares four types of online help: WinHelp version 4, Microsoft compiled HTML help, WebHelp and pure HTML.
| Feature | WinHelp 4 | MS HTML help (CHM) | WebHelp | pure HTML |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | The original Windows help system, and still occasionally used. Not supported in Microsoft Vista. | Runs under Windows. | Proprietary cross-platform help from Macromedia (www.macromedia.com). Essentially, it is HTML with lots of JavaScript that allows the help to run under Windows, UNIX and Macintosh. | HTML that conforms to the W3C specification. It typically includes CSS for styling and formatting. |
| Expandable and collapsible table of contents | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes, but only practical if there are not many topics. |
| Multi-level index | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Full text search | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Browser independent | n/a | No | Yes | Yes |
| Tri-pane window | Yes (partial). It is separate from the help, and is not as convenient as a proper tri-pane. |
Yes | Yes | No. It is possible to use frames for the Contents and Index, but a full text search (Find) is not possible using just HTML. |
| Popups | Yes | Yes (partial). Links between popups are not possible. |
Yes (partial). Links between popups are not possible. |
Yes |
| Context-sensitive help | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| End-user system requirements | Windows 95 to Windows XP | Windows 95 and above | Web browser | Web browser |
Help samples
You can download each help sample individually, or your can download them all at once in AllFormats.zip.
| WinHelp 4 | MS HTML (CHM) | WebHelp | Pure HTML | All formats | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zipped file name | WinHelp4.zip | MSHtmlHelp.zip & extra files | WebHelp.zip | pureHTML.zip | AllFormats.zip |
| File size (zipped) | 108 KB | 112 KB | 512 KB | 53 KB | 781 KB |
| Open this file to start | samplehelp.hlp. Not supported in Microsoft Vista. | samplehelp.chm. Windows 95 and 98 require IE 4 or above and you may need to install additional files. | samplehelp.htm (not sample_help.htm in the samplehelp directory!). Enable JavaScript in your browser. | samplehelp.htm | See appropriate format |
See also 
Linking web pages to help topics (this is a technical article)
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